Clyde Higgs Undergraduate scholar: Marie Powell

Marie Powell, final year BSc (Hons) Agriculture with Farm Business Management student, and recipient of the Clyde Higgs Undergraduate Scholarship.

“Clyde Higgs was an innovative dairy farmer and his success story developed from his work in the UK and Kenya. I am delighted to receive this award, which aims to help young scholars to progress with the intentions of creating a strong, resilient dairy industry”, says Marie, from Crickhowell, Powys.

“I grew up on a family sheep and beef farm on the foothills on the Sugar Loaf. At 16 I studied agriculture at Gelli Aur College and worked part time on two dairy farms in Carmarthen, which cemented my interests in all things dairy.”

Interest has been turned into a lot more thanks to her scholarship success. “Being awarded this scholarship has so far been the highlight of my final year. I applied to help fund further education and training courses. As graduation becomes closer, I hope to commence my career, and have ambitions to study a master’s in Ruminant Nutrition part time when I am financially capable. This will now be sooner than expected”, says Marie, 21.

Applying for the support brought added benefits. “Having applied for various graduate schemes within the dairy sector, I have had very positive feedback and gained interview confidence. I put this down to being awarded the Clyde Higgs Scholarship and the interview process with the panel.”

It’s not the first time a scholarship has supported Marie’s deep commitment to the dairy sector. “After college, I was lucky enough to travel to the Republic of Ireland to learn more about their resilient dairy sector, which was made possible by funding from the Gwili Jones Travel Bursary. During my second year at Harper I was fortunate enough to be awarded the Staffordshire and Birmingham Agricultural Study Award which helped fund me through my DIY AI and foot trimming course, to give me added skills at the spring calving dairy I was working part time for in Leicestershire.”

Determination in her chosen professional field is clear, but Marie strives equally hard on the hockey field, having played competitively since the age of 14.

With significant industry work experience behind her, in the UK as well as Australia and New Zealand, this sporty scholar is looking to the future with optimism. “My long-term ambition would be to work with dairy farmers and to travel with work exploring the different production systems used around the world. I believe this award has made this far more accessible and opened new opportunities I would not otherwise have been exposed to,” adds Marie.