Education SAPOA Bursary Fund: Beyond the skills development

SAPOA Bursary Fund: Beyond the skills development and BBBEE points, real change awaits

Over the years, the SAPOA Bursary Fund has shown tremendous growth and success in the work done to support deserving students with bursaries. These students are from a range of socioeconomic conditions with varied challenges, but through the support and contributions from member companies, their dreams are materialising – and that is real change

Some of the 2020 SAPOA Bursary Fund beneficiaries

The partnerships with past and present bursary contributors have led to a total of 62 graduates to date, 58% of whom are female. Eighty-three percent of them have been absorbed upon completing their studies – 82% by the property industry, and the variance by other industries.

At the end of 2019, the pass rate increased to 91% as a result of the mentoring programme that’s one of the support measures offered to students. Through the many bursary contributions made over the years, the industry has gained valuers, quantity surveyors and other professionals in various fields.

True transformation isn’t just the in contribution made to the lives of these individuals, but in the change in the lives of their families: some of these beneficiaries are the first generation with not just a formal education but a university degree. Their participation benefits not only the property sector but also the economy as a whole – which is why continued support from the industry is essential.

Beyond the compliance benefits, the private sector also has an opportunity to influence tertiary education and ensure

Last year’s Real Estate Diploma graduates from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology

that new market entrants don’t end up graduating with redundant knowledge. The challenge for the private sector is to partner with university faculties that are relevant to their core business, and thus influence not only the education system but also produce a workforce and future leaders who will have a positive impact on their companies.

Through the contributions of various member companies, the SAPOA Bursary Fund will be supporting a total of 54 students in 2020, who will be studying across six universities in four provinces. These are certainly milestones that are worth celebrating.

As an industry, we are a force to be reckoned with – but the work doesn’t stop here. Our ongoing efforts to take the property industry forward will require active participation from all players, to ensure sustainable future growth and transformation.

SAPOA would like to thank every bursary contributor, past and present, who has taken part in making our bursary programme a success

To effect industry change (and maximise your BBBEE points), consider using your Skills Development budget to contribute to the SAPOA Bursary Fund. Get in touch on e-mail at bursaryfund@sapoa.org.za for more information.

Further increasing the property management pool

SAPOA and the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) recently honoured the Commercial Property Management class of 2019. The certification ceremony for the one-year SAPOA Commercial Property Management course took place on 5 March in Johannesburg. The course is the result of an ongoing collaborative effort between SAPOA and Wits

By Maud Nale Images by Xavier Saer

According to SAPOA CEO Neil Gopal, one of SAPOA’s main objectives is to provide professionally designed programmes to introduce prospective students to a career in the property industry.

“One of the key value forces of SAPOA is to contribute to the advancement of our member’s interests in commercial property,” he said. “As a professional association established in 1966, our education efforts at SAPOA are aimed at increasing knowledge and skills for the property industry among employees and the industry, ensuring that the content of our programmes, workshops and other educational interventions is aligned with industry needs, and raising the employability and competency of the practitioners and professionals in the industry.”

The Wits-SAPOA partnership goes back more than a decade. “We feel privileged and honoured to partner with an institution such as Wits,” said Gopal. “We believe they run some of the best courses in the country, and both organisations share the same degree of commitment towards education and training.”

To the 12 graduates, he said, “I trust that you’ve learnt a lot from the programme, and that it will allow you to move forward in your career. I am very proud of you for this achievement, and hope that you will continue to support the SAPOA and Wits programmes in the future.”

Master of Ceremonies Professor Samuel Azasu, an associate professor at Wits and Coordinator: Executive Programmes in Present at the certification ceremony were Professors Ian Jandrell (Dean of Engineering and the Built Environment) and David Root (Head of School at the School of Construction Economics and Management).

Real Estate, thanked SAPOA and the training team for all their hard work and collaborative effort.

“We wanted to provide courses that resulted in our graduates being the sources of innovation, new ideas, products and services, as well as reporting standards and formats in the industry,” he said about the revised programme. “We rolled out a new course last year that covered many of these elements and considered property management at an international level, and we wanted to make sure that our professionals had the same quality of training as the global standard.”

To the 12 recipients, Azasu said, “Congratulations to all of you on completing the programme. I invite you to consider furthering your studies in this field, and taking up some of the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM) courses that Wits offers in order to qualify as a Certified Property Manager.” Azasu believes that the working relationship between Wits University and SAPOA continues to grow from strength to strength, and he looks forward to all the collaborative work throughout the year.

Also present at the certification ceremony were Professors Ian Jandrell (Dean of Engineering and the Built Environment) and David Root (Head of School at the School of Construction Economics and Management).