Bogan Gate’s most famous resident, Mitchell Coombs, was last Friday honoured for his achievements at Sydney TAFE when he won a top vocation award.
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Mr Coombs was awarded the Western NSW Vocational Student of the Year at the NSW Regional Training Awards, held in Orange on Friday, June 17.
The awards recognise and celebrate excellence in vocational education and training in NSW.
Mr Coombs, a former Red Bend Catholic College student, said the nomination for the award was a complete surprise as he didn’t apply for it.
“My TAFE teacher nominated me for the Sydney TAFE Student of the Year … once Sydney Institute of TAFE got it they must have passed it onto the NSW Training Awards who called me and asked me to come to the interview,” Mr Coombs said.
“It caught me off guard.”
Mr Coombs last year completed a Diploma of Screen and Media majoring in radio broadcasting at Sydney TAFE, graduating with distinctions just a few weeks ago.
While he has enjoyed success during his TAFE course, Mr Coombs was launched into the spotlight when a YouTube video he made about his hometown of Bogan Gate went viral last year.
He has since featured in the mainstream media, including appearing on Channel 7’s Sunrise program, as well as a special feature on the SBS website.
While he wasn’t sure what to expect at the NSW Regional Training Awards last week, Mr Coombs said he certainly didn’t expect to win.
“It was a nice surprise,” he said. “I didn’t know I had to say a speech, so I had to wing one.”
Mr Coombs said this award recognises his commitment to TAFE and his willingness to give it his all.
“I don’t particularly excel at university, I don’t excel at academic stuff … I’m a better hands on learner,” he said.
“The award is recognition that no matter how you learn, you can still be successful.
“The fact that I moved to Sydney to do that TAFE course, I was going to take full advantage of it. I gave it my all, I think my teachers recognised that.”
Mr Coombs will now attend the state awards in September. He has already won the Creative IT Excellence award through Sydney TAFE and as a result is now in the running for the Sydney TAFE Student of the Year which will be announced in August.
He is currently studying an arts/media degree at Macquarie University in Sydney while hosting Amplify, a youth entertainment online media channel, twice a week.
In his spare time, Mr Coombs is still making videos for his YouTube channel which can be found at http://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6EoaFxqPYcQdqqcCprrryw or on his Facebook page, Mitchell Coombs entertainer.
