After an unfortunate accident where DUT’s Telisha Govender, had broken her wrist, causing her not to write her examinations at another institution. She continued to reach for her dreams.

The determined Govender decided to make a fresh start at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) and persevered to complete her Bachelor of Technology degree in Chemical Engineering with cum laude and a dean’s merit award.

Upon receiving her awards during the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment’s graduation ceremony at the Fred Crookes Sports Centre, this morning (Monday, 08 May 2017), she was delighted and felt honoured and extremely grateful for such an achievement.

“These awards definitely came as a surprise to me and I was really not expecting them. They have also evoked a great sense of gratitude and appreciation for all the important people in my life that have played a huge role in supporting and helping me achieve my academic goals. I owe these awards to my family, friends, campus colleagues and most especially my fiancee who has always been my support during my studies,” said the elated Govender.

Govender is no stranger to receiving accolades; she started receiving awards from her primary and secondary school days. Further expressing her gratitude, the ecstatic Govender, believes that she would not be where she is without her spiritual beliefs. “My biggest inspiration is God and I believe that everything I have become and all that I have achieved is only because of God’s grace. My God on earth and my role models are none other than my parents. They inspire me to want to be better every day and their lives have defined what success means to me, and I hope to be as successful as them one day,” she added.

She is currently employed by Veolia Water Technologies in Johannesburg, as a graduate tendering engineer and has reiterated that she has plans of studying in the future to further enhance her qualification. She also aims to register with ECSA (Engineering Council of South Africa) and strives to become a professional engineer in the future. “This will allow me to progress in my career and I intend to use this title of a chemical engineer to aid the many companies in this country and to play a vital role in the sustainability of all our resources for the good of nature and mankind,” she said proudly.

Pictured: Telisha Govender who graduated cum laude and with a dean’s merit award at the Fred Crookes Sports Centre, Steve Biko Campus this morning.

Waheeda Peters