Bursaries for students pursuing careers in the wholesale & retail sector have been made available through the partnership that has been established between the Wholesale and retails Seta (W&RSETA) and financial aid entity NSFAS. This collaboration has led to the creation of two groundbreaking bursary programmes which aim to provide financial assistance to students.

The first programme is for students who completed their studies in 2011 and qualified for the nsfas Final Year Programme. This Programme will provide bursaries for up to 3 000 students, thus enabling them to graduate and find employment in the Wholesale & Retail Sector through the w&rseta Workplace Experience Employment Grant (WEEG) Project.

The Second is for an additional 1667 bursaries for first year students who passed Matric in 2011 or in previous years these bursaries will cover three years of study, linked to work placements in the Wholesale and Retail Sector throughout their studies.

This landmark agreement is a response by the w&rseta to the call by the Minister of Higher Education and Training, Dr Blade Nzimande, to Setas, public entities and social partners to help students who need financial aid in order to graduate. “Final year undergraduate students have received loans equivalent to the full cost of study, and if they pass and graduate, this loan will be converted to a full bursary and will not be repaid”. The Minister made this announcement at the Ministerial Road Show to meet stakeholders in the post-school education and training system, held in Durban in November 2011.

The Minister said that the aim of the Department of Higher Education and Training was to conceptualise and bring together all the major sub-sectors of higher and further education and training “into a single system in which the parts complement the whole, work together to strengthen one another and articulate seamlessly with one another.”

At his official launch of the Green Paper for Post-School Education and Training on 12 January 2012 in Pretoria, the Minister called on government departments and agencies as well as municipalities to increase their intake of various types of trainees who are either studying or have recently completed their studies. The Minister further called on the private sector to contribute more effectively in addressing the skills needs in the country by providing opportunities for graduates.

FINAL YEAR BURSARIES

The w&rseta Sector Skills Plan (SSP) has identified a number of scarce skills in the Sector. To address this gap, w&rseta has provided R185 million for bursaries in the Final Year Programme to university students who completed their studies in 2011 in disciplines related to the Sector. These bursaries which include stipends for workplace experience will assist the Wholesale and Retail Sector by providing a pool of potential employees with the requisite skills, thus narrowing the supply and demand gap. It will further promote Wholesale and Retail as a career of choice to suitably qualified young graduates.

Students who received nsfas loans for the Final Year Programme in 2011 and who graduated with qualifications in any of the following retail-related disciplines will be eligible for bursaries in the following fields:

“The Minister made an impassioned plea on behalf of the students and w&rseta heeded that call. This is the first time since its inception that w&rseta will be funding bursaries for post-matric education. This financial assistance will provide a full bursary to students who meet the following conditions:

As part of w&rseta’s Workplace Experience Employment Grant Project, students will be placed in the Wholesale and Retail Sector for a period of up to 12 months after graduating and will receive monthly stipends from the seta for the period. “We have noted with regret that students complete their studies only to stay at home unemployed, rendering all other interventions futile. It is for this reason that the w&rseta has taken a decision to integrate formal learning with practical workplace experiential training,” said Mr Joel Dikgole, W&rseta Chief Executive Officer.

Any student who meets the above criteria and who wishes to apply for a w&rseta Final Year Programme bursary and WEEG placement in 2012 should apply directly to nsfas by completing the application form on the nsfas website or via email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . For queries, please contact the nsfas Call Centre on (021)763 3232. w&rseta will not deal directly with student applications, all enquiries must be made to nsfas.

FIRST YEAR BURSARIES

Through the National Skills Development Strategy (NSDS III), setas have been asked to re-orient their funding to channel more resources into full occupational programmes at public FET colleges and universities. setas are required to increasingly channel training resources into tackling the shortage of artisans, technicians, professionals, administrators, managers and others needed to build the economy. This is what this bursary scheme seeks to achieve.

One of the most exciting and innovative aspects about the w&rseta Bursary Scheme is that the learners will be required to undergo workplace experiential learning during the period of their studies to ensure that when they graduate they have the requisite skills, qualifications and are employable.

While Bursary Schemes are typically only open to students who want to study at Universities, students who want to further their studies through Further Education and Training (FET) colleges in disciplines related to the Wholesale and Retail sector, may also apply for this Bursary Scheme.

University and FET College students who apply for First Year Bursaries to study in the fields mentioned above will qualify for a bursary that covers the Full Cost of Study in 2012, 2013 and 2014. Students will participate in workplace experiential learning in the Wholesale and Retail Sector throughout their studies.

Any student who meets the above criteria and who wishes to apply for a w&rseta First Year Programme bursary and WEEG placement in 2012 should apply to the Financial Aid Office at the university or college where they are registered. Bursaries will be given to students with the best academic potential to succeed and who are passionate about a career in the Wholesale and Retail Sector. Students from rural areas will be given preference.

Closing Date for applications for both bursaries is 28 February 2012

Press release issued by Wholesale and Retail Sector Education and Training Authority

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