What do you do for fun?: "I climb mountains"

Guest blooger Roslyn Baatjies

I imagine that the answer to this question: ‘’So, prof what do you do for fun?’’, to NMMU Vice-Chancellor Prof Derrick Swartz would be, ‘’I climb mountains’’.

I thought about that this morning when the man himself spoke about his planned climb of Mount Fuji in Japan next month to raise funds for bursaries for our financially needy students.  He mentioned that he recently did mountaineering in Norway and that he was invited to climb Kilimanjaro with another group. Unfortunately the latter clashed with his university commitments.

As part of Prof Swartz's personal commitment to the University's 10-year celebrations, he will be climbing Mount Fuji in Japan on 7 August to raise funds for academically-deserving but financially-needy students at NMMU.

The poster for the VC's #climb4nmmu

The #climb4nmmu campaign will also give Prof Swartz the opportunity to highlight the extent of the need for financial support for such students especially within the Eastern Cape, which is recognised as the poorest province.

Prof Swartz's 3,7km climb will be symbolic of the challenges many students face in order to get a tertiary qualification such as perseverance, taking responsibility and integrity. There are 10 base camps leading up to the peak, one for each year of NMMU's first decade.

All funds will go to the University's Bursary Legacy Campaign run by the NMMU Trust. Their Ignite a Candle campaign is already supporting worthy students.

The University is hoping to raise at least R500 000 to support a further students for the duration of their degrees or diplomas.

"I studied at university because of the bursary support I received from people I never knew personally. My bursary was a gift from the past to the present.”

"I strongly believe that this is our generation's responsibility too. We can give back in thousands of different ways. The #climb4nmmu campaign is just one way,’’ says Prof Swartz.

The VC, Prof. Swartz during fitness test.

The VC addressing the media this morning.

Everyday mountains have a way of humbling us. It has a way of connecting us to ourselves, nature and to others, by simply being out there. Embracing adventure means knowing it’s not always going to turn out exactly the way we want it or expect it to and so are the mountains, just like life. 

So in the same way the daily challenges give our needy students a new perspective, we bid that our vice-chancellor will embrace this adventure and not only raise funds, but come back to NMMU with new ideas to challenge us and the status quo.

The University has created a dedicated website in support of the #climb4nmmu campaign. Go to http://trust.nmmu.ac.za/VC-s-Climb-Campaign

Opportunities galore for learners and students this recess

Guest blogger Roslyn Baatjies

For many learners school’s out, but for those who intend improving their marks and getting into university next year, there is no rest.

Driving into work this morning, we saw a number of young people entering the campuses and someone asked when lectures are ending. I responded that lectures have ended and that those young people were learners attending either the accounting or engineering winter schools or the Science Discovery Week at NMMU.

This week close to  900 Grade 11 and 12 learners will be exposed to the fascinating worlds of accounting, science and engineering over the June/July school holidays at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University.

The Science Discovery Week – that will be attended by 300 learners from 56 schools in the Eastern Cape - promises to open the eyes of Grade 11 and 12 learners to the intriguing fields of Science in a fun and informal setting. Daily activities will include visits to various Science Faculty departments where learners will participate in subject-specific experiments.

Offered for the past eight years, the event started off with 60 learners and has now grown to 300 participants. With topics like ‘’Game Changers - The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Science”, “Light Fantastic” and ‘’Chemistry Unplugged‘’ learners will not only be educated, but also entertained.

NMMU’s Accounting winter school programme, geared towards helping Grade 11 and 12 pupils improve their marks and their chances of attending university, boasts an impressive track record.

Almost a third of the 520 pupils who attended last year’s Grade 12 winter school successfully registered for degrees or diplomas at NMMU. An analysis comparing their June matric results with their December results has revealed that many of them shot up by as much as 30%.

This year’s week-long Accounting winter school for Grade 12s, sponsored by Deloitte, takes place from June 29 to July 3, while the three-day Grade 11 winter school, sponsored by PricewaterhouseCooper (PwC), takes place from July 7 to 9.

The annual engineering winter school has been offered for the past 10 years and will take place from 12 to 17 July. The programme for 30 learners from 14 high schools will include, among others, visits to VWSA and Continental Tyre.

In addition, a winter school project with a difference will be held off-campus by the NMMU Department of Social Development Professions and driven by social work lecturer Dr Veonna Goliath.

Dr Goliath says the winter school is truly interdisciplinary in nature and has a longer term community development focus.

The project, located in the Northern Areas at Bethvale Primary School, was initiated by the Uniting Reformed church in Chatty and part of Dr Goliath’s  post-doctoral work. From Monday 29 June to Thursday 2 July 2015 tutors from mainly the Faculty of Education’s postgraduate programme will tutor Grade 10 and 11 learners in specific subjects.

And in rural Eastern Cape, our SRC is making information accessible in a bid to assist high school learners in raising their awareness of matters relating to access to higher education.

At NMMU there definitely is no lack of opportunities to share or gain knowledge. 

From statues to random acts of kindness

Guest blogger Bev Erickson

Our country is really experiencing a lot of turmoil with what’s happening around the issue of statues and their colonial connections. Everyone has their own opinion on this and I’m certainly not going to go into it here, but it certainly got me thinking about things and about students in particular.

