Alumni Updates

Cathy Apps – Landscape designer

Cathy Apps

2018 Playford Trust/TAFE SA award

Cathy completed her studies at Urrbrae TAFE and now runs a successful landscape design business – Catnik Design Studio – in Adelaide. She used her Playford Trust TAFESA award money to learn about strategic marketing and promote the studio.

Cathy says this “changed the direction of our business in a few short months”. “This boost to our bottom line and confidence allowed us to dream. We are incredibly busy and love the work.

“My husband left his job as an accountant to work full-time in the business, which has grown exponentially, and we have contractors working for us when we need additional support. We are so grateful to the Playford Trust for assisting, recognising and supporting South Australian scholars.”

More Alumni Updates

Fei Wang – Networking and Cyber Security

2023 Playford Trust/TAFE SA Award in Modern Industy and New Technologies
Driven by determination and a belief that women can excel in STEM, Fei embarked on her IT journey after working as a bank teller for five years. Her Playford Trust Award gave her confidence and opened doors…

Rhona Hamilton – Exploring the brain with lasers

2020 Playford Trust Honours Scholarship
Rhona’s research interests have transitioned from laser physics to laser applications in biology, a field that has opened up new and exciting avenues for exploration. She’s currently in Scotland…

Viv Naidu – Mining and much more

2015 AusIMM/Playford Trust Honours Scholarship in Geoscience, Mining Engineering and Chemical Engineering
When I was awarded the AusIMM/Playford Memorial Trust Scholarship, one of the supporting partners was Hillgrove Resources. After I finished my degree, I was fortunate enough to secure a Graduate Mining Engineering role with them.

Brooke North – Exploring what’s possible in exploration

2020 OzMinerals/Playford Trust Honours Scholarship
Since graduating with Honours in 2020, I’ve gained experience across two different industries, each with a shared focus: exploration. Following my student position, I worked as an Exploration Geologist with OZ Minerals and later BHP…

Bradley Kirk – Material scientist in sustainable energy

2018 Playford Trust Honours Scholarship / 2020 Playford Trust PhD scholarship
Bradley is a material scientist who currently specialises in the development of organic and inorganic-based semiconductors specifically geared towards energy production.

Alison Gill – Plant scientist for Earth and beyond

2020 Playford Trust PhD Scholarship
Alison received her scholarship for her work in investigating industrial hemp drought tolerance, water use efficiency and plant physiology. She revealed that hemp can survive when water is scarce by regulating photosynthetic behaviour, offering valuable insights for Australian producers.

Susan Lee – Environmental pioneer

2006 Playford Trust PhD Environmental Scholarship
I was the first student to receive a Playford Trust Environment Scholarship in 2006. Studies in the environment tend to include a lot of fieldwork and trips away from civilisation, so the scholarship really helped me with these costs!

Lucas (Tuan) Tran – Energy Engineer

2021 Playford Trust/Cooper Energy Petroleum Engineering Scholarship
In 2017, I came to Australia as an international student from Vietnam to pursue a world-class education in Petroleum Engineering at the University of Adelaide. After finishing my Honours degree, I began my PhD project…

SHARE YOUR STORY

We love to hear from our alumni and to share their news. To let us know where your studies have taken you, email an update and a picture to admin@playfordtrust.com.au