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Winter Cereal Trust Bursary Scheme:
Nine years of achievements reviewed
T
he Winter Cereal Trust (WCT) Bursary Scheme was
established in 2006 with the aim of helping students start
their careers in the field of small grains research. With the
Bursary Scheme, the WCT increases the industry’s pool of
appropriately qualified scientists in an equitable and transparent
manner.
The WCT aims to award ten bursaries every year to post-graduate
students to help finance their masters or doctoral studies in the
small grains related field. In addition, a further three bursaries
are awarded to students in their final year of undergraduate and/
or honours studies and who are planning post-graduate studies
related to small grains at least to the level of an MSc degree. The
latter three are allocated specifically to previously disadvantag-
ed students.
Key principles that are applied with the allocation of said bursaries
are firstly pairing a distinguished study leader with a post graduate
student with a sound academic record. Secondly, the field of
study will focus on finding outcomes to pressing challenges within
the grain value chain.
The mentor will keep the WCT informed of the student’s progress
and guide the student in his or her studies.
Bursary allocation from 2006 to 2014
Since the bursary scheme began in 2006, the WCT has awarded ten
bursaries for BSc Honours degrees, 63 bursaries for MSc degrees
and 21 bursaries for PhD degrees (see
Table 1
). Since 2006 to date,
the trust has awarded 94 bursaries as shown in Table 1.
In 2006, the WCT Bursary Scheme started with three bursary
awards, two awards for MSc and one award for a PhD and grew to
a significant 14 bursaries awarded in 2014. In terms of monetary
value, the Winter Cereal Trust has invested the sum of R5,59 million
over the past nine years, averaging a R621 00 investment per annum
(see
Graph 1
).
Breakdown of bursary awards according
to fields of study
Graph 2
indicates the various funded fields of studies since
2006. Taking a closer look at the profile of these funded fields of
study, Food Science dominated with 32,93% (Honours 4,21%,
MSc 23,40% and PhD 5,32%), Genetics with 26,59% (Honours
1,06%, MSc 17,02% and PhD 8,51%) and Plant Breeding with
21,27% (Honours 1,06%, MSc 13,83% and PhD 6,38%).
Although Food Science came out on top regarding the overall
awards, it came third with regards to PhD awards (5,32%) compared
to the Plant Breeding and Genetics fields, respectively, with PhD
awards of 6,38% and 8,51%.
Skills and development
To date, the WCT Bursary Scheme has awarded 42 students with
bursaries from 2006 to 2014. Of them, 29 have successfully complet-
ed their studies, one student is currently writing her dissertation,
while nine have just started their studies. Only four students did
not complete their studies due to personal reasons.
Graph 3
further shows that ten students have been awarded PhD
bursaries since 2006. Out of these ten bursary holders, three
completed their PhD degrees and five students are busy with their
studies, while only two students did not complete their studies due
to health problems and personal matters.
RELEVANT
ISHMAEL TSHIAME,
CEO: GFADA and
COBUS LE ROUX,
general manager: ARC-Field Crops Division
DEGREE
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014 TOTAL
%
BSc(Hon)
0
0
0
2
3
2
1
2
0
10
11
MSc
2
6
8
10
9
7
7
5
9
63
67
PhD
1
1
1
2
3
3
2
3
5
21
22
Total
3
7
9
14
15
12
10
10
14
94
100
TABLE 1: ACADEMIC YEARS FUNDED SINCE 2006.
Some of the 2014 bursary holders. Front: Kelly Breeds, Kamogelo
Dithebe, Nadia Fisher, Anandi Bierman, Phumzile Sibisi and
Ansori du Plessis. Back: Marlon le Roux, Gerida de Groot,
Roean Wessels, Vic Nicolis and Phumzile Saba.
SA Grain/
Sasol Chemicals (Fertiliser) photo competition
– Joani Watson 2012