Having worked in the higher education environment for many years – I’ve been exposed to students, lots of students (I guess that’s what keeps me young!). According to our old friend the dictionary “A student is a person who is studying at a university or other place of higher education” and the origin of the word is from Latin - student- 'applying oneself to', from the verb studere, related to studium 'painstaking application'. It’s this painstaking application by our NMMU students that I’m referring to here.

We see it all the time – our students who painstakingly study hard to achieve great results and in the process, not only bring honour to themselves and their families, but to our university family too. Others painstakingly apply themselves to complete their studies and achieve great heights in their chosen sport or other extra-mural activities – and we have lots of them too who fly the fly very high.

Then there are those who are painstakingly apply themselves to helping others. There are so many examples of this taking place at NMMU every day – I think of our Human Resource Management students’ “Pay it Forward” project which they run each year, the Beyond the Classroom students who do so much good for others, the Enactus Society putting service first and now the Random Acts of Kindness group, started by first-year Computing Science students who filmed a video and have started a Facebook page as “a platform for everyone to post and share their random acts of kindness - spreading the love for one another.”

Check out why NMMU students make us proud - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruDlOPx9OzY

So these things got me thinking. Are our students different? Are they special? Do they care more than others?

My answer is YES, I think they are special. We so often see our value of ubuntu being demonstrated and lived by our students and it is so heart-warming and uplifting. Many a time I walk away from a student interaction and think that our future is bright.

So with faeces being flung at statues, riders being flung from horses, our namesake’s likeness in front of the Union Building under threat of being toppled – what I see at NMMU is upliftment, kindness and the building of a great future.

NMMU students – you make me proud!

#NMMUWalk - Putting the ‘social’ back into ‘social media’

By guest blogger: Khanyisa Melwa

The advent of social media has completely changed the way we interact and engage with one another. Filters and hashtags have become somewhat of a lingua franca. As millennials, we are often referred to as hyper-taskers and our teenagers are now screenagers. We live in the information age, an age where one chooses to be ignorant as information is readily available with a click of a button.

With this in mind, it was quite refreshing to be a part of an event that puts the ‘social’ back into social media. I’m talking about the first #NMMUWalk that was hosted by Cityofpe together with the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) on Tuesday evening.

The #NMMUWalk is essentially an Instawalk (Instagram Walk) which is about getting the community together to take pictures of our beautiful city/campuses and share them on Instagram. It’s an opportunity for people to get to meet the people behind the Instagram accounts and interact with them on a human level. “It’s about growing the community, that’s our emphasis” says Joshua Terry, one third of Cityofpe. The community in this case, was the NMMU community.

The walk began at Madibaz Café, with some quick treats, because you know – food. Whilst enjoying the delicacies, I couldn’t help but feel like an amateur (which I am) when I heard these guys and girls talk about their lenses and cool cameras. Canon 550D’s, ISO’s and Insta-lenses were the order of the day. Did you guys even know Insta-lenses existed? I didn’t. Apparently some company in Cape Town manufactures these, a pretty nifty gadget for you iPhone users.

Our Instawalkers at the kraal.

We then missioned down to the kraal to begin our expedition, in search for the coolest shots of our beautiful campus. Bar the odd selfie here and there, our Instawalkers achieved this with aplomb, as a plethora of beautiful pictures of the campus can be seen under the hashtag - #NMMUWalk on Instagram.

River Leask doing a 'RiverJump'

What was even more interesting was how 25 completely different students, with everyone studying different courses and from different backgrounds could come together for a new experience and enjoy it so much. We all came to take pictures of a beautiful campus and share these on Instagram but the bi-product of this was that friends and connections were made and for some, followers were gained.

Barriers were transcended at the #NMMUWalk; people you would normally speak to over an app using a smartphone were now standing right next to you taking the very pictures that would leave you awestruck on Instagram. Not only that, but societal barriers were also dismantled, this was evidenced by the diversity of the students present. This goes to show how social media – which is famous for rendering active-users as anti-social can now be used as a socializing agent, which can only bode well for social cohesion in our beautiful country.

It’s really cool to know that we go to a university that encourages creativity, diversity and a vibrant student life. Kudos to the lads from Cityofpe for hosting this event with NMMU, I hope this was the first of many.

Photo: Stuart William Black aka Crazyninja88 on Instagram

The secret for a successful stay at university

Guest blogger ... NMMU student
Rashied Adams

You have just been admitted into a university and have a dream of becoming a teacher, scientist, lawyer, medical doctor, etc. The sad reality is that your dream could just remain a mere dream.

How does one succeed academically at university?

Firstly, establish the fact that your qualification you have registered for comes with promotion rules and criteria. Familiarise yourself with these rules and criteria from the word go; because it is possible to be academically excluded from your faculty.

What does this mean?

It means that if you have not passed a certain amount of modules for the year, you may not be allowed back into the programme the following year. These rules vary from university to university. You can get this information in your Faculty Prospectus or Faculty Yearbook.

Secondly, attend all lecturers – this is how you learn.

Thirdly, make notes in lectures, in a way that you understand. You can never make too many notes!

Fourthly, every evening at your residence before you retire for the day, just read once over the work you have covered for the day. It is as easy as that. This makes studying before the exams so much easier.

Fifthly, manage your time properly; have a schedule in your diary where you have time for studying, reading and assignments.

