Finding her way after school

Sian grew up in the wide, golden stretches of Wyalkatchem. The kind of childhood where space, family, and farm life shape you long before you realise it. After finishing Year 12, she did what many young people feel pressured to do and chose a path quickly, hoping it was the right one.

Her first step was a Sports Science degree at Notre Dame University, but after a year she realised it wasn’t the right fit. She then tried Agribusiness at Curtin University. Six months in, she faced another truth, Perth just wasn’t for her. The noise, the pace, the distance from home. She missed the family farm, the space, the sense of belonging. So she packed up and went back to Wyalkatchem.

Returning to her roots

Returning home felt like a reset and Sian discovered something she hadn’t fully appreciated before. She realised agriculture wasn’t just familiar, it felt like her. The people, the honesty, the love for the land, the way farming blends work and life into one meaningful pursuit. Still unsure of her next steps, Sian sought support from an independent career counsellor, helping her unpack her strengths and passions. That clarity ultimately led her to study Agricultural Science through Charles Sturt University. Studying online, though, wasn’t easy.

Tackling online study

Sian found it isolating and being so far from campus, it never crossed her mind to reach out for support. In the early years, she struggled with time management while working full-time, especially during busy seasons like seeding and harvest. Assignments crept up, exams arrived too fast and the loneliness of distance learning didn’t help. She repeated a couple of units while trying to figure it all out.

Eventually she built systems that worked. She made her own study planners and mapped assignments week-by-week. She blocked out study windows around work seasons and little by little, the chaos became doable.

Country connections

Even in the isolation, there were bright spots. Twice a year she would fly to Charles Sturt for residential intensives, which were a whirlwind of practical classes, exams, connecting and socialising. Meeting students from across Australia was a highlight. Everyone brought their own story and background. Those trips turned names on a screen into friendships and created some of her favourite study memories.

Her biggest support came from her family and especially her partner, who picked up the slack during study periods and trips away. Looking back, she wishes she’d reached out more for student services, but she also recognises that online delivery has improved a lot since she studied.

Battling rural challenges

Studying from the country came with classic rural challenges too. Patchy internet made live tutorials difficult, and she often relied on her local Community Resource Centre for printing and a stable connection. There were no regional study hubs back then, no dedicated spaces, no face-to-face support, no one to help bridge communication between student and university. Sian says if Lumen Study Hubs had existed at the time, she would have happily driven the hour to the nearest hub to access that space, support, and connection.

Through all the study changes Sian learned that there’s no single, straight path to finding the right career. Stepping away, going home or starting again isn’t failure, it’s part of figuring out where you truly belong. For Sian, every detour played a role in leading her back to agriculture and the life she wanted.

Proud moments

Looking back, the part she’s most proud of isn’t the grades or the flights across the country. It’s that she kept going, even when it was hard and when the self-doubt crept in. She persevered and finished a degree from the other side of Australia without the support systems students now have.

Helping regional students stay close to home

Today, Sian works as Study Hubs Coordinator for Lumen Wheatbelt Study Hubs, a role that feels like everything has come full circle. After years of navigating online study alone, she now supports students who are facing the same challenges she once did. Whether she’s helping someone find the right support service, untangling university admin, or simply offering encouragement, Sian is now the person she wishes she had during her own degree.

Her advice to her younger self?
“Give yourself a break. You don’t have to have everything together all the time. Prioritise what really matters: family and your health. And make the most of every opportunity.”

And to anyone studying regionally today?

“If I could do it online more than ten years ago, with far less support, then you can absolutely do it now. No matter where you live, studying is possible.”