Committed to making the FI concession a success

Chairperson of Unisa’s Tshwane Regional SRC, Tokologo Monene, is setting a good example for fellow Unisa students. She recently passed the FI concession with a distinction, her qualification was audited successfully and is now a LLB graduate. The FI (final year) concession is a mechanism instituted by the university to assist qualifying students to complete their qualification.

At one point, Monene wasn’t sure if this day would ever come. After applying to Unisa she learnt that she did not meet the requirements to enroll for an LLB, which was the degree of her choice.  “It was a traumatic experience for me because I wanted to study towards an LLB and subsequently join the great legal minds that the country has produced. Coincidently, Unisa, as part of its packages within the Faculty of Law had a Diploma in Law, which I then enrolled for and later managed to register for my LLB. Quite frankly, it was a great mission for me to eventually do my LLB, but worth all the sleepless nights,” explained Monene.

She completed her Diploma in Law in record time, and then began with the LLB, which was more of a continuation for another three years (2015-2017). Monene maintained discipline and focus on her journey on a full time basis for the first three years before she joined student activism on campus. “In 2015 I continued with my LLB, subsequent to that I made a decision to join and participate in student politics and various other activities on campus, which immensely contributed towards my current seat in the SRC,” she said.

Monene completed both her qualifications in record time, despite the institutional activities which she participated in. “I must mention that I came to Unisa fresh from school, and self-study was not really a method I was used too. But I learnt that I can be disciplined and focused enough to study alone, submit assignments and pass.”

Today, Monene takes great pride in her academic strides of the last semester of her LLB degree. She was enrolled for her final eight modules and had two months to study before her examination. The dates were paired closely together and she also had SRC duties to execute. “I had sleepless nights, a bad diet, no social life but I ate, breathed and slept books. In the midst of it all, I achieved what I set out to do,” she said with a smile.

Monene’s advice to Unisa students is simple: “Keep your head up, fixate your eyes to where your goals reside and focus on that goal. There will always be challenges along the way, you will tremble on some, trip and fall on others and jump over many, but never lose sight of your goals. Always remain focused on the set objectives, and not the challenges that come with it because the challenges are temporary.”

*By Kirosha Naicker