In August, the Engineering Institute of Technology (EIT) went to Namibia in southwest Africa to meet with prospective and already working engineers. While there, we hosted a seminar about the trends in the engineering industries that are transforming Africa.
The development of skills amongst young people in Namibia is vital. Therefore, EIT visited the Namibian University of Science and Technology (NUST). We were invited by the Dean of Engineering, Dr Samuel John, to share with the faculty of engineering students what EIT is doing to provide engineers with further tertiary education and training.
In the presentation, David Gadjus, EIT’s International Education Manager for the regions of Africa and South America, shared several pathways to gaining higher education, training, and continued professional development through our institution.
Gadjus says the students were interested to learn about EIT’s online delivery methodologies. Online distance learning is rapidly becoming something students in Africa are becoming interested, since networking technologies have advanced on the continent. Now, mobile internet technologies are becoming the norm, and more students are wondering how they can gain knowledge through online means.
“Many potential students are unable to attend full-time or part-time classes due to family or work commitments. Some also work at remote sites and do not have access to physical education institutes.”
EIT then hosted a seminar at the Protea Hotel Furstenhof in the center of Namibia’s capital Windhoek. David was joined by EIT lecturer Deon Reynders who presented on the technical aspects of the engineering knowledge that comes along with enrolling in EIT courses.
“There were so many people who came to attend that we had to arrange more chairs to accommodate everyone. We had some of our current online students who came, keen to stay updated with what is happening with EIT. We had some prospective future students who enquired about our online and on-campus programs. We even had representatives from the Engineering Council of Namibia, including the Vice President.”
The attendees were seemingly most interested in the area of study catering most to the fourth industrial revolution: Industrial Automation. EIT delivers accredited advanced diplomas, bachelor's degrees, and master’s degrees in Industrial Automation. The prospective students were naturally curious as to what jobs they could apply to when graduating through the Industrial Automation courses. EIT recommends that practitioners involved in the following industries would benefit greatly from pursuing the Industrial Automation qualifications:
- Electrical engineers and electricians
- Maintenance Engineers and Supervisors
- Energy Management Consultants
- Automation and Process Engineers
- Design Engineers
- Project Managers
- Instrument Fitters and Instrumentation Engineers
- Consulting Engineers
- Production Managers
- Chemical and Mechanical Engineers
- Instrument and Process Control Technicians
One of EIT’s Namibian students, Festus Tawii, was also in attendance at the seminar. He told the crowds gathered about his positive experience of studying with EIT. Festus currently works with the country’s energy utility Nampower.
Festus is currently studying the 52726WA - Advanced Diploma of Applied Electrical Engineering at EIT. He told the attendees that he was utilizing the knowledge he was gaining in his course in his day to day job in the energy sector.
All in all, EIT is seeing record numbers of seminar attendees in the Southern African regions. The attendance numbers prove that the hunger for the skills of the future and the mastering of rapidly advancing technological industries are in high demand. EIT is looking forward to returning to Namibia and collaborating with educational institutions on the ground to both strengthen their education sector and open students’ eyes to the possibilities and opportunities they can access that could transform their engineering careers.
