The scholarships are worth $20,000 each and were formally offered to 20 students at a May 13 award ceremony who will enroll in mining or petroleum engineering at the University of Adelaide.
Grant funding was provided by industry leaders Beach Energy, BHP, Cooper Energy, OZ Minerals, Santos, Tri-Star, and the SA government.
SA Chamber of Minerals and Energy CEO Rebecca Knol said the scholarships aimed to attract SA's most talented minds to an industry that was leading the state's technological future.
"As well as being at the cutting edge of innovation, the resources sector produces the materials that enable the boundaries of science to be challenged," she said.
It comes as SA experiences a skills shortage in the engineering sector of both mining and petroleum.
According to SA government data it was urgently looking to attract mining production managers, mining engineers, mining plant engineers, petroleum engineers, hydrogeologists, and gas operators.
SA has put all mining and oil and gas workers on their skilled migrants' program, indicating it was looking overseas to fill the shortage.
University of Adelaide dean professor Katrina Falkner said the University of Adelaide was pleased to collaborate with SACOME, the SA government and Playford Trust to address the skills shortages in such an important Industry in South Australia.
SA is not alone in experiencing deep skills shortages in the resources sector.
In Western Australia, state revenue from iron ore mining is expected to account for more than taxation, and miners are hiring wherever they can.
The state's red hot mining sector, fueled by iron ore demand from China is already in the midst of a skills shortage and analysts fear it will get worse.
Mining technology provider Imdex employs 140 people in WA.
Imdex CEO Paul House told the ABC this week he expected demand for labour to increase as commodity prices remain at all-time highs.
WA grain farmers have been impacted by skills shortages in the train and truck haulage areas because the state's mines are hoovering up operators from wherever it can find them.
