The youngest future engineer EIT encountered at the expo was a boy of fourteen who told us that he had an affinity for Mechanical Engineering. The most sought after qualifications were Electric Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Civil and Structural Engineering.
A handful of students expressed their desires to build car manufacturing companies, actively seeking programs that would provide automobile engineering training.
The Deputy Dean of the Engineering Institute of Technology, Steve Steyn delivered a keynote speech to a crowd at the expo. Reflecting on the success of the two-day event, he said:
“I believe there is tremendous potential in South Africa, with hundreds of young minds extremely eager to study Engineering. Furthermore, having the means to complete an internationally recognized BSc Engineering degree, wholly online, seems to be exactly what South Africans need right now.
South African students are patiently waiting for the government’s feasibility report on free higher education, the report is due in June 2017. The report was ordered after a string of protests that began at the end of 2015 and continued through 2016.
As a result, the higher education industry and its future seem uncertain. There is a chance that the situation in South Africa becomes dire once more, seeing a fresh bout of free higher education protests. The protests usually force the temporary closures of many higher education institutions.
Thus, The Engineering Institute of Technology introduced students to the online distance learning alternative that would award them with locally accredited Australian qualifications once they have completed their training. Needless to say, students at the expo were wide-eyed and excited at the prospects of an internationally recognized degree, that they could earn through online training.
The Indaba also presented a unique opportunity for companies to network with each other and exchange business cards. Organizations representing schools, and the Department of Higher Education and Training, all descended on the Indaba to see what kind of future benefits emerging institutions could bring to the education sector.
On the 5th and 6th March 2017, the Engineering Institute of Technology introduced the next generation of wannabe engineers to their future. EIT erected a stand at the Career Indaba 2017 inside the prestigious Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, to inform students about our innovative, online engineering Advanced Diploma, Bachelor of Science and Master degrees.
The event is the top education and career guidance event in South Africa. In previous years, the Indaba has seen more than 19,000 visitors, and this year’s event was no different.
Busloads of soon-to-be matriculants and an overwhelming number of students bravely inquired about the Bachelor of Science in Engineering programs that EIT offers.