Lastly, take responsibility and know your primary reason for being at university – to get your qualification. Only you can make it happen!

Work hard, before you know it, you will be kneeling before the Chancellor on graduation day and your dream will become reality.

What it means to be 10

Always reason to celebrate ... 

That’s us. We’re 10. Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) is a decade old!

And like most ten-year-olds we’re on the cusp of something bigger as we enter our tweens, and then fully-fledged adulthood as a university deserving of recognition.

But for now we’re ten. We’ve survived the knocks, bumps and bruises of childhood. We’ve scraped our knees a few times and even suffered a bloody nose for a serious lapse in behaviour. However, for the most part, we’ve relished our childhood and learnt to handle ourselves without too much help.

We’ve won a few prizes along the way, established some life-long friendships, built some pretty imposing sandcastles (have you seen all our new buildings?) and, for the most part, we’re appreciative of what we’ve received.

We’re pretty independent by now; we can stand on our own two feet and hold our head high.

But we’re only ten. And when you’re ten, parties and celebrations are still big on the lifestyle agenda. We like it when we can get together with friends to recognise special occasions.

That is why NMMU is lining up as many as ten different occasions for celebration – starting on Tuesday 10 February.

On that day staff and students are being invited to take stock, and come up with a personal list of 10 things they would like to achieve during NMMU’s big birthday year. (You can find a branded A4 sheet for this on the following link )

The list is aimed at motivating staff and students for an exciting year ahead and for giving everyone direction. The ten goals can be personal, institutional or a combination of both.

So what are your ten goals for 2015?

We’d like to celebrate our first decade on the 10th day of every month (well, at least the ones that fall in the week and outside of university holidays) and are seeking celebratory ideas – things that bring folk together and involve our values of respect for the natural environment, integrity, excellence, respect for diversity and Ubuntu.

In the interim, however, apart from your list of goals for 2015 with everything from “walking three times a week” to “starting to study again”, we’re bringing on a little music.

AlgoaFM – one of those with whom we have built a friendship – will be bringing their festive sounds to the Kraal on South Campus from 10am on Tuesday, 10 February. During their outside broadcast they will also witness the symbolic release of balloons by members of our Student Representative Council (SRC) to celebrate our first ten years.

Well, we’re ten, aren’t we? And we still like balloons too.

Happy birthday NMMU!

Is this you? A tech-savvy, future-focused, mature Millennial …

Colour blurs with today's Millennials

I’m confused. I’m a Baby Boomer, born after the Second World, who inherited many of the traits of that generation. We’re self-starters; mostly independent and responsible for ourselves. We get on and do.

Now meet the Millennials – today’s student generation, aged 18 to 34. Who are you?

At Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU), you are our number one stakeholder, or to put it very simply, the reason why we exist. Without students, we would not be here.

And so it’s pretty darn important that the old-timers among us (the Baby Boomers, the Silent Generation before us and Generation X after us) understand just what makes you tick.

If I have done my research correctly, you’re pretty chilled when it comes to gender (blurring), modern families, race and with living alongside gran and gramps.

You believe in causes; endeavour to be ethical; are mature; seek solutions and sustainable values.

But you also, if what the experts are saying is true, like to set yourself apart with your lifestyle, the way you dress and even where and when you go on holiday. You like to volunteer and share, be it online or materially. This comes naturally to you.

You aren’t in a hurry to marry or have children and you have developed some excellent life skills just because of the period in which you have lived (a recession).

The Millennials or Generation Y  are set on seeking solutions

What amazes me most about you, however, is your ability to handle technology, lots of it, all at once. You can use five screens; think in 4D and not just multi-task, but hyper-task. Apparently, the latter has seen your brains evolve to process more information at even greater speeds.

Now that’s fairly frightening for someone who methodically likes to do one thing at a time, but we’re willing to try to understand you. Furthermore, I’d like to vouch that the Baby Boomer Generation and Generation X (aged 34 to 54) are all at pains to meet your needs (you are, after all, either in or about to enter the workplace and earn the stuff that makes the world go around - money).

So we’ll be trying to reach and inspire you as marketers by:

· Talking to you in images

· Keeping our communication tight and bright

· Talking to you as adults

· Tapping into your entrepreneurial spirit (come on, we want to help you find solutions to all the stuff we messed up – like our environment)

· Feeding your curiosity and

· Asking for your guidance

Yes, I am asking for your guidance. How do we connect with your generation?

We need your help in marketing to Millennials

Will Instagram and Twitter do it? Or should we showcasing the good deeds of NMMU – the outreach programmes that see borderline maths pupils pass with a distinction for Matric maths or our involvement in seeking renewable energy solutions. Or what? What can we do to ensure that NMMU becomes a university of first choice?

Tell us. Show us. Please be part of sharing the NMMU success story.

And end my confusion.

We’re ready to welcome you

You know when you’re expecting family and friends for Christmas or a special occasion and you spruce things, well, that’s what’s been happening here at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU).

We’ve hauled out the proverbial feather duster in preparation for about 5 800 new students and their families who will be attending the Welcoming Ceremony from 9am tomorrow.

If you’ve ever been part of a household spring clean you’ll know it requires more than a little elbow grease. In most cases, the annual purge of clutter and preparation also requires a sense of humour too.

The same can be said of NMMU’s preparations for its special visitors.

