Four DUT Electronic Engineering students are getting a once-in-a-lifetime experience in Thailand this year (2014) as part of their work-integrated learning (WIL).

Third-year students Nkosikhona Wiseman Mkhize, Tyrone Francis, Travis Duck and Christian Hangi all secured a six-month internship at Western Digital in Thailand, the largest manufacturer of hard-drives in the world.

The students flew to Thailand on January 4, funded by Co-operative Education at DUT. At Western Digital, the students have each been allocated mentors to ensure that they get hands-on experience on the kind of processes involved in the manufacturing of hard-drives. The day after their arrival, all four students went to Western Digital for orientation. Here, they were registered, given an overview of the company and enlightened on Thai culture. They were also taken to open bank accounts as they will receive a stipend.

According to Shakeel Ori, the Director of Co-operative Education at DUT, “South Africa does not have any hard-drive manufacturer, so the experience that these students will get is invaluable.”

They are each hosted by one of four Thai universities who have committed themselves to help ensure that the foreign students have a pleasant stay in the country. The institutions are Suranaree University of Technology (SUT), Bangkok University (BU), Walailak University and Rajamangala University of Technology Rattanakosin (RMUTR). The institutions will also pay towards each of the students’ accommodation.

Ori said that it was “an unexpected bonus” that the four host universities offered to pay for the students’ accommodation, on top of hosting them and assisting with the application process for visas.

According to Ori, this internship would not have been possible were it not for Co-operative Education External Engagement Manager, Themba Msukwini who communicated, on a number of occasions, with Sampan Silapanad, the Vice-President & Managing Director of Western Digital Thailand about the provision of an internship for DUT students.

When Silapanad attended the 2013 WACE Conference in Durban in June, Co-operative Education arranged a meeting between him and DUT students who were interested in participating in this internship. The students had to then send applications to Western Digital and go through an interview process via SKYPE before the four candidates were selected.

During the visit to Thailand, with the assistance of the Thai universities, Ori was also able to secure WIL placements for DUT students with other multinational companies.

– Naledi Hlefane

Pictured from left: Travis Duck; Saowanee Sae-Tang; Director of Co-operative Education at Bangkok University, Tyrone Francis, Nkosikhona Wiseman Mkhize and Christian Hangi.