More than 40 awards were presented at Bendigo TAFE's annual Industry Excellence Awards on Thursday night.

Diploma of Community Services graduate Pinar Teker and Diploma of Nursing graduate Taylah Firmer shared the overall student of the year award for Bendigo TAFE.

READ MORE:

Bendigo TAFE CEO Sally Curtain said the ceremony was an opportunity to recognise the achievements, hard work and commitment of students and their educators.

"Our award winners and nominees have demonstrated excellence and dedication within their respective fields, and many of them have overcome personal challenges to do so," Ms Curtain said.

"But they have not achieved these results alone, our teachers and staff have supported these truly remarkable individuals through the course of their education."

Pursuing her tertiary education wasn't without difficulties for nurse Taylah Firmer.

Living rurally meant she travelled almost two hours each way to campus and clinical placements, while juggling her responsibility as a guardian for her younger brother.

The Victorian floods in October last year then left Ms Firmer without a car and with a damaged house, but that did not stop her.

READ MORE:

"I chose to do nursing as I wanted to help people through some of their most vulnerable moments in life," she said.

She is now working in two rural hospitals as an enrolled nurse, and said the career move has changed her life for the better.

An advocate for multicultural services Pina Teker's personal experience as a mature-age migrant to Australia and survivor of domestic violence led her onto the path of community services.

"It took me quite a long time to get back on my feet and along the way I met quite a few people who shared the same challenges," she said.

"When you look at our experiences, there seems to have been a lack of communication and connection with the community, as well as misunderstandings.

"I would like to be a part of a path that reduces these barriers, so that we have happy and productive people in our community."

The hard-working single mother of two is now employed as a redress advocate with Loddon Campaspe Multicultural Services and works to reduce barriers to service accessibility experienced by people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

Other awards included apprentice of the year which went to hairdressing student Tia Webb and the Aunty Melva Johnson Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander student of the year prize awarded to Jodii Geddes.

Ms Geddes, 52, has worked in youth, education and community sectors and holds multiple leadership roles including with First Australians Media Entreprises.

She said she completed Certificate IV in Training and Assessment to "empower, encourage and create passion for our mob to complete a training qualification".

"If I can do it at my age, so can they," she said.

Pathology collector Shee Lay Bell Po received the inspirational student of the year after completing Certificate III in Pathology.

Growing up in a refugee camp, Ms Bell Po watched her mother help others as a nurse and dreamt of pursuing a career of her own in health.

READ MORE:

Trainee of the year went to Megan Drew who has completed Certificate III in Business and been able to apply her learnings in childcare administration.

With Bendigo TAFE also celebrating 150 years of tertiary education in Bendigo this year, Ms Curtain said the awards reflect the critical role of TAFE as a long-standing provider of skills and training within the community.

"With a long and rich history in this thriving community, Bendigo TAFE has helped to create opportunities for the region through high-quality training," Ms Curtain said.

"We work closely with industry partners and the Victorian Government to ensure training at Bendigo TAFE is aligned to current and future industry and local needs.

"The achievements of this year's award winners are testament to the important role of TAFE and the positive impact of vocational education and training within our community."

Digital subscribers now have the convenience of faster news, right at your fingertips with the Bendigo Advertiser app. Click here to download.