Durban — Durban University of Technology’s Engineering alumni will be among 22 engineering students from various universities in South Africa set to jet off to Germany to be part of a three-month Bell Equipment learnership programme.
Mondli Mchunu, Sajen Singh, Luvelle Naidoo and Cyril Ndlovu are expected to jet off on Friday, February 24, pending their visa applications.
Mchunu, 32, who hails from Hammarsdale re-registered in 2018 to complete his Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering Technology after he had dropped out in 2011 due to financial reasons. His journey had begun in 2009 however, as a self-paying student, his journey was a rather “difficult one”.
“By the end of 2011, I only had two modules left (Design and Steam Plant) but I encountered money problems as I was a self-payer and I had to go look for work. I worked for five years as an educator in Mdepha High School. It was only in 2017 that I realised that I had to go back to university and fulfil my dreams,” said Mchunu.
After graduation in 2020, Mchunu secured a job as an assembler for the Articulated Dump Truck at Bell Equipment.
Reflecting on how he got the opportunity to work in Germany, Mchunu said he was grateful to the Co-Operative Education Unit at DUT.
“In a total of 22 students there are four of us from DUT, three are from Mechanical Engineering and one is from Industrial Engineering. I am excited about this trip based on the experience I will gain from working outside of the country. I believe this experience will open up new doors for me. The one thing I am looking forward to is to see how world countries function when it comes to productivity and quality,” Mchunu said.
He further stated that he plans to further his studies until he achieves a Master’s degree level.
Advising other Mechanical Engineering students, Mchunu urged them to never give up no matter the challenges they face adding that it took him more than 10 years to reach his dream job.
The DUT Mechanical Engineering senior lecturer, Dr Festus Mwangi said it was incredibly encouraging to see their students professionally progressing in the industry and making an impact.
“It is even positively overwhelming to see the very impact of cross pollination beyond our South African borders. I would like to express our utmost gratitude to Bell Equipment for affording our students such a privileged opportunity,” said Mwangi.
Zeyn Adam, the students’ supervisor at Bell Equipment, extended his gratitude to the DUT Co-Operative Education unit for constantly assisting students.
“We would like to thank the DUT Co-Operative Education unit, they have been amazing and are always willing to go the extra mile to get students for us. Our relationship with them goes back to approximately +/- 20 years and we are looking forward to many more years of working with them,” Adam said.
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