CPUT recently welcomed an Erasmus Mundus delegation from Europe for a final round of promoting the wonderful initiative. A scholarship opportunity for studying, teaching, training and research, its inception in South Africa is a result of a partnership between eight European and five South African universities, one of which is CPUT.

Offering scholarships for postgraduate study or research, varying in duration from three months to two years, the aim is to promote European higher education throughout the world and to offer a valuable framework for exchange and dialogue between cultures.

Students and staff members who successfully apply for the scholarships receive a monthly subsistence allowance from 1000 to 2500 Euros, tuition waiver, return flights covering one round trip from South Africa to Europe, and full insurance cover, including travel, health and accident.

Six representatives from two consortiums, the Erasmus Mundus Action 2 for South Africa (ema2sa) and Europe-South Africa partnership (EuroSA) visited the Bellville campus in early February to deliver presentations on how students and staff members can access the scholarship.

More than 20 administration and academic staff members attended the meeting and were helped with their applications. Welcoming the guests and prospective applicants, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Technology Innovation and Partnerships Dr Chris Nhlapo, said, “CPUT is striving to be a leading academy and one of the best universities in the country. We are proud to be rated number one amongst all other Universities of Technology when it comes to research. We are even ahead of some traditional universities in terms of our research outputs.”

Nhlapo emphasised that despite this, CPUT still needs to do much more in terms of increasing the number of people with doctoral degrees. “We plead with staff and want to emphasise that exchanges such as Erasmus Mundus are critically important in promoting research and scholarship.”

Pre-Alumni Officer from the Advancement Department, Nandipha Madadasana, was ecstatic to be given the opportunity to apply. She’s hoping to study for a Masters Degree: Globalisation and Development at Antwerpen University.

“This is a wonderful opportunity for South Africans to get exposure and experience in Europe. The qualification will definitely help me in terms of understanding social factors that motivate people to participate in development. It will also help me find answers to better institutional advancement programming.”

By: Andiswa Dantile

Written by CPUT News
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Spain, Paris and Italy – These are just some of the destinations a group of South Africa university staffers and students can expect to jet-off to later this year.

Through the Erasmus Mundus Action 2 for South Africa (ema2sa) programme, a group of 52 South Africans will be selected to complete their master, doctoral or short study programmes at a European University.

Funded by the European Commission, the programme aims to develop and improve the skill base at South African universities.

Recently a delegation from Erasmus Mundus visited South Africa to promote the next call for applications and spent a morning interacting with CPUT staffers.

The coordinator of the programme, An Hunt, described the scholarship as a “win, win situation for everyone involved.”

She said the programme not only allows South Africans to improve their qualifications but also provides opportunities for networking, which could lead to collaborations in various areas in the higher education sector.

Director of International Affairs, Merle Hodges also urged CPUT staffers to apply for the scholarships.

“It is a wonderful opportunity to increase your qualifications and also expand your horizon and become a global thinker,” said Hodges.

On completion of the study programme recipients are required to return to South Africa and plough back into their institutions.

Last year several CPUT staff members were awarded scholarships, with some selected to complete their master degrees and others for short stay academic programmes.

Head of CPUT’s Biomedical Sciences Department Prof Johan Esterhuyse, was one of the lucky recipients of a scholarship, which saw him visit Antwerp University in Belgium and Han University College in Holland.

The visits enabled him to benchmark the new Medical Science Degree against similar international options.

Prof Esterhuyse said South African universities are in dire need of highly qualified academics and urged fellow staff members to improve their qualifications.

“Make use of this opportunity,” said Prof Esterhuyse.

For more information see www.ema2sa.eu

By Candes Keating

Written by CPUT News
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