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News | 6 February 2017
The 2016 Maroela and Magrietjie Rag float. Photo: Fezekile Msimang
2017 RAG takes on a new form 14-year old UP first-year Hjalmar Rall. Photo: www.up.ac.za
UP welcomes 14-year old student MARKO SVICEVIC While most students who start their journey at UP do so after completing their matric year, and usually begin their studies at the age of 18 years or older, this year UP is welcoming a 14 year old to its campus. Hjalmar Rall, from Riebeek Kasteel in the Western Cape, will be pursuing a degree in BSc Physics. In 2015, Rall wrote four Cambridge IGCSE exams at the age of 12, obtaining A’s in Chemistry, Maths, Physics and English. According to an article on the UP website titled “Fourteen year old joins UP,” Rall’s success lies in doing what he enjoys. “I want to ask even bigger questions and find out what else there is to
do, particularly in theoretical physics and astrophysics,” says Rall. “When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bounds. Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction and you find yourself in a new, great and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties, and talents become alive, and you discover yourself to be a greater person [...] than you ever dreamed yourself to be,” adds Rall. In 2016, Rall was featured on South Africa’s morning show, Expresso, where he discussed his ambitions as a university student. Rall is also the youngest ever first-year student to be enrolled at UP since its establishment in 1908.
MARKO SVICEVIC AND CELLIERS MARAIS The 2017 TuksRAG initiative is set to be redefined this year with community outreach at its core. The annual RAG event, which in previous years involved a procession through the streets of Hatfield and was moved to LC de Villiers last year, is in the process of being remodelled to better its goal of community outreach. The RAG event this year will take place on 25 March and will involve a market day and collecting charitable donations. The market day will include food stalls and music. The residences will also be displaying their charitable side by collecting and filling up donation chests. According to RAG chairperson and TSC member for Facilities and RAG, Roahan Gouws, the initiative is currently undergoing changes meant to increase its efforts to serve and reach out to broader communities. Gouws said that in previous years RAG was not efficient in its procession format, as too much money was spent on building RAG floats, which meant fewer funds were available for assisting fund raising. According to Gouws, “[Reses] build these huge floats, which is a great tradition to have, but at the end of the day the floats get scrapped … and so they don’t serve the community in any way [and] we can’t as
a community engagement structure go on and on every year [in that way].” Gouws further explained that moving the procession to LC de Villiers last year made it even less feasible and more restrictive. Gouws explained: “What we did this year is we came up with a new format to serve the community [because] this year we are all about the community and community engagement, and essentially what we are doing is having a chest of hope, where the residence partnerships build a chest … which is filled up with things that all charities need.” Among these include food and toiletries as minimum requirements, but may include anything a selected charity may specifically need. Another part of RAG will involve making blankets out of clothing, which will also be donated to charities. According to Gouws, RAG is currently negotiating a benefit concert to complement the activities of the day, although it has not yet been confirmed. Gouws added that the change to the format of RAG includes checking up on residences and their chests in order to ensure accountability, proper management, and contribution by the residences to their charities. Tuks Reach out and Give, commonly known as TuksRAG, is the largest non-profit student organisation in South Africa and, according to UP, it is the third largest of its kind in the world.
One hundred free scholarships for SA students DANICA CHARLES The Stipendium Hungaricum Scholarship Programme is offering 100 free scholarships to South African students. This programme was signed on 8 December 2016 and is based on a bilateral educational co-operation agreement signed between the Hungarian and South African Governments. The applicant is to be nominated by a Sending Partner. In the academic year 2017/2018 almost 4 000 students can begin studying, with an option of a total of 410 study programmes available in English or in Hungarian, in the framework of the Stipendium Hungaricum Programme. Stipendium Hungaricum scholarship types that are available, are for full and partial time bachelor, master, one-tier master and doctoral levels as well as preparatory and specialisation courses. The scholarship covers four main provisions namely, tuition-free education, contribution to living expenses all year until completion of studies, accommodation, and medical expenses. The application documents needed by all applicants include the online application form, a motivation letter, a proof of language proficiency and their translations in the language of selected study programme, school certificates and their translations in the language of selected study, transcript of records and its translation in the language of selected study programme,
medical certificate, copy of passport and a statement for application. There are additional documents for doctoral level which includes a research plan and two letters of recommendation and the additional documents for art and music applicants include a portfolio of art/sketches and an audio portfolio, respectively. Submission must be submitted through the online application system of the Tempus Public Foundation, who the managers of the programme, no hard copies are required. A guide for the online system is available to download from the www.stipendiumhungaricum.hu website. The deadline for submitting the complete application package is 5 March 2017. Ambassador of the Hungarian Embassy, András László Király, said that this Scholarship Programme is to “provide higher quality tertiary study opportunity for those who would not be able to finance it”. The Ambassador made it clear that other opportunities exist for the ‘A student’ but that this scholarship was to target the candidate who cannot contribute towards their own studies. He also noted that applicants must give effort, “not financial effort, but intellectual effort”. Director General of the Department of Higher Education and Training Gwebinkundla Qonde raised that although it is important to have good marks for university education, there will be a preference towards the poor who “cannot access [tertiary education] from [their] parents’ initiative”.