The Durban University of Technology (DUT) Midlands Entrepreneurship Centre & Student Desk in partnership with the Department of Higher Education & Training will be hosting its 2018 edition of the Student Entrepreneurship Week (#SEW2018) on 28 – 30 August 2018 at DUT’s Midlands Campuses.

The #SEW2018, boasting a line-up of exciting activities, will kick off on Tuesday 28 August with a roadshow that will start at Riverside Campus and proceed to Indumiso Campus before ending off at Edendale Mall. The Centre’s Student Entrepreneurship Champions will interact with the students and communities around Indumiso Campus; the aim of this roadshow is to formally introduce the Centre, which was formalised as a University division in June 2018.

The second day, 29 August, will see aspirant student entrepreneurs presenting their business ideas to a panel of expert judges in the Elevator Pitch competition. The competition, dubbed ‘where innovative minds meet to produce excellence’ will serve as an excellent platform for the student entrepreneurs who will receive sound evaluation and business advice from seasoned and successful entrepreneurs in attendance at this competition. Participating student entrepreneurs will also stand a chance to win exciting prizes that will help them to turn their business ideas into reality.

The #SEW2018 will close off on Thursday 30 August with the Turn Your Writing into a Business workshop which will be hosted in partnership with the DUT’s Writing Centre. The workshop, with the renowned author and academic Professor Zakes Mda as keynote speaker, aims to instill passion and relentless determination not only in writing but for turning an often undermined talent into a sustainable business. Professor Mda will intensively workshop aspirant writers, offering them practical tools they can use to become timeless writers, such as himself.

More than 1 000 students and established entrepreneurs from the Midlands Campus and beyond are expected to participate in this event, which is a first of its kind in Pietermaritzburg.

Pictured: DUT Students are excited about the upcoming Student Entrepreneurship Week #SEW2018.

Nontokozo Ngcobo