The Engineering Institute of Technology is proud to announce Douglas Mugweni and Aaron Brook as EIT Student Ambassadors for 2021.
Every year, the Engineering Institute of Technology (EIT) selects an applicant to fill the role of Student Ambassador. For 2021, however, the number of applications received was greater than ever before, and the standard tremendously high – too high, in fact, to choose only one candidate. As a result, the committee has elected to create two positions for the coming year.
Douglas Mugweni is a highly qualified Zimbabwean engineer. Registered as a Professional Engineer PR.Eng with the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA), he is a Senior Member of the South African Institution of Electrical Engineers (SMSAIEE) and a Member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (MIET) in the UK. He is also pursuing registration as a Chartered Engineer with the same institution.
He has considerable professional experience within the engineering sector, particularly in the power generation sector gained in Zimbabwe and South Africa. Before moving to South Africa he started his career as a Graduate Trainee Engineer in the Process Control section in 2002 with Zimbabwe Power Company, a subsidiary of ZESA Holdings, based at Hwange Power Station. He rose through the ranks in the company up to the position of Senior Engineer. He also acted in the position of Section Engineer in charge of the Process Control section. Currently he holds the position of System Engineer: Control and Instrumentation with Eskom Generation at Camden Power Station, situated close to Ermelo in the Mpumalanga Province of South Africa. He has also acted in the position of Control and Instrumentation Engineering Manager on several long periods.
During 2020, Douglas completed our Master of Engineering Degree in Industrial Automation with EIT, having already completed our Professional Certificate of Competency in Electrical Power Systems Protection in July 2016 with EIT.
Some twenty years prior to becoming a student with EIT, Douglas graduated with a B.Eng (Hons) in Electronic Engineering from the National University of Science and Technology in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.
Aaron Brook’s professional practice provides an impressive list of truly global experience, covering Australia, Antarctica and the Middle East. Currently residing in the United Arab Emirates, he is employed as an Instrumentation Reliability Specialist for Hatch, Emirates Global Aluminium at the Al Taweelah Alumina Refinery.
He has spent several years combining his career with continued education, having earned diplomas and certificates in a range of fields, including: Leadership and Management; Project Management; Work Health and Safety; Installation, Maintenance and Inspection; Electrotechnology (Systems and Instrumentation); and Audio Engineering. He has been studying with EIT for the past two years and is currently completing our 52708WA Advanced Diploma in Industrial Automation.
The position of EIT Student Ambassador is not Aaron’s first such appointment: while working for Rio Tinto, he was awarded the title of Apprentice of the Year, and also received the Apprentice Encouragement Award.
Throughout 2021, Aaron and Douglas will enjoy a number of advantages as EIT’s Student Ambassadors. As an integral part of the EIT community, they will have the opportunity to take part in various networking forums, as well as acting as mentors for EIT students. This opportunity to interact and engage with students will be highly beneficial to their own personal development, as they continue their journeys to more elevated leadership positions within the engineering sector.
EIT would like to offer warmest congratulations to Douglas and Aaron, and wish them luck for the coming year. We will continue to follow their progress, and in coming months will share ways current EIT students can reach out to them for guidance and advice.
