It would seem, with the multitudes of people applying for tuition at SA Universities that the Universities no longer need to show any interest in prospective students!
My son is currently in Grade 11, and is very keen on pursuing a career in mechanical engineering.
He's emailed the engineering faculties at 3 local universities, and has had "bog standard" replies, here's the forms for application & the requirements for admission & the current fee structures.
At present he is spending a month in North Carolina in the USA. Prior to leaving he emailed the engineering faculty at North Carolina State University. He received a response a day later, asking for more details including his last report & contact details for his school.
This he provided.
A few days later he was contacted by one of the professors, who set up a date & time to meet on campus.
The meeting took place last week Thursday. My son was met by the Prof who gave him a 6 and a half hour guided tour of the campus using Ubers & busses, including 3 of the 5 engineering blocks. The Aerospace block which has 2 wind tunnels, one of which can generate wind speeds of up to Mach 5. Another where they have various machinery including 3D printers accurate to within 16 microns. The third block included the Profs research lab, where his current research project is creating miniature robotic systems for non-invasive surgery including the removal of cancer growths/tumours in the liver.
Finally ending up having a chat over a cup of coffee & spending an hour chatting!
To say (we and) our son is completely blown away is the understatement of the century. He doesn't want to come home!
Stark contrast to our local institutions.
My son is currently in Grade 11, and is very keen on pursuing a career in mechanical engineering.
He's emailed the engineering faculties at 3 local universities, and has had "bog standard" replies, here's the forms for application & the requirements for admission & the current fee structures.
At present he is spending a month in North Carolina in the USA. Prior to leaving he emailed the engineering faculty at North Carolina State University. He received a response a day later, asking for more details including his last report & contact details for his school.
This he provided.
A few days later he was contacted by one of the professors, who set up a date & time to meet on campus.
The meeting took place last week Thursday. My son was met by the Prof who gave him a 6 and a half hour guided tour of the campus using Ubers & busses, including 3 of the 5 engineering blocks. The Aerospace block which has 2 wind tunnels, one of which can generate wind speeds of up to Mach 5. Another where they have various machinery including 3D printers accurate to within 16 microns. The third block included the Profs research lab, where his current research project is creating miniature robotic systems for non-invasive surgery including the removal of cancer growths/tumours in the liver.
Finally ending up having a chat over a cup of coffee & spending an hour chatting!
To say (we and) our son is completely blown away is the understatement of the century. He doesn't want to come home!
Stark contrast to our local institutions.
