The Durban University of Technology, in collaboration with the European Commission brought the Study in Europe Fair, an international academic expo, to Durban for the first time this year.

The two-day event was held at the DUT Ritson Campus Exam Hall from Friday to Saturday (September 6-7, 2013). It was information galore as students and academics from every university in South Africa had access to information about various scholarships and other funding opportunities which exist in the European Union. Seven European countries, which included France, Finland and Germany, occupied stands in the exam hall where they conveyed information verbally and handed out booklets to attendees.

There were also side events which were held concurrently in the hall, these involving presentations on the different programmes being implemented in European states. There was a presentation on Erasmus+, a new study programme which will be implemented from 2014 to 2020. The programme is a revised version of Erasmus Mundus which integrates other programmes as well. It aims to enhance quality in higher education through scholarships and academic co-operation between Europe and the rest of the world.

To launch the fair, a cocktail function took place on Thursday evening, also at the DUT Ritson Campus Exam Hall. Amongst the guests were DUT Chancellor former KZN Judge President, retired Justice Vuka Tshabalala and Professor Nomthandazo Gwele, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Academic at DUT.

In her welcome speech, Prof Gwele explained that getting the opportunity to host the Study in Europe Fair was a five-year struggle. She said it was thus an absolute pleasure to bring the event to the City of Durban and hoped that attendees would take up the study opportunities which would be made known to them.

Harald Hartung, European Commissioner for Education and Culture, was equally excited to bring the fair to the City. He said, “The overall objective of the fair is to attract South African students and academics to make use of the study opportunities available in European countries. At the moment, the programmes allow for mobility to Europe, but the plan is to eventually have an exchange of students and academics between the two countries.” He added that the Study in Europe initiative is also intended to build alliances among universities, creating a platform on which institutions can share ideas on curricula, among other things. This, he explained, would be essential for social and economic development.

In terms of impact, Hartung said he hoped that the expo would result in a high number of enrollment for the various programmes.

An attendee who benefitted from this event was Sindile Majola, a Master’s student in the Department of Homoeopathy at DUT, who attended the first day of the fair. She said she had always been interested to study overseas but she was not exposed to scholarships. “I will qualify as a homoeopathic doctor soon but I would love to be a general practitioner (GP) one day. I came to the fair to ask about opportunities to study towards being a GP overseas and I must say, I have received such helpful information. I think the idea of an expo was a brilliant one. More expos should come,” Majola said.

– Naledi Hlefane

Pictured: CampusFrance representative Chrisha Bekker enlightens second-year Electrical Power Engineering students Sanele Miya (left) and Nhlanhla Luthuli on the study opportunities available in France.