Unisa online - Final year fee relief for students

From left: Mr Frankie Mojapelo, Manager Unisa Foundation; Mr Tendai David Farirai Director: Unisa Foundation and Alumni Relations; Ina van der Merwe, MIE CEO; Amanda Masina, Manager: Alumni Relations; Nina de Winter-Peer, Head of Communications: MIE and Lloyd Modjadji Fundraising & Development Officer: Unisa Foundation

It is every graduates dream to find employment after being capped at their graduation ceremony. Outstanding fees, however, remain a challenge to students in finding employment.

The meeting between Unisa Foundation and Managed Integrity Evaluation (Pty) Ltd (MIE) has become a lifeline for those students who owe final year fees. MIE have renewed their 4-year-old relationship with Unisa by implementing a bursary scheme for final-year students. This will see more and more Unisa students not worrying about their final year outstanding fees being settled. Now they will only have to worry about the type of dress or suit they will wear at their graduation.

This bursary will pay outstanding student fees for students in their final year. Ina van der Merwe, MIE CEO, said, “We are giving students an advantage. We want to see students joining the work market,” she added.

The bursary has seen 19 students benefit from this initiative so far. An amount of R70 000 has been paid in the period of 3 years. MIE is a company that deals with screening and giving integrity to qualifications. Students will eventually benefit from their details being placed on a portal called GRADZ, “This portal will contain verified graduates and they will be put there for free,” said Ms van der Merwe. Once the portal has been put in place, all Unisa students will be able to access this portal and make use of it.

For more information about the bursary scheme and additional services, students should contact Directorate for Student Funding (012 441 5600/5609; chabawf@unisa.ac.za/letsomp@unisa.ac.za)