UCOL New Zealand Diploma in Business (Management and Accounting pathways) student Aaron McGregor has received an annual award offered by Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ) and Ngā Kaitatau Māori o Aotearoa (NKMoA).
CA ANZ Māori Sector Manager, Kateriina Selwyn, says the $5000 Ngā Raumanako Māori Scholarship, worth $2500 a year over two years, is aimed at students of Māori descent studying towards a qualification in accounting.
“To win, they must be able to demonstrate how the scholarship will help achieve their aspirations in accounting and contribute to Māori economic and financial well-being, something this year’s winner, Aaron McGregor (Ngā Rauru, Ngati Raukawa ki te Tonga) has done.”
Aaron, became a fulltime student in 2016 after taking redundancy after several years in managerial roles.
He says he looked on redundancy as a chance for a career reset, and after working with his iwi as a researcher, enrolled in Whanganui UCOL’s New Zealand Diploma in Business (
Management and
Accounting pathways).
He says it was a move that made sense for someone who has always loved maths.
“I’d also always been interested in financial literacy, even as a youngster at school, but I’d drifted into a managerial career.”
Maintaining an A+ average throughout the two years of the Diploma, he says he’ll use the scholarship for further study. He’s also pleased the scholarship includes the opportunity of an internship with one of the Ngā Kaitatau Māori o Aotearoa network partners.
Aaron says he is seeing more Māori consider accounting as a career.
“My advice is it’s not as scary as you might think – it’s an evolving profession and an exciting time to get on board, so I say to them, go for it.”
Note: Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand and Ngā Kaitatau Māori o Aotearoa offer two Māori accounting students annually: the $5000 Ngā Raumanako Māori Scholarship and the $6000 Suzanne Spencer Memorial Māori Scholarship.
Pictured above: Aaron McGregor with his sisters (L to R) Karen McGregor and Yvette McGregor with Aaron’s scholarship award and tāonga.
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