Chemistry student awarded James Moir medal
HARD WORK: Kudzanai Nyamayaro, a postgraduate Chemistry student is one of South Africa’s top students
Monday, 20 February 2017
An aggregate of 85% for four years has earned Kudzanai Nyamayaro, a postgraduate Chemistry student the coveted James Moir medal.
An initiative of the South African Chemical Institute, the medal is awarded annually to the top BTech or BSc (Hons) chemistry student at every South African university and university of technology.
It is named after James Moir, a pioneering chemist who, during the 1900s, played a significant role in the chemistry field in South Africa. He was renowned for developing new methods of analysis and improving others.
The medals add to Nyamayaro’s growing list of achievements.
He scooped the CPUT Dean’s medal, which recognizes the top achieving student in the Faculty of Applied Sciences as well as the CPUT Vice-Chancellor’s medal, which is awarded during graduation to the top achieving student at CPUT.
Currently working towards his MTech in Chemistry under the guidance of Dr Nikoletta Báthori, he was recently awarded the prestigious Department of Science and Technology Innovation and Priority Research Areas Masters Scholarship. His MTech work is based on crystallography (determining the arrangement of molecules /ions in crystalline solids), with a focus on the improvement of the properties of pharmaceutical drugs.
Only 24-years old, Nyamayaro has already co-published three papers and is currently working on several more.
Modest about his academic achievements, Nyamayaro says science is in his blood.
“Science runs in my family. Everyone is involved in science in some way or another,” he says.
However, Nyamayaro says while a love of science prompted him to follow a career in chemistry, hard work has played a huge role in his success.
“I work and study really hard. I think this is a good combination for success. If you put effort into something it will eventually work out,” he says.
Written by Candes Keating
Email: keatingc@cput.ac.za
Provides coverage for the Engineering and Applied Sciences Faculties; the Bellville and Wellington Campuses, and research and innovation news.
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