Samantha Pollock had been doing a business administration certificate and part of that course involved a placement, which, in her case, happened to be with Woodside.

"The experience was amazing and I decided that I wanted to extend my skills in the field," Pollock said.

This led her to pursue a university degree in the field with Curtin University, which put her on the path to win the 2012 Jim Torlach Scholarship.

Thanks to the scholarship Pollock's course fees will be paid for the duration of the three year degree.

"A great benefit of the scholarship is that I am able to gain on-the-job experience with some of the state's top employers in health and safety," she said.

The scholarship is in honour of James Milne Torlach who made an outstanding contribution to the improvement of safety and health in the Western Australian resources industry.