Good Morning Angels: Aspiring Vosloorus engineer's opportunity of a lifetime!
A bright young engineer in the making was given the opportunity to change his future and that of his single-mom-headed family!
BACKGROUND: Nkosinathi Ngwenya is a young man with big ambitions and plans for the future. Through hard work, focus, and sacrifice, he has already risen above the many hardships and challenges that poverty brings to teens in an over-crowded, underserviced area like Vosloorus on the East Rand. He matriculated last year, with excellent results and is eager to further his studies in engineering. The inspiration and force behind his drive is his mother, who has managed to raise him and three siblings on a single income as a vendor.
With his matric results in hand, Nkosinathi started the year with an early morning, multiple taxi-trip to the IIE MSA Campus on the West Rand. He applied for a Bachelor of Engineering Degree with specialisation in Electrical and Electronic Engineering. He was accepted immediately and Nkosinathi knew that his hard work and long hours behind the books in school had finally paid off. The reality for this young man, as is the case for so many others, was the issue of funding. There simply are no funds in his family to invest in tertiary education - an investment without which he and his family’s future would remain one of poverty and hardship.
That’s where Good Morning Angels stepped in...
REQUEST FOR: Nkosinathi Ngwenya from Vosloorus
ANGEL 1: Yashin Brijmohan, Executive Dean: Faculty Business, Engineering and Technology IIE MSA.
SPONSORING: IIE MSA will give Nkosinathi a full bursary for his Bachelor of Engineering, with specialisation in Electrical and Electronic Engineering. This will cover all tuition fees, as well as on-campus accommodation. The bursary continues through all three/four years of study, given the requirements for academic performance are continuously met across the duration of Nkosinathi’s studies. This bursary is worth a total of R569,000!
ANGEL 2: Hanli Goncalves, Managing Director at FOMOcomm Holdings Pty (Ltd) - Hosting My Future 4.0.
SPONSORING: A financial contribution of R10,000 for textbooks and other expenses to set Nkosinathi up for his studies.
ANGEL 3: Fred Ebersohn from GoZone.
SPONSORING: A brand new laptop according to spec for Nkosinathi’s engineering studies.
ORIGINAL REQUEST:
On the morning of the 19th of January 2019, at an IIE MSA open day, I took a walk through the waiting room as I generally did at the beginning of the day. I saw the young man sitting in the corner of the room, I walked over and asked how he was, where he was from and what he had applied for. He introduced himself as Nkosinathi Ngwenya. A very excited and ambitious young man. He said that he completed his grade 12 in Vosloorus in November 2018. After hopping on a couple of taxi's in the early hours of the morning, that Saturday he made his way to the IIE MSA Campus all the way in the West Rand. He had taken the opportunity to apply for a Bachelor of Engineering with specialisation in Electrical and Electronic Engineering. I had a look at his results and I was immediately impressed with his ambition and could see that he was definitely someone who would qualify for the degree he had applied for. A few minutes later his application had been assessed and he received an offer to study Bachelor of Engineering with IIE MSA. He then turned and looked at me with excitement and asked about funding options available?
Unfortunately, at this point, I was unable to help him as the options available was not an option for him. I did, however, make mention to him that this is not the end of the road, given his results an opportunity would come along for him to find some sort of funding. I gave him my business card and asked him to send me a message or email so that I have his details for in case an opportunity arises so that I could then get in contact with him. I believe an opportunity has now come. He completely deserves the opportunity, he had shown the ambition and willingness to make opportunities available to himself and this ambition and willingness led him to the campus where we met and as a result, I am now able to recommend him for this opportunity.
Nkosinathi's ambition and drive are spurred by his mother's efforts in making a living for the family as a vendor in Vosloorus. Nkosinathi also has 3 siblings. Unfortunately, if we do not help him, this state of living will not change for him and his family as there is no money to pay for his education. I believe Nkosinathi deserves this opportunity, as it will help him shape his studies, his career and his future.
Rowen Foord
Head of Student Advisors at IIE MSA