Equipping University students with tools to deliver career messages to the community
Developing well-rounded and socially conscious students is an integral part of UCT’s 2020 vision to create global citizens. In support of this, UCT Careers Services’ Beyond School Careers Programme runs its Career Education Workshop, which equips UCT students across faculties and study levels with the skills to be careers ambassadors in communities - both locally and beyond South Africa’s borders.
One UCT student who is eager to take up this opportunity and attended the workshop recently was Sibongile Rwayi, who is studying towards a Bachelors in Social Science. Originally from Khayelitsha in Cape Town, he works as a volunteer at SHAWCO. He sees the importance of the workshop because he did not have access to the support to help him make informed decisions when he was in high school.
“I wanted to learn and incorporate these lessons [from the workshop] into what I am currently doing at SHAWCO, he says.
The workshop is part of a series of careers education workshops that are run throughout the year. Various topics are addressed in the workshop, including how to deal with challenges in the ever-changing world of work; various career-development theories and the issues that influence the way young people make career or study decisions. Participants are shown practical ideas to help the youth with whom they work make better informed choices in their lives.
Athi Matinise, a careers advisor, heads up the Beyond School Careers Programme and facilitates the workshop. He says: “We train UCT students to go back into their communities so that they can be careers ambassadors. We take career development to where it is needed most, namely the communities beyond UCT borders.”
Participants are equipped with the skills, resources and knowledge to guide learners in making informed decisions about their future.
Joel Ntando, who is a PhD student doing research in Education, says the workshop content peaked his interest, which is why he attended. “I have learned about learner perceptions and about being flexible in terms of career goals. We’ve [participants] learned how to work one-on-one with learners and to utilise all resources - through case studies - to help youth solve their issues,” he says.
Deborah van der Berg, who is studying Adult Education, works with the youth in her community in New Horizon Pelican Park. She always encourages them to complete high school as she understands the importance of education. “I now know how to engage with them. I am thankful to be at UCT and I take every opportunity I can to learn.”