The University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business, through two of its specialised units, continues to invest in Africa’s future leaders, and is calling for scholarship applications from across the continent for its 2017 academic year..
The UCT Graduate School of Business (GSB) is inviting motivated leaders from across Africa, with a track record of action who would like an injection of skills to help them go further to apply for one of several scholarships available at the school in 2017. In recent years the GSB, through the Bertha Centre for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship and the MTN Solution Space, has made significant investments in the development of Africa’s future leaders through access to scholarships.
To date over R6 million has been committed in scholarship funding for GSB Masters and PhD programmes. This has been made possible through the generous support of funders, including GSB Alumni, the Bertha Foundation, the Canon Collins Trust and the MTN Group. “We’re delighted to be able to continue this funding into 2017 and are inviting prospective African students who would like to study either towards their MBA or Master of Philosophy in Inclusive Innovation at the UCT GSB to apply for a scholarship,” says Dr Francois Bonnici, Director of theBertha Centre.“Through the scholarships the Bertha Centre hopes to support those who want to address our continent’s greatest challenges. We want to encourage especially those seeking social change to apply and those interested in understanding and/or challenging the current ideas of business and what it does and is used for,” says Bonnici.
The Bertha Centre, a specialised unit at the GSB established in 2011 in partnership with the Bertha Foundation, seeks to support: changemakers; social activists, entrepreneurs and innovators and out-of-the-box thinkers. Previous Bertha Centre Scholars include co-founder of Lumanki, Francois Petousis; Pimp-my-Book founder Mpodumo Doubada as well as Business Day columnist, and Livity Africa Deputy Managing Director Zamandlovu Ndlovu. “Through the generous support of our donors and sponsors we are able to cover tuition fees for our Masters programmes and provide additional financial support for living and travel costs where needed,” says Sarah-Anne Arnold, Manager of the MTN Solution Space.The MTN Solution Space, established at the GSB in 2014 in partnership with the MTN Group, seeks to support problem solvers – doers, makers, thinkers and creators – who continually seek to advance and leverage technologies for the well-being of Africans. Previous MTN Scholars include Rudzani Mulaudzi co-founder of Gradesmatch and Lianne du Toit Vice Chairperson of Silicon Cape and founder of GovHackSA. “While scholars are distinct in their professional goals and ambitions and hail from all over Africa, they are united in their common goal: to have a significant impact in the world,” says Arnold.
Geoff Bick, Acting Director of the GSB, says that the school continues to enjoy an outstanding reputation both in Africa and more broadly and is well placed to further the careers and increase the impact of committed change makers.“The UCT GSB full-time MBA is still the only MBA in Africa to be ranked in the Financial Times ranking of the top 100 MBAs in the world and it offers one of the best business educations on the continent. The GSB MBA curriculum is also the first in Africa to incorporate social innovation as a core subject. Equally groundbreaking is the MPhil in Inclusive Innovation – an interdisciplinary research-based degree that leads to the practical prototyping of new business models aligned to African markets – a first of it’s kind on the continent,” he says..
To be eligible for the scholarships, applicants must be a citizen of an African country, and must first be accepted onto the programme of their choice.
Anyone interested in applying for a Bertha Centre or MTN Solution Space scholarship should visit the GSB Scholarships information web page here. The deadline for applications is 31 October 2016.
Watch the MBA and MPhil videos on YouTube for more information on the programmes.
One of their friends, Keitumetse Sebokanelo (Pictured on left) went to the Department of Water and sanitation offices in Mafikeng where she saw a poster about the competition. Keitumetse decided to tell her classmates, Mmabatho and Ontlametse about it. They entered their names for the competition and received a phone call from the department. They did not waste time when they were told to come and speak on the topic “ Underground water”. They did research on underground water and presented to the department while others did drama and acting around the topic. “I was scared and did not know what to expect,” said Ontlametse.They did very well as their speech was loved by the judge and took first position in the whole North West province. Last month (27-29 June 2016) they went to represent the North West province in at Port Elizabeth for the Finale. There were learners from schools all over South Africa representing their provinces and the competition got tough. Unfortunately for them, they got fifth position, however, they did not walk away empty handed. The department awarded them with full bursaries to study at any university in South Africa, towards qualifications in water science or other courses related to water sanitation.
Max Coyle, a recent Biology graduate from the US, voluntarily came during his holiday time to introduce the foldscope to the Masinites. Max wanted to share his experiences of using the Foldscope with the learners, to feed their minds and make them think and see that the world is much more than what we see with the human eye.
This foldscope is a low-cost optical microscope that can be assembled from simple components, including a sheet of paper; a light-emitting diode; a watch battery that powers the LED and a lens (although natural light of lamp light can easily substitutde for the LED). This tool was developed by a team led by Jim Cybulski and Manu Prakash, an assistant professor in Bioengineering at the Stanford University. For more information you can click here and here.
Max introduced the microscope and its purpose to the learners and further took them through the assembly of the kit and how to operate it. By assembling the foldscope themselves, they got a chance to follow the instructions given by Max and put it together perfectly. The learners placed a small piece of leaf on the lens and what they saw was amazing and interesting, it brought up a lot of exciting questions! The fact that this foldscope is adjustable (can be moved up/down and side-ways) allowed the learners to see the microscopic world clearly and from different angles.
The Foldscope also comes with a feature which permits one to attach a smartphone to it, allowing the learners to take pictures and zoom into what they see. This experience left our learners quite scientific- minded :). They got to keep their foldscopes as well as extra lenses that they got from Max. Experiments like these help boost how people see and think of things. Our learners can now be their own scientists and use their foldscopes to explore what they cannot see with the naked eye!
Thank you to Max for this DIY / Biology workshop and the Masinites that took part!
Watching their delighted faces as they entered the gates of CPUT and UWC brought nothing but joy to my heart. This is a dream coming true and the beginning of greater things for all of them.
Knowing that the future is in their hands, IkamvaYouth learners from Masiphumelele walked bravely to all the faculties’ stalls, showing huge interest; looking for courses that best suit them and asking the exhibitors all the right questions. The learners gathered as much information as they could and went home with an idea of what they would like to study after passing matric this year. From the smiles on their faces, one could tell that they were happy and ready for the next step.
Thank you to CPUT and UWC for being so accommodating, the learners went home with some goodies – handy backpacks and lip balm ?. Our Grade 12 Masinites took the first step and acted on their dreams of pursuing their studies at their desired university. Nothing can hold them back.
With this can-do attitude and enthusiasm towards education, poverty will be bypassed and chances of employment will rise ,together with our rising youngsters.
So go on, DARE to dream BIG!!!
For those of you who are on Facebook, you would have noticed what an exciting past few months it’s been for IkamvaYouth, as we celebrated Ikamvanites who graduated from various institutions across the country. Among those who were graduating this year, was Sikelelwa Mashiyi, from the Masiphumelele branch (matric 2011). We caught up with her for a Q&A, to tell us about this fantastic achievement, what she’s up to now, as well as about her exciting trip to the United States of America!
IY: In 5 words or less, tell us who is Sikelelwa?
SM: Happy, awesome. Enthusiastic, go-getter, loving
IY: Can you briefly tell us about your IkamvaYouth journey?
SM: I was one of the few learners that were part of Ikamva youth in Masiphumelele when it started in 2009. I have to say that I am blessed to have been part of that program it helped me grow academically and personally. Academically; with all those afternoon classes we had, and also the winter school called Careers Indaba; where we got the opportunity to meet people in the business sector telling us how what we need to get obtain in order to get to University and the skills we need to learn in order to get to the work place. Personally, I was able to talk infront of people, so I got a lot of confidence from Ikamva. Also making long and lasting friends from the people that we interacted with within Ikamva in Masi and other branches. I also always enjoyed when we went to perform in Makhaza, I remember always dancing with a friend of mine called Zintle Mtakati and everyone used to cheer for us. We were called the twins….ahhhhh those days were greats
IY: What have you learnt from your university experience, that you’d like to share with other Ikamvanites?
SM: What I have learnt Is that you do not need to be rich to get to University, there are many ways in hich the school can support you financially and academically. Working hard pays off, we all know that school is not the best sometimes but we need to stay consistent and work hard the school will notice you. English does not determine your intelligence; you do not have to be the best English speaker for you to excel in University. Just do what you do best and God will do the rest. Ask, consult if you do not know, do not die in silence.
IY: What advice would you like to share with other Ikamvanites who are still in matric/pursuing their tertiary studies?
SM: Never give up on your dreams, do not let anything stand in your way. I received at Diploma during my grade 12 in 2011. I had to take a gap year and work as a debt collector, but I told myself that my life belongs in the University so I rewrote some subject and got my B and today I am proud to say that I am one of the best honours Anthropologists in my class. I went to the states last year, and I was selected as a best fellow, competing with schools from the states, such as More House and Spelman College. I received a Humphrey Award for being the best consistent student in the Sociology/Anthropology department from first year till third year. I have been in the dean’s list and I was one of the few black students that got a Cum Laude for my degree.
IY: Now that you’ve graduated, is there anything that you’re glad you did, or wish you had done?
SM: I am glad I never gave up and just stayed at the debt collector because of money. I am glad I pushed myself to where I am today. I wished I would have still been dancing but because of circumstance I have not danced which is a passion of mine.
IY: You graduated caume laude! For those who may not know, what does this mean? And what advice do you have for other Ikamvanites hoping to achieve similar academic success?
SM: I graduated Cum Laude yes. Well this means that I got an A average overall for my final year. To get an A average you have to get 75% and above and if you want to be a Sum Cum laude which was a wish of mine but I always got an A average for my first semester and never second semester I could not achieve this; you have to get an A average from first year until your final year; meaning 75+ from first year until final year. So you need to an A average for the whole year and not just the semester.
IY: You’re now pursuing post-grad studies, and jetting off to the United States! tell us about this exciting development!
SM: 2014- I volunteered to work for the HIV/ AIDS unit and worked as a peer educator within my school and I also mentored 10 students at Steenberg High school. We were teaching the University student about safe sex and I was teaching my high school students about gender roles. I did this for the whole year and still excelled in my academics. Got invited to the Deans ceremony for the second time, second year first semester. Clearly first semester loved me because second semester I would always need a 1% to get to the deans. I was invited to my Steenberg’s Matric valedictory and I was asked to make a speech. I did not prepare anything because I was only told that night, but because of my experience I knew how to motivate them. 2015- I volunteered to be a Mentor for first year students so that I would be able to assist them to adapt to University life, socially and academically. This time I am doing my final year as an undergrad. Anyways to my surprise I did not know passing to much would get me to apply for a scholarship called Mellon Mays Undergraduate scholarship. There were 155 students all together to apply for this scholarship and they only choose 5 every year, I couldn’t believe that I got selected. At this point I was not sure what I would major in during my honours year. I was doing a triple major in Psychology, Anthropology and Sociology. For the purpose of the scholarship I chose to do Anthropology. Now I have this prestigious scholarship and the same year June It took us to the states to represent our school. The 5 of us went to Atlanta at Emory University. We stayed there for a month for a school boot camp. We had an opportunity to go to New York as well. We had to present our rsearch proposals at the last week of the month and after that myself and another student from the states got selected as Fellows for the year. I am still not sure what that means but I was happy.
Congrats Siki, we’re so proud of all you’ve achieved. All the best with the postgrad studies!
Lloyd Lungu