Vodacom assists top matric students with bursaries for higher education

Following the announcement last week of the NSC Matric Results by the Minister of Basic Education, Angie Motshekga, Vodacom has recommitted to provide approximately 110 students with bursaries worth R12 million annually to take up studies at higher institutions of learning.

For the 2018 academic year, a total of 40 students have been awarded new bursaries to study at any higher learning institutions of their choice. This includes the 10 top achievers from the Department of Basic Education Matric Announcement for 2017.

Through its corporate social investment wing (CSI), Vodacom awards new bursaries every year, based on academic excellence and financial need. Students who have been selected for the 2018 intake have all matriculated with a minimum average pass rate of 75%.

A further 70 bursaries have been awarded to students entering their second, third or fourth year of study, making a total of 110 Vodacom bursaries awarded for 2018.

Joshua Chetty (18), who is one of the top 10 achievers from the Department of Basic Education Matric Announcement for 2017 is one of the 40 Vodacom Bursary student beneficiaries for the 2018 academic year.

Joshua who is the NSC Matric Top Learner in the Special Needs Category says: “I’m very happy for the opportunity granted to me by Vodacom and I still can’t believe that they will be funding my studies.”

Joshua who is planning on fathering his studies at Vega says he will be studying digital or brand communication.        

Joshua Chetty, says that he hopes special needs learners will stop being chained by their disabilities and learn not to limit themselves.

Since the bursary scheme began in the late 1990s, more than 1 000 study grants have been made available to deserving students for tertiary education.

From the 2018 academic year 40 students, one disabled student has been included, to give an opportunity to students who might otherwise be excluded from bursaries in the particular fields of information technology and engineering.