The Indoor Sports Centre at NMMU is awaiting all first-year students and their families

Elbow grease, a sense of humour … and a great big logistical plan (see below for venues) to ensure that all newcomers receive the welcome they deserve and the knowledge they need.

Since 5 800 students plus their parents do not fit into the NMMU Indoor Sports Centre (the usual venue for large events) on South Campus, the university has opened up much of its home elsewhere too.

Cleaning staff have prepared the many venues

So tomorrow, our special guests will find themselves spread throughout North, South, Second Avenue and George campuses where they will be welcomed by NMMU Vice-Chancellor Prof Derrick Swartz (mostly via live streaming), and then their respective deans and faculty staff members.

Plants have been moved in, ceilings draped, sound and audio installed, publications printed, a PowerPoint made, speeches written, signage erected, desks and chairs cleaned, lawns moved and students trained (How2Buddies) all in readiness for the big day.

Staff from Magnetic Storm will be working at six  different venues

As much as it is a big day for NMMU – a chance to showcase ourselves to a wider audience – it’s an even bigger day for those who will be joining us as students. It’s a whole new season in their lives.

We want that new chapter to get off to the right start.

We look forward to welcoming you!

Venues for 2015 Welcoming Ceremony

The Welcoming Ceremony is from 9am to 10am.

The Deans’ Address and Faculty Meet and Greet sessions are from 10am to 12pm (directly after the Welcoming Ceremony).

The following faculties will be situated in the Vodacom NMMU Indoor Sport Centre, South Campus, for the Welcoming Ceremony:

· Faulty of Business and Economic Sciences

· Faculty of Education

The other faculties will have a live feed.

After the Welcoming Ceremony, the faculties will move to their breakaway venues.

FACULTY OF ARTS

They will be situated in the Second Avenue Auditorium, Second Avenue Campus as well as in venue 425 0003 for the Welcoming Ceremony and the Dean’s Address. They will split into the breakaway venues for the Faculty Meet and Greet.

Welcoming Ceremony: 09:00- 09:45

Dean’s Address: 10:00- 10:30

Refreshments: 10:30- 11:00

Students & parents to move to breakaway venues

Faculty Meet and Greet: 11:30- 12:30

Breakaway venues (all on 2nd Ave Campus):

BA General Remain in 2nd Avenue Auditorium

BA MCC 425 0003 (New venue)

Journalism 410 0003 (Y003)

Public Relations 411 0011 (Z011)

BAdmin & Public Management

Including degree and diploma 411 0015 (Z015)

BVA Bachelor of Visual Arts 410 0008 (Y008)

BAS Bachelor of Architectural Studies 411 0115 (Z115)

Dip Architectural Technology and

Dip Interior Design 411 0215 (Z215)

Music 411 0006 (Z006)

FACULTY OF EDUCATION

They will be situated in the Vodacom NMMU Indoor Sport Centre, South Campus for the Welcoming Ceremony. They will then move to Lecture Hall 123 venue 007 for the Dean’s Address and Faculty Meet and Greet:

Welcoming Ceremony: 09:00- 09:45

Students & parents to move to Lecture Hall 123

Dean’s Address: 10:30- 11:00

Refreshments: 11:00- 11:30

Faculty Meet and Greet: 11:30- 12:30

FACULTY OF LAW
They will be situated in Lecture Hall 123 venue 0002 for the Welcoming Ceremony, Dean’s Address and Faculty Meet and Greet.

Welcoming Ceremony (live streamed): 09:00- 09:45

Dean’s Address: 10:00- 10:30

Refreshments: 10:30- 11:00

Faculty Meet and Greet: 11:00- 12:00

FACULTY OF SCIENCE
They will be situated in South Campus Auditorium for the Welcoming Ceremony and Dean’s Address. They will split into the breakaway venues for the Faculty Meet and Greet.

Welcoming Ceremony (live streamed): 09:00- 09:45

Dean’s Address: 10:00- 10:30

Refreshments: 10:30- 11:00

Faculty Meet and Greet: 11:00- 12:00

Breakaway venues:

BSc Auditorium South Campus

Analytical & Polymer Technology 5 0003

Agriculture & Game Ranch Management 5 0007

Chemical and Process Technology 5 0005


FACULTY OF HEALTH SCIENCES

They will be split into schools for the Welcoming Ceremony and Dean’s Address (South and North Campuses). They will be split further for the Faculty Meet & Greet.

Welcoming Ceremony (live streamed): 09:00- 09:45

Dean’s Address: 10:00- 10:30

Refreshments: 10:30- 11:00

Faculty Meet and Greet: 11:00- 12:00

Welcoming Ceremony & Dean’s Address:

Psychology 35 0040, South Campus

Social Development 35 0040, South Campus

Pharmacy and Higher Certificate in Pharmacy Support 12 0288 and 12 0264/65 South Campus

HMS 123 0026, South Campus

Sport Management 123 0026, South Campus

BSc Dietetics 123 0026, South Campus

Nursing 207 0101 (N2)

Emergency Medical Care (EMC) Senate Hall, North Campus

Biomedical Technology Conference Centre, North Campus Radiography Conference Centre, North Campus

Environmental Health Conference Centre, North Campus

Faculty Meet & Greet:

Psychology 35 0040, South Campus

Social Development 35 0027, South Campus

Pharmacy and

Higher Certificate in Pharmacy Support 12 0288 and 12 0264/65 South Campus

HMS 123 0026

Sport Management 35 0017

BSc Dietetics 35 0018

Nursing 207 0101 (N2)

Emergency Medical Care (EMC) Senate Hall, North Campus

Biomedical Technology 202 1020 (A120)

Radiography 202 0028 (A28)

Environmental Health 202 0027 (A27)

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING, THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
They will be situated in Goldfields Auditorium, North Campus for the Welcoming Ceremony and Dean’s Address. They will split into the breakaway venues for the Faculty Meet and Greet:

Welcoming Ceremony (live streamed): 09:00- 09:45

Dean’s Address: 10:00- 10:30

Refreshments (breakaway venues): 10:30- 11:00

Faculty Meet and Greet (breakaway venues): 11:00- 12:00

Breakaway venues (all North Campus):

Civil Engineering 261 0222 (M222)

Electrical Engineering New Engineering Venue – Auditorium

Industrial Engineering New Engineering Building – Sweat Lab

Mechanical Engineering 207 0001 (N1)

Mechatronics 204 0009 (C9)

Building 261 0154 (M154)

Construction Studies 204 116 (C116)

Construction Economics (Quantity Surveying) 261 0141 (M141)

School Of ICT Goldfields Auditorium, North Campus

FACULTY OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC SCIENCES

They will be situated in the Vodacom Indoor Sports Centre, South Campus for the Welcoming Ceremony, Dean’s Address and Faculty Meet and Greet.

Welcoming Ceremony (live streamed): 09:00- 09:45

Dean’s Address: 10:00- 10:30

Refreshments: 10:30- 11:00

Faculty Meet and Greet: 11:00- 12:00

Forget the car park blues ...

I glance out of my office window at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) to an almost empty car park. The students are on holiday and the bulk of our academic and support staff are too.

Just as I start to suffer from the “car park blues” and feel sorry for myself with the resentment rising within because they are relaxing while I am still beavering away, I remember …

I remember that I have a job. I am employed.

I have somewhere to go each day and a means of earning a living.

I am fortunate.

I am especially fortunate in South Africa with its official unemployment figure of 25.5% (unofficially, it’s put at over 30%) – which equates to about 5.2 million South Africans without a job, according to StatsSA.

I also remember that I am naive in believing that all 27 000 of our students are relaxing. Few can afford the luxury of a two-month lay-off from a financial perspective. Many of them have to work to supplement the cost of obtaining a tertiary qualification.

As a former lecturer, I once had a student who went overseas every end-of-year break to work on building sites in the United Kingdom so that he could pay for the following year’s tuition fees.

Apart from the financial benefits for students who work in the holidays, there’s another – perhaps more important reason – that students should seek holiday employment during their study years. It just makes them more marketable. It gives them the edge when it comes to entering the workplace for real.

And it’s not just me saying that. Research by Adcorp in 2012 shows that those who take up internships are 30% more successful in finding longer-term placements than those who have had no previous work experience.

Doing holiday jobs gives you more than just financial rewards

I know I have an internship to thank for my first job as a young reporter at the Herald. I worked there every holiday. Perhaps it is simply a case of better the devil you know than the unknown student who sends in his CV. Whatever the reason, I will be eternally grateful for the opportunity I had to practice my future trade and be assured I had chosen the right career. 

But holiday jobs need not be within our chosen field because all work has something to teach us in terms of discipline, commitment, being prompt, being polite, perseverance and interacting with people.

If students find themselves scrubbing dishes, serving people, handing out flyers, inputting information, answering telephones or whatever it is, it also shows a certain willingness (though sadly, there appears to be a growing movement among young people to think they are above certain forms of work – see Catherine Wijnberg’s excellent article: http://ow.ly/G1wr0) and this is to be commended.

Remember the student who worked on the building sites in the British mid-winter. Such work not only paid his fees, it made him appreciative of the fact that he needed a qualification if he did not want to be labourer for the rest of his life.

But it also gave him a head start when it came to permanent employment – his employers recognized his work ethic and his ability to work with people from all works of life (a must for a journalist). Today he travels the world for a top sports media group.

So if you are working student reading this, laugh off your form of the “car park blues” because you have given yourself a head start in the job market – one in which 600 000 graduates in South Africa also find themselves permanently unemployed.

Take advantage of such opportunities to bolster your CV and supplement your study fees

Making history … NMMU’s first summer graduation

Education graduates sisters Cindy-Lee and Lee-Ann Bosch

We made history today … that’s Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University and some 400-plus students as they were capped at the university’s first summer graduation.

And what a happy occasion is was for 400 Education graduates and 30-odd postgraduate students who received their masters and doctoral degree.

The new summer graduation supplements the university’s traditional graduation ceremonies in April – and following today’s successful event, is very likely to become an annual event on the academic calendar.

No less than 63 staff members filled the stage, while the Indoor Sports Centre itself was almost filled to capacity to witness what South Africa desperately so needs (in large numbers) – qualified teaching graduates who are committed to the country’s future.

The Government might well have boasted an increase in the Grade 12 national senior certificate results in 2013 (over the previous years), but we all well know that the state of education in our country is not healthy.

I mean, 500 000 learners who start out in grade 1, don’t even get to their matric year, and those who do, only need a 30% or 40% pass mark for their various subjects to complete their schooling.

When compared with other countries the shortcomings of our own schooling system are even more obvious.

South Africa’s maths and science ranks second last in the world – not second last in Africa, but the world. According to the Global Information Technology Report of last year, only Yemen’s youngsters are worse than ours.

The facts speak for themselves.

Our schooling system is a mess. We are failing hundreds of youngsters.

That’s why today’s graduation is so special. Yes, it’s a first for us - a piece of NMMU history. But it’s these young men and women who have the opportunity to help create a new history for South Africa.

It’s a history in which our education system will produce learners who can read, write, solve mathematical and other problems and think critically. They won’t just scrape through with 30% or 40%, but get at least 50% for all their subjects. They’ll be our leaders and economic drivers of tomorrow.

BRIGHT FUTURE ... BEd FET graduates Jason Field, Anike Botha (a Vice-Chancellor's Scholar), Margaretha and Carla Steyn all completed their degrees cum laude  

We need dedicated teachers to achieve this – people who are committed to the cause of opening young minds to the wonders of knowledge; people who believe in the abilities of people; people who are not driven by lucrative financial jobs but by ideals …

To see 400-plus young men and women of all races graduate with Bachelor of Education degrees (in Foundation, Intermediate and Further Education and Training phase) and with a Postgraduate Certificate in Education or Honours, was gratifying because it signals hope for our future.

It indicates that there are those who recognise the importance of education and are prepared to put their hands up to help turn our present-day “F” into a “B+” or “A” in building a better tomorrow for all our children.



Congratulations to all our graduates!

'An amazing generosity of spirit'

The NMMU Alumni team lead by example when it comes to supporting its students

Calling all naysayers, prophets of doom and down-in-the-mouth pessimists out there ...

There is hope. There is a better future. There is light at the end of the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University kindness tunnel.

Anyone fortunate enough to have attended the Alumni Thanksgiving breakfast would have surely recognised this too as speaker after speaker shared inspiring snippets as to how they had been helped or are helping dozens of students achieve their dreams of obtaining a university education.

Or to use the Vice-Chancellor’s response: “What an amazing generosity of spirit” within the room.

(Incidentally, that room is the South Campus boma that was moved from Bird Street Campus many moons ago to its present location below the university’s many cricket fields).

There was the Alumni Student Association, whose past and present chairmen and women shared the story behind the alumni bag. At R25 for a shopping bag, you are contributing to students whose journey to graduation is full of financial challenges. (The Vice-Chancellor however bought one for R2600 during an impromptu auction).

A little can go a long way in helping students achieve their study dreams

And then there was the story of lecturer Paul Tai-Hing’s initiative – to put theory into practice. It’s an approach that benefits both his students and so many others.

His business management students run their own student businesses with the profits ploughed straight back into the community for education purposes.

In less than two years, his students’ entrepreneurial enthusiasm has raised R384 500 from the sale of a recipe book.

As a result, the students have been able to:

· Restore classrooms at Lwandlekhazi High School in New Brighton

· Contribute R80 000 towards disadvantaged students at NMMU in the form of food parcels, transport costs and study fees

· Buy stationery for Missionvale Primary School learners

· Buy toys for children at Missionvale Care Centre run by Sister Ethel Normoyle and donate R30 000 for general expenses

· Donate R85 000 to the Masenyusane Development Corporation, an organisation that helps the poorest schools in the metro

· R25 000 to the Laphumilanga Orphanage in Zwide

· Sponsorship for 10 matric students to attend the Accounting Winter School at NMMU

· Building of a toilet block, valued at R74 000, at Ben Sinuka Primary School in New Brighton

· Donate computer cabling, valued at R10 000, to Kwezi Lomso High School in Zwide

· Donate R9 500 for security gates at Kwa-Ford Primary School in New Brighton and

But students also gave of their time in the form of:

· 983 hours of one-on-one English tutoring

· 148 weeks of food parcels to families in need

Just as the boss man was moved to be the highest bidder of the bag, so those attending were inspired to do their bit. I am so grateful that generosity rubs off to the benefit of others.

So join the goodwill drive at NMMU, and buy your alumni bursary fund bag for just R25.

To learn more contact paul.geswindt@nmmu.ac.za, call 041 5044371 or e-mail shop@nmmu.ac.za

NMMU Alumni (from left) office bearers Vernon Naidoo, Randall Jonas, Renita Affat of the NMMU Trust and Vice Chancellor Prof Derrick Swartz

NMMU lecturer Paul Tai-Hing (centre) is joined by Vernon Naidoo (left) and Randall Jonas

Hear ye … calling all matrics

Calling all matrics ... don't procastinate

An antiquated “hear ye” is unlikely to do it, but we need to use whatever tactics, communication platforms or gimmicks we can to ensure matrics and other prospective students get the message.

That message:

• Applications to study at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in 2015 close on 5 December.

• Online applications close on 30 November

• Failure to get your name into the system by then means you are likely to miss out on the opportunity of joining us next year.

Please share this news. Call your friends, text them, nag them, do cartwheels, shout it from the rooftops at Plett Rage, but please, please, please ensure that they know that 5 December is the late application deadline.

Far too many matrics lose out every year because they naively wait until receiving their final marks. This is too late.

Indeed, many of the 450 programmes offered by NMMU are already full (see list below).

You need to apply now (it will cost you R360) if you are to give yourself any chance of studying at NMMU in 2015.

The University has already received more than 39 000 applications and provisionally accepted more than 7 000 students. NMMU can only take about 6 000 new first years.

You do the math.

You need to get into the system – with a provisional student number - by 5 December to give yourself any chance of becoming a Madiba next year.

Here are some pointers to help you with the application process:

· Download a form from our website (www.nmmu.ac.za), print it out, complete it and either fax it back or personally deliver it to the university by 5 December.

· You can go straight to online applications www.nmmu.ac.za/apply

· If you need further guidance call our contact center on 051 5041111.

The application process is such that you will receive a student number which you can track to see how far you are in the system.

Apart from meeting the deadline with all the right documentation (school marks, a copy of your ID etc.), you also need to be real about your marks. Don’t apply to study Pharmacy, for example, if your Admission Point Score (APS) is presently 10 points below what is required for that degree.

But whatever you do, do not delay.

Get your application into the system before 5 December.

And do not consider the following “full” programmers as your first choice:

1. ND: Inventory and Stores Management

2. ND: Public Management

3. BTech: Public Management

4. ND: Agricultural Management

5. ND: Nature Conservation

6. ND: Agricultural Management Extended

7. BTech: Agricultural Management (George Campus)

8. BTech: Nature Conservation

9. BTech: Forestry (Full-time)

10. BTech: Radiography

11. ND: Logistics (Full-time)

12. BPharm

13. ND: Engineering: Civil

14. HCert: Business Studies

15. BTech: Management (Full-time)

16. ND; Forestry Extended

17. ND: Information Technology: Software Development

18. Bachelor of Social Work (BSW)

19. ND: Logistics Extended

20. ND: Sport Management

21. ND: Game Ranch Management (George Campus)

22. Bachelor of Radiography (Brad)

23. ND: Human Resource Management (Full-time)

24. ND: Human Resource Management Extended


ND stands for National Diploma; BTech is the equalivalent of degree - your fourth year after completing a diploma; HCert is Higher Certificate and B is for Bachelor (a degree).

We look forward to welcoming you to NMMU next year … just get those applications in.

Interview with a visionary Xhosa Chief

VISIONARY LEADER … Chief Ngwenyathi Dumalisile of Shixini Great Place (second, from right), leader of the Amajingqi Traditional Council in the Willowvale area, former Transkei, visited NMMU recently to discuss projects in his area supported by the university. He is joined by (from left) Vice-Chancellor Prof Derrick Swartz, Centre for Community Technology’s Prof Darelle van Greunen and former Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Engagement and Research Prof Thoko Mayekiso.

By Guest Blogger (Nicky Willemse)

I'M a city girl. Besides my place of birth (the small town of Bindura in Zimbabwe), I’ve always lived and worked in cities – sometimes massive ones, including London, Istanbul and Cairo.

But one of the things I’ve noticed about cities is that the people who live there often think they’re a cut above those who live in “dorpies” or villages in more rural areas. They think they’re more sophisticated, cleverer, that they know better. They sometimes forget the rich values, the sense of Ubuntu, the togetherness that is usually more prevalent in places where communities are more tight-knit. They forget that one of the world’s greatest leaders came from the small village of Qunu.

At the end of October, I had the privilege of interviewing Chief Ngwenyathi Dumalisile of Shixini Great Place, a leader within the Xhosa Royal Kingdom and of the Amajingqi Traditional Council Chief, which oversees 22 villages in the Willowvale area in the former Transkei.

You can hardly get more rural than this. The nearest bank is 90 minutes away and you can only access this area by 4x4.

I had heard the Chief was a visionary, but I was in absolute awe of what he has managed to achieve.

He is determined to make his people part of the global village – and is doing this through a visionary plan for “rural-based industrialisation”.

It is not industrialisation in the urban sense (there won’t be any factories going up) – but rather getting the 22 villages wired up to the latest technology, boosting education in the one high and seven primary schools and harnessing the area’s potential for tourism.

It’s a long-term plan, and he’s partnering with a number of stakeholders to do so, including government, parastatals and NGOs. A key partner is Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU), with whom he has signed a Memorandum of Understanding for research and engagement opportunities.

The result of this partnership has been the establishment of the area’s first ICT Resource Centre. It has 14 tablet PCs, all online, and computer literacy training has been introduced at the eight schools in the area. The Chief’s parents are learning how to do their banking online and the Chief himself conducts meetings on Skype on his tablet.

Thirty teachers in the area have also received skills upgrades in maths and science from NMMU’s Govan Mbeki Mathematics Development Unit, which has developed a high-tech teaching and learning model, available on laptops for teachers and tablets for learners.

There’s even been a careers exhibition (hosted by NMMU), which was attended by 900 pupils in the area – and the Chief’s son is a student at NMMU.

It’s no secret that he values education. In fact, he says: “Education is the engine of true liberation.”

There are other projects too, including the investigation of natural resources in the area and the potential for tourism development (and, most recently, the development of a mobile tourism app), the establishment of a website to highlight the history of the area and also a beading project, to be marketed on line.

He has managed to achieve great things in a place most of us have never heard of. He’s achieving what many would have considered impossible. He is sowing into his people, building them up.

I have met few urban leaders as sophisticated, clever or visionary as Chief Dumalisile – and can only wish that more people like him would emerge in both rural and urban areas throughout our country.

Imagine the change – in values, in education, in everything.

TRADITIONAL DRESS … Some of the elders who accompanied him on his visit.

Our fashion flagship

Tayla Nguskos's mohair range saw her win two top awards at The Collection Fashion Show 

If prospective fashion students ever wanted a yardstick for measuring the worth of a fashion diploma from Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU), then it's attending the year-end Collective Fashion Show.

Actually, to be fair, attending the show is a pretty good indicator of the merits of our diplomas in photography, interior design or graphic design since the visual outputs of all these students is on display.

And like the NMMU students who attain South African colours, win national competitions or serve society on a voluntary basis, these creative students give us plenty of reason to feel proud.

The usually corporate and tad-neglected Goldfields Auditorium on North Campus gets a marvellous make-over thanks to the talent of the interior design students. This year the venue has a “band-aid” feel because of its “sick” theme.

However, the VIP room paid homage to the scariest night of the year – Halloween – thanks to the timing of this year’s show. Here VIP guests were spoilt with wicked cocktails and other tasty Halloween-themed morsels which were served by even more wicked-looking waitrons. The latter is all thanks to the partnership that NMMU has developed with Mohair South Africa.

But the greatest visual feast was the show itself – the annual Collective Graduate Fashion Show at which our final-year and BTech fashion students display their creativity, and aspirant models “strut their stuff”. (I hate the phrase, but have to admit that’s what many of these young people do, but in the strangest of ways – but that’s another blog all by itself).

The show was compered by comedian Bradley Goldman who added further value with his playful interaction with an appreciative audience (all to kill time as the judging panel deliberated).

Their decision for the fashion students:

Best ranges on show

1. Tayla Nguskos

2. Marissa Kriek

3. Armand Dicker


Best mohair outfits on show

1. Tayla Nguskos

2. Armand Dicker

3. Celeste Swart

But of course these names meant nothing to many in the audience because their fashion range was not visually displayed when their names were called (perhaps, this can be considered in future).

However, word has it that things are changing in the Fashion Department, since these new students will also form part of the foundation year that the fine art, photography and graphic design students already all do when they join the School of Music, Art and Design. (It’s an ideal year to establish where your talents lie and then try to follow your chosen path.)

Enough words from me … these photographs, taken by our students, especially Kelly McIver who provided many of them (thanks Kelly), speak volumes.

Better still will be booking your ticket for next year’s Collective Event.

See you there!

Kudos to all those who worked tirelessly behind the scenes. This would not happen without you.

The work of Celeste Swart with photos by C Gobinga

Another top student's work - a range by Armand Dicker

Some of the modelling contestants, including the unidentified winner (centre)

Yes, the watrons managed to turn things on its head

Compere Bradley Goldman by photography student Kelly McIver

Interior design students (from left) Amanda Browne, Kristen Lawrence, Maureen van Niekerk, Melissa Nell, Natasha Warren-Stone and Tamzyn van Oosten.

Marissa Kriek's work photographed by S Gerber.

From cyber-challenged to cyber-aware

Cyber Sid

Jumping into a pool without help or water wings. That’s the challenge that awaits a fellow Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University employee.

She’s on the Learn to Swim programme offered by the university and somehow the idea of throwing herself into the deep end, sans help, is terrifying. She’s scared of putting her head under water and feeling claustrophobic.

I mean, it’s easy … you’ll naturally float to the surface …

But who am I to point fingers?

Or any of us for that matter, since we all have our fears.

For me, it’s all things technological. I am no astronaut in cyberspace going where few NMMU employees have gone before. I just don’t go there but rather cling to the safety of yesteryear’s typewriter (well, not quite, but you get my drift).

I am the antithesis of an early adapter when it comes to technology. I suppose I could be classified as an ancient adapter, the individual who still lurks way behind with the rest of the terrified pack. Yes, the adult who is still learning to swim.

But then along came Cyber Security Awareness Week at NMMU with its crafty campaign to entice the ancients into the land of the aware. (Note: I did not say the land of the early adapters!)

Each day they put out tips; offers of having your personal devices (your laptops, phones, tablets and the like) secured and an opportunity to take a cyber-awareness test.

I avoided the information like the plague or should I say like the proverbial plunge since words like cyber security, phishing and Trojan horses tend to trigger great anxiety.

Until today … that is.

Today, with the gentle encouragement of a friend, I jumped into the cyber pool.

I took the cyber-awareness test – all 10 mini modules – during my lunch break and surfaced educated and emboldened.

Yours truly and NMMU colleague Ros Baatjies passed the cyber security awareness test

Each of the lessons prior to the multiple choice tests helped me get my head around cyber space and things like social engineering, worms, networks, passwords and the like. It was altogether an enlightening and rewarding experience.

I even got a mug and a badge for my troubles – a physical reminder that I can do this; yes, that I can overcome my own swimming pool plunge …

I just needed an encouraging nudge.

What about you?

Go on, try it. It’s not nearly as difficult as you’re imaging, and if your pool is cyber stuff like mine, you might even win a coffee cup!

PS My colleague took the plunge and I have yet to see a bigger smile!

NMMU employees who successfully completed the test. Why don't you try?