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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Postgraduate students at CPUT will receive the necessary support to ensure they achieve their goals of becoming academics, researchers or expert practitioners in their chosen field of study.

Addressing students at a welcome and orientation session hosted by the Centre for Postgraduate Studies on 9 February 2010 at the Bellville campus, Prof Stephanie Burton said the centre is a “visible, dedicated and interested point of contact” for all postgraduate students.

Established in 2009, the centre aims to enhance the profile of postgraduate activity at CPUT and attract students into the institution’s research community.

Prof Burton, who is at the helm of the centre, said they are also tasked with raising awareness of potential technology innovation as an outcome of postgraduate research.

However, the main task of the centre is to provide a range of support services to postgraduate students.

Prof Burton said pursuing a postgraduate degree is hard work and the skills required are different from those needed to complete an undergraduate degree or diploma.

“Postgraduate students need a wide vision and broad integrated training to understand what it means to be a researcher and what it means to be an academic,” said Prof Burton.

Referring to the centre as a “one-stop-shop” point of contact for postgraduate students, Prof Burton said they offer dedicated support and assistance in all of the processes involved in postgraduate study.

The support services include workshops, seminars, training, mentoring, bursaries and assistance with administration linked to postgraduate studies.

The centre is currently in the process of putting in place policies to ensure that their activities are in line with the priorities of CPUT and establishing committees that will oversee postgraduate activities.

Dr Chris Nhlapo, DVC Research, Technology Innovation and Partnerships encouraged students to make use of the services offered by the centre.

He said it is vital for South Africa to increase the number of doctorate graduates.

Currently South African produces only 1 100 doctorate graduates a year.

However, Dr Nhlapo said he is positive, that with the help of the centre, CPUT will play a vital role in South Africa by producing highly skilled individuals.

By Candes Keating

Written by CPUT News
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Postgraduate Mechanical Engineering students have gathered at CPUT to share ideas and network.

The Mechanical Manufacturing and Materials Engineering Conference continues today with presentations ranging from exploring human factors in virtual vehicle design to testing of diesel engines running on waste cooking oil, no area of mechanical engineering was left untouched.

Organised by the South African Institution of Mechanical Engineering along with CPUT and the Universities of Stellenbosch and Cape Town, this year’s conference attracted more than 100 postgraduate students and academics.

CPUT Dean of Engineering, Dr Nawaz Mohammed says the conference is vital for postgraduate students as it not only provides a platform to network,  but also to share best practices in research and explore possible areas of collaboration.

During the two-day conference, 44 postgraduate students each got the opportunity to deliver 15-minute presentations on their areas of research. Students also fielded questions from academics and their counterparts and participated in robust discussions.

Prof Rob Knutsen from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at UCT says he was impressed with the presentations.

“The students put a lot of effort into their presentations. They are all very proud of their work,” he says.

Prof Knutsen says it was interesting to get insight into the diverse areas of research students are involved in.

By Candes Keating

Written by CPUT News
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Top water researchers from various SA universities of technology have gathered at CPUT to share experiences and strategies.

Apart from CPUT researchers the high-level meeting also drew academics from the Central, Durban and Tshwane Universities of Technology (UOTs).

This was the first meeting of its kind and Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research and Technology Dr Chris Nhlapo urged delegates to arrange more gatherings to accelerate the pace of water research in the country.

“We are championing this cause together, all UOT’s should be aligned,” he told the meeting.

Some of the topics discussed included pending and current research projects, various specialization areas and improving support mechanisms for postgraduate students in the field.

Director for CPUT’s Centre for Water and Sanitation Research Prof Alvin Lagardien emphasised the importance of adapting a multi-disciplinary approach to water research.

“We have civil, chemical and electrical engineers busy in this field to name a few,” he says.

“We need synergy and clarity on our approach to water. “

By LAUREN KANSLEY

Written by CPUT News
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It was a celebration of hard work and resilience when postgraduate graduates in the Faculty of Informatics and Design were “robed” during a special ceremony. 

The ceremony has become a tradition in the Faculty and gives the graduates and their supervisors the opportunity to share and reflect on their journey to graduation while family members are given the chance to robe the graduates.

Six Master’s and eight doctoral candidates were robed during this morning’s ceremony while distinguished artist Conrad Theys, who will be receiving an honorary doctorate in Arts and Design during this evening’s ceremony, was also honoured.

“Thank you for recognising me as one of you. Thank you for recognising me as an artist and as a child of South Africa,” said Theys.

“I feel very honoured. I don’t how to tell you how pleased I am, how lucky I am.”

Written by Ilse Fredericks
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A postgraduate student’s research proposal made an impression at the recent 22nd annual Power and Electricity World Africa 2019 conference, earning him an all-expenses-paid trip to the Philippines.

Elisha’s Indarjit’s presentation was titled Software-defined networking based on Centralized Control for Smart Grid Communication.

Elisha, who is studying towards his Masters in Engineering, said the adjudicators selected his presentation as one of the top three student presentations.

He said Prof Marco Adonis, Deputy Head: Operations, in the Centre for Distributed Power and Electronic Systems, had encouraged him to enter his abstract.

“I am very thankful to God, Dr Adonis and CPUT for giving students the platform to grow and nurture skills that industries seek." 

Elisha will be departing for the Philippines later this month, where he will attend an international conference on power.

Written by Ilse Fredericks

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The world of higher education is swift to respond to new trends and innovations, therefore, it is not surprising that new master’s and doctoral programmes are constantly emerging to address the needs of students in a changing world in numerous academic fields.

Hence, the Quantum Physics Research Group in the Department of Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering at CPUT is engaged in developing quantum technology components. The group currently has funding for master’s and doctoral students. Department of Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering Lecturer, Rory Pent, said the prospective students will be engaged in developing electronic subsystems/ devices or experimental apparatus that will support the quantum technology research of the group.

The prerequisite for this programme is an Honours degree in Electrical Engineering (or experimental physics) for master’s studies or a master’s degree in Electrical Engineering (or experimental physics) for doctoral studies.

Pentz said: “The student must be interested in quantum technologies such as quantum computing, quantum sensors and quantum communications… We have constructed a cold-atoms experiment using rubidium. The cold atoms will be used in a four-wave mixing experiment to create entangled photons for the quantum key distribution system and to develop quantum sensors. We are also developing commercial products such as laser drivers, classical photo detectors, signal photon detectors and electronic counting/timing units.”

He said the research that the student will be doing is cutting-edge research in the field of quantum technology. “Students undertaking this research will be a leader in the area of quantum technology after completion of his/her studies and will be able to contribute to emerging quantum technologies. Students having this knowledge will be more marketable.”

These are postgraduate research degrees and consist of 100% research component. Upon completion, students have the choice of starting their own spin-of companies or becoming academics at institutions of higher learning or working for existing quantum technology companies.

For a master’s degree, the duration is usually two years and for doctoral studies the duration is three years. Funding is available for 2023 to 2025.

For 2023 studies, students need to apply before 31 March 2023. Students should apply to Dr Atanda Raji: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.), representing the Department of Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering within the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment.

Written by Aphiwe Boyce
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