Whanganui Chronicle
  • Whanganui Chronicle home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Taranaki
  • National Park
  • Whakapapa
  • Ohakune
  • Raetihi
  • Taihape
  • Marton
  • Feilding
  • Palmerston North

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • New Plymouth
  • Whanganui
  • Palmertson North
  • Levin

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Whanganui Chronicle

UCOL Whanganui students celebrate graduation with ceremony at the Royal Wanganui Opera House

Jesse King
By Jesse King
Reporter·Whanganui Chronicle·
10 Mar, 2019 04:00 PM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Having gained the UCOL qualification to do so, James Sayer is looking forward to preparing culinary delights in the likes of Southeast Asia and the United States. Photo / Stuart Munro

Having gained the UCOL qualification to do so, James Sayer is looking forward to preparing culinary delights in the likes of Southeast Asia and the United States. Photo / Stuart Munro

James Sayer was about three when his father, a qualified chef, would put him outside the restaurant during service time to busk.

Sayer remembers singing songs and rapping for cash after his old man had taken him inside and shown him around the kitchen earlier in the day.

Sayer grew up on Waiheke Island and when he was much older, he was advised that things weren't working out too well for him at school, so he left.

However, his passion for food remained.

"I've been in hospitality for about 12 years. I started at a place called Stonyridge Vineyard and worked my way up to a kitchen position after starting out dishwashing," Sayers says.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"After I left there, I decided to get into coffee."

Sayer worked as a barista for seven or eight years until he decided to get back behind the grill, working as a cook and a bartender in Auckland.

Suddenly, Sayer got the itch to take his talents overseas, but having never studied and learned all of his skills on-the-job, he was lacking in qualifications.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

So the Whanganui-born 27-year-old decided to return home to study at UCOL's Whanganui campus where he took on the level four Certificate in Cookery.

He passed the course and attended UCOL's Whanganui graduation ceremony at the Royal Wanganui Opera House on Friday.

In attendance were Whanganui's share of 1950 new graduates across all of UCOL's campuses also including Manawatū, Wairarapa and Horowhenua.

The largest graduating group in Whanganui were those that studied the New Zealand Certificate in Adult Literacy and Numeracy Education.

Discover more

Whanganui needs to define economic story

07 Mar 04:00 PM

Crash causes traffic delays on SH3 near Ratana

06 Mar 11:43 PM

Firefighters battling scrub fire near Whanganui Prison

07 Mar 02:19 AM

Cricket: Whanganui's Joel Clark and NZ Maori narrow loss to Governor General's XI

07 Mar 10:14 PM

Sayer said he enjoyed his time back home.

"My family's here and I've found it to be a nice place. It's a relaxing environment and it's an escape from the big smoke, from the rat race that was Auckland.

"It's quite a headache up there, Whanganui's been like a holiday."

Having passed the course, Sayer gained the international city and guilds qualification which is recognised for overseas work.

He dreams of working in Southeast Asia and has plans to start out in Alabama in the United States of America with a friend at the end of the year.

Sayer said that he knew from as early on as those moments entertaining folks on Waiheke that he wanted to be a part of the hospitality industry.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Hospitality workers become like a second family, at least they do when it comes to the jobs that I have done.

"The last place I worked at, The Citadel out in Castlecliff, I've got their emblem tattooed on my wrist.

"The environment is high-pressure, it's high-stress and it's challenging, but it's rewarding."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

Whanganui Chronicle

'No significant changes': All calm after quake swarm at Ruapehu

Whanganui Chronicle

'Surprising' lack of property value growth in Whanganui region

Premium
OpinionKevin Page

Kevin Page: Facing fears, finding humour and relief in medical journey


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

'No significant changes': All calm after quake swarm at Ruapehu
Whanganui Chronicle

'No significant changes': All calm after quake swarm at Ruapehu

The temperature of Te Wai ā-moe remains stable at about 12°C.

14 Jul 11:23 PM
'Surprising' lack of property value growth in Whanganui region
Whanganui Chronicle

'Surprising' lack of property value growth in Whanganui region

14 Jul 06:00 PM
Premium
Premium
 Kevin Page: Facing fears, finding humour and relief in medical journey
Kevin Page
OpinionKevin Page

Kevin Page: Facing fears, finding humour and relief in medical journey

14 Jul 05:00 PM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Whanganui Chronicle e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Whanganui Chronicle
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP