Applications for the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) have been formally opened for students from needy and working-class backgrounds with a household income of not more than R350 000 per year.

NSFAS is a public entity that reports to the Department of Higher Education and Training. The entity provides financial assistance in the form of a study bursary to qualifying students who wish to study or are already studying at universities and public TVET colleges.  South African citizens who plan to study in 2021 or are already studying at a university or TVET college qualify for a NSFAS bursary if they meet the following requirements:

• SASSA grant recipients.
• Your combined household income is not more than R350 000 per year.
• A person with a disability with a combined household income of not more than R600 000 per year or
• A student who begun their university studies before 2018 and their household income is not more than R122 000 per year.

Applicants who are approved for NSFAS funding are covered for the following:

• Registration
• Tuition

Allowances for:

• Food
• Accommodation or transport
• Learning material
• Personal care

NSFAS may need more information from you to process your application. Check what supporting documents are required and ensure that you have all the relevant information:

• Your own cellphone number and email address
• Copy of your ID or birth certificate
• ID copies of parents, guardian or spouse
• Your proof of income or one year’s IRP5 (if applicable)
• Your parents, guardian or spouse’s proof of income

Certified documents are not a requirement due to COVID-19 restrictions. If you are a SASSA grant recipient, no proof of income will be required. Applicants with a disability must submit a completed and signed Disability (Annexure A) Form, click here to download.  You can apply online using a cell phone, tablet, or computer. Follow the simple steps to apply on www.nsfas.org.za. Applications close on 30 November 2020.

Contact NSFAS via the NSFAS virtual contact centre:

NSFAS Connect: www.nsfas.org.za and log into your myNSFAS account

Facebook: National Student Financial Aid Scheme

Twitter page: @myNSFAS

Instagram: @myNSFAS

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Written by Aphiwe Boyce
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CPUT’s role as a leading university of technology was once again affirmed with the appointment of Dr Chris Nhlapo as a member of South Africa’s top research panel.

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Research, Technology Innovation and Partnerships, was hand-picked to serve on the Department of Higher Education and Training’s (DHET) Research Output Evaluations Panel.

“This appointment is a vote of confidence for CPUT,” says Nhlapo.

This is the first time that CPUT will be represented on this panel, which annually evaluates university research outputs submitted to the DHET for subsidy claims.

The panel’s task is governed by the department’s Policy and Procedures for the Measurement of Research Output of Public Higher Education institutions.

This policy aims to encourage research productivity at universities by rewarding quality research outputs.

Nhlapo will serve a three-year term and, along with the other 14 panel members, will be responsible for recommending improvements and changes to the policy and its implementation.

Nhlapo says after his term he will be better placed to guide colleagues on what to submit and will also look at implementing a quality review process at the Research Office.

Written by Candes Keating
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Provides coverage for the Engineering and Applied Sciences Faculties; the Bellville and Wellington Campuses, and research and innovation news.

CPUT stands to benefit from the New Generation of Academics (nGAP) programme, an initiative of the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) that aims to produce a new generation of academics who will replace retiring staff members.  

As part of the nGAP programme, CPUT has been granted six new fully funded posts, totaling more than R13 m over a six year period.

This ambitious six year long programme will allow CPUT to fill key post in the areas of mathematics, industrial design, retail management, sports science, electrical engineering and radiography.

The programme is being coordinated by Prof Shaun Pather, the Head of Strategic Initiatives in the Office of the DVC: Research, Technology Innovation and Partnerships.

Pather says the nGAP programme dovetails with CPUT’s endeavours to address equity concerns within the academic staff establishment.

“ It also addresses our need to increase the number of staff with Doctoral qualifications, and whom, in addition to teaching responsibilities, will also actively contribute to the Research and Innovation enterprise,” says Pather.

“Like our own Khula programme this should go a long way to filling vital posts.”

The nGAP is part of the Staffing South Africa’s Universities Framework, a broader DHET initiative aimed at transforming the higher education sector by developing future generations of academics and building staff capacity.

*To apply for the available nGAP positions go to www.cput.ac.za/jobs

Written by Candes Keating
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Provides coverage for the Engineering and Applied Sciences Faculties; the Bellville and Wellington Campuses, and research and innovation news.

CPUT’s various Extended Curriculum Programmes (ECPs) continue to ensure improved student success despite the challenges brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.

The university boasts 36 ECPs across five faculties. Formerly known as foundational programmes, ECPs offer alternative pathways of access for students into mainstream qualifications with the inclusion of substantial additional provisioning and support.

ECPs are supported and funded by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) and have been in existence since 2004. The minimum of completion time for an ECP is one year longer than the mainstream offering.

 As a result of the coronavirus pandemic, students in ECPs have had to contend with numerous challenges, such as intermittent internet, load shedding and a lack of suitable devices requisite for teaching and learning. Lecturers went beyond the call of duty by responding to student challenges with empathy, flexibility and compassion; in addition, lecturers sought innovative ways to support their students and to ensure that the academic project continued successfully.

The Faculty of Applied Sciences has over the years proudly conferred numerous graduates who have qualifications via ECPs. Two of these graduates were appointed as lecturers at CPUT, employed in the departments of Food Technology and Consumer Science respectively. A third graduate is employed as a technician in the Department of Consumer Science. In addition, Bongeka Lucia Stuurman; a former ECP student enrolled for a Master’s degree in Environmental Sciences in 2020 at the University of Côte d'Azur in France.

According to the faculty, lecturers have over the past year explored innovative instructional methods previously not used for online teaching. New approaches to tracking students’ understanding of topics were discovered and used. A variety of assessment methods were employed to test knowledge with the inclusion of smaller online assessments intended to add value to the teaching and learning experience in 2020. The faculty also reported greater Blackboard presence for ECPs and online engagements between staff and students were more effective.

In the Faculty of Health and Wellness Sciences several successful ECPs have also been implemented. The Department of Nursing Science engaged various technological platforms to ensure continuous interaction with students in 2020. This included WhatsApp, MS Teams, Zoom and the university learner management system Blackboard.

Lecturers acquired new skills and mastered their use of applications such as Blackboard and Microsoft Teams. Lecturers also explored new ways of assisting students with self-directed activities and furnished students with the recordings of lectures and power points. Online assessments have also been utilised and after much trial and error, ended in success.

The Department of Nursing Sciences is also proud to enrol students into its DHET-approved Bachelor of Nursing from March 2021. This degree will incorporate two ECP models namely: Extended and Augmented Models. The mainstream first-year subjects will still be extended over two academic years and the programme will also feature additional, compulsory credit-bearing developmental modules which will be taught concurrently with the ‘extended regular modules’. The developmental modules will be timetabled and facilitated by qualified academic lecturers and are intended to improve academic performance of first-year ECP students.

In the Faculty of Business and Management Sciences, the ECP programme endured highlights and challenges in 2020. The conclusive ECP 2020 results indicated that online teaching and learning has had a phenomenal effect on ECP students’ progress.

Lecturers in the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment also went beyond the call of duty to assist students to cope with the challenges presented by the pandemic.

The Chemical Engineering Department reported a pass rate of above 80 percent in Mathematics. The Department introduced online assessment through WebAssign – this  online platform provided opportunities for students to have multiple attempts to complete formative assessments and also allows students to undertake summative assessments

In the Mechanical Engineering Department, the ECP moved smoothly to online teaching and learning because of their existing robust hybrid teaching and learning model

The Clothing and Textile Technology Department noted that the ECP has a significant practical component and this was successfully completed under difficult circumstances.

The Construction Management and Quantity Surveying Department indicated that a counsellor, Fe van Haght, had approached the department with a proposal to run a Social Emotional Development Programme, specifically for all first time first-year students. The purpose of the programme was to assist the new students to articulate into university life by helping them cope with normative social and emotional issues which a first-year student struggle with and if not addressed may impact on the students’ academic performance. The programme proved to be of great help during the pandemic.

The Department of Civil Engineering employs the extended model which allows the student additional time to transition into higher education with greater support particularly in high impact subjects, these include; Physics and Drawings, which many students have not previously been exposed to at secondary school.

Written by Ilse Fredericks

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The Faculty of Health and Wellness Sciences recently welcomed a team from the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) to the Bellville campus as part of the Clinical Training Grant (CTG) visit.

The purpose of the visit was to evaluate the impact of the CTG that is allocated annually to fund clinical training in four of the seven departments in the Faculty, namely the Departments of Emergency Medical Sciences (EMS), Biomedical Sciences, Nursing Sciences and Medical Imaging and Therapeutic Sciences (MITS), said Lloyd Christopher, Head of the EMS Department.

The DHET representatives were welcomed by Prof Tandi Matsha, Dean of the Faculty, who presented an overview of the Faculty before the Faculty’s CTG presentation by Christopher.

They were then taken on a tour of the departments’ state of the art facilities, including the Biomedical Sciences lab, the MITS Department’s computer-simulated learning environment, known as VERT, the EMS Department’s skills labs, including the immersive clinical simulation centre which can replicate emergency scenarios and the Nursing Department’s skills lab, where they got to interact with a life-like manikin named Jonathan.

The Faculty is investigating ways in which the CTG can improve the students' experience of clinical training and welcomed the DHET representative support for these initiatives.   

Meanwhile, the Medical Imaging and Therapeutic Sciences Department recently accompanied representatives of the Health Professions Council of SA (HSPCA) on a clinical site visit.

Dr Merlisa Kemp, Head of the MITS Department, said that in order for a radiology practice or clinical site to accept students for training, they have to be accredited by the HPCSA.

“Members of the Radiography and Clinical Technology board (HPCSA) inspect the clinical site to determine if the practice is adhering to the HPCSA accreditations guidelines which allow the practice to accept students for training,” said Kemp.

“Accreditation refers to the approval and recognition of professional programmes of study by the accrediting body. It is the recognition of academic and clinical quality by an impartial body, in this instance, the HPCSA.”

 The four BSc programmes offered by the Department of MITS includes a theoretical and clinical component. Work-Integrated Learning is part of the programme where the student would be allocated to various clinical sites to gain experience in clinical training. The clinical training involves students conducting radiographic and sonographic examinations under the supervision of a qualified sonographer and/or radiographer.

“Accreditation of clinical sites allows for students to be clinically trained and fulfil the learning outcomes for the specific programme/s and be deemed clinically competent for the specific level of study.”

Written by Ilse Fredericks

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Financial constraints nearly frustrated him out of the doctoral degree programme, “Glory be to the almighty God for an open door of opportunity to be a recipient of Vice-chancellor Prestigious Achievers Award twice”.

Here, Dr Imisioluseyi Julius Akinyede shares his story.

Akinyede was born into a polygamous family in Ado-Ekiti in Ekiti State of Nigeria to the family of the Akinyede-Asamo dynasty. 2013, he registered for MTech in Construction Management at CPUT and graduated in 2015. He then worked as a project manager from 2015 to 2016. Akinyede commenced his DEng degree in 2016. His work experience manifested in his research on affordable, sustainable housing delivery, and his role as a research assistant, mentor and lecturer helped him “tremendously with research outcome”.

His mother, Felicia Akinyede, a trader, made Akinyede understand that the road map to success is through education, and she encouraged him to achieve his set target in education morally and financially. The primary factor that helped him to get to the present position is his endurance and perseverance “through God's guidance.

“And I always set a target for myself and focus on the achievement.”

Akinyede received the Vice-Chancellor Prestigious Achievers Award in 2019 and 2020.  “It helped me greatly to complete my doctorate within the record time as scheduled by the university. I was a debtor to the university, and registration became difficult due to the debt I owed the school [CPUT]”. Immediately, I received this award, and after that, I could register in 2019 and 2020, respectively.”

“The Vice-Chancellor Prestigious Achievers Award impacted my career and life significantly. I was on the verge of dropping out of school because of financial challenges, but the monetary value attached to the award helped me pay the fees and accommodation expenses.”

Akinyede, the construction management and quantity surveying lecturer, passed his master’s degree at CPUT. During the master’s degree programme, he presented and published nine conference papers accredited by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) for subsidies. His excellent work manifested in his doctoral degree programme, consequently, Akinyede published an article in an international journal accredited by DHET and presented five conference papers at local and international level. His thesis focussed on affordable housing delivery, based on the challenge of housing affordability and availability in South Africa.

Reflecting on the support he received from CPUT staff during his studies, Akinyede says: “My departmental staff are virtuous people, ready to assist at all times. The love and kindness shown to me by the academic staff of the Department of Construction Management and Quantity Surveying during this study was wonderful and appreciated.”

Akinyede also pays tribute to the Vice-Chancellor and the awards committee. He acknowledged the support of the Vice-Chancellor for skill development at CPUT. “I am one of the beneficiaries. The formation of the Vice-Chancellor Prestigious Achievers Award is a good initiative by the CPUT management team. My appreciation goes to the award committee for nominating me as one of the recipients.”

“I will forever be grateful to the Vice-Chancellor and the awards committee for the financial value attached to the award. Furthermore, I appreciate the Vice-Chancellor for the letter he sent to me on my graduation. I am willing to continue my academic career at CPUT about the content of the letter sent to me by the VC to join a group of talented academics at CPUT.”

Written by Aphiwe Boyce

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Dr Zayd Waghid is “honoured” after being selected by the Department of Higher Education (DHET) for the Future Professors Programme for 2021/2022.

The prestigious Future Professors Programme, which is managed by the University of Johannesburg on behalf of the DHET, is intended to support successful participants in cultivating their capabilities, dispositions, knowledge and provide them with resources needed to navigate the expectations and requirements of the professoriate.

Waghid was selected out of 114 candidates from 26 public universities.

 Reflecting on this feat, the Senior Phase and Further Education and Training Department Senior lecturer says: “The programme is a milestone in my short academic career of six years since it vindicates my status in joining the professoriate in the near future,” he continues.

“I am grateful that I was selected out of a pool of top-performing candidates from 26 universities in the country. The process was quite rigorous and only 29 out of 114 candidates were successfully approved and accepted by the Minister of Higher Education, Dr Blade Nzimande.”

Waghid regards his selection as a vindication of CPUT’s status in establishing itself as a “Smart university” concerning teaching, research and community engagement in the 21st century. “Personally, it is a significant milestone and with that I am honoured to have achieved thus far.”

Since joining CPUT in 2015, the Cape Town-born researcher has always established short-term or long-term targets to provide himself with some direction. The son of a distinguished Stellenbosch University Professor, Yusef Waghid, believes that working smart is key to delivering the core elements of a university educator, namely, teaching, research and community engagement.

“I do not treat these underlying core elements of an academic in isolation but instead integrate them.”

Waghid’s research always informs his teaching, and likewise, his teaching always informs his research, which further significantly influences his encounter with establishing a meaningful relationship with both the local and international community. Asked about his mentor, Waghid responds: “My father is an important figure in my life as a mentor in my research capacity. My family have always supported me and shaped me into the person I am”.

The support that he has received from his family is key to his academic success and he believes that if there are support structures in place to assist one to perform as an academic, “then it ameliorates the burden on one emotionally and, in some instances, physically”.

Earlier this year, Waghid acquired a National Research Foundation Y-Rating at the age of 35 years which is “also a significant milestone in my career as a researcher”.  The hard-working researcher has been involved in several collaborative research projects with colleagues at other universities in South Africa and from other countries. This has led to the recent publications on remote teaching and learning during the current pandemic, which he envisages sharing with the CPUT community.

In his spare time, Waghid does not engage in any scholarly activity, but he reads to his children or goes running. “I enjoy engaging with new forms of technology, which seems to have brushed off on to my kids.” However, Waghid concedes that juggling between his busy work schedule and family is quite challenging, but he says one needs the correct support mechanisms in place. “You need to somehow balance between what is more important and always consider your family and health. I believe that there needs to be a level of negotiation.”

His aspiration is to become an established researcher and to continuously enhance my teaching. Waghid believes that one never stops learning from one’s practices and that there are always ways to grow. “However, this depends on the willingness to reimagine new possibilities.”

Written by Aphiwe Boyce
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CPUT has received a substantial grant of R10.9 million from the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET).

Project lead, Dr Xena Cupido, who is also the Director: Fundani Centre for Higher Education Development (CHED), says the grant will be utilised over the next three years to support the University's Vision 2030 objectives and the development of the Designing for Social Justice Partnership (DSJP) Programme.

Cupido says the DSJP Programme aims to promote social justice in course design and delivery by fostering collaborative partnerships between academics and students. “This 14-month, cohort-based model emphasises academic community building, open collaboration, forward-thinking, and socially just design principles across multiple institutions. By co-creating and co-designing courses, academic-student teams will work together to enhance student success while conducting research to evaluate the effectiveness of these co-created designs.”

The DSJP Programme is rooted in three key components:

• The students as partners model, the scholarship of teaching and learning, and socially just learning design.
• The students as partners approach challenges traditional power dynamics within universities, amplifying student voices and advocating for meaningful student participation in teaching, research, and service.
• By recognising students as experts in their own learning, this approach allows them to contribute to discussions on advancing learning outcomes, overcoming challenges, and developing courses with a focus on social justice.

The DSJP Programme draws inspiration from successful programmes in Australia and UK but tailors its approach to the specific social context of South Africa. By expanding spaces for student voice and agency, the program aims to promote agentic learning both inside and outside the classroom. Students' active involvement as co-researchers in the scholarship of teaching and learning further enhances their engagement and contributes to evidence-based practices.

Socially just learning design is a critical aspect of the program, addressing the need for learning opportunities embedded in larger social contexts. By foregrounding historical, socio-political, and economic contexts, socially just learning design aims to reduce barriers to access and persistence, particularly for underrepresented populations. By reflecting on power dynamics and privilege in the design process, equitable and socially just learning outcomes can be achieved.

Cupido adds that the programme will recruit two cohorts of lecturers and students from CPUT, University of Cape Town, and University of the Western Cape. “Through workshops, individual coaching, and peer mentoring, the project team will support the co-creation of socially just course designs, implementation, data collection, and publication of research findings. The project's results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations, and a symposium on the student as partners approach.”

In the third year, a "train the trainer" scalability workshop will be conducted to enable participants and colleagues from other institutions to adopt and implement the program in diverse contexts.

To ensure the success of the programme, two visiting scholars from the Schreyer Centre for Teaching Excellence at Penn State University will provide expertise and guidance. Their experience in running similar programs at their institution will help model the student as partners approach and contribute to the program's overall effectiveness.

This project aligns with the ministerial statement's objective of enhancing curriculum responsiveness and promoting the scholarship of teaching and learning through collaborative partnerships with students. “By embracing social justice principles in course design and delivery, the program aims to contribute to inclusive teaching practices, equitable student engagement, and the advancement of convergent research on social justice implications and long-term effects.”

The programme holds the potential to expand the capacity of educators in South Africa to create socially just learning environments, thereby benefiting both students and society.

Written by CPUT News
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