In an attempt to contribute to the skills profile of postgraduate students, unemployed graduates, and junior employees in the Free State, the Hokma Institute – in collaboration with the Black Management Forum (BMF) Young Professionals – hosted the Free State Postgraduate Student Development Seminar. The seminar took place on 18 July 2024 in the Business School on the University of the Free State (UFS) Bloemfontein Campus.

According to Lebohang Matlabe, founder and Director of the Hokma Institute, the event was in part aimed at celebrating Mandela Day. However, he indicated that the primary reason for the gathering was to influence the thinking of the young people in attendance towards “commercialising their output of the economic journey, such as research”.

Therefore, several industry professionals were invited to speak to the young people in attendance. These included Tsholofelo Tshabadira, Lecturer at the Central University of Technology (CUT); Thabang Selemela, Director of Human Resources at the Free State Provincial Department of Economic, Small Business Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (DESTEA); Dr Kgosi Mocwagae, Senior Lecturer at the UFS; Senne Bogatsu, financial planner at Sanlam; Olwethu Ketsekile, Head of Human Capital at Old Mutual iWYZE; and Matlabe, among others.

Insights from the seminar

Various topics were discussed at the seminar, all aimed at empowering the postgraduate students in attendance. These included personal branding that enlightened the students on how to position themselves for the work environment, being clued up about the basics of an employment contract, as well as pursuing global research opportunities and collaborations for enhanced career and professional growth, among others. As such, the students who attended the seminar said they found the session informative. In fact, Tabeth Muraya, a student in the Faculty of Law at the UFS, said, “I feel like there’s always a perceived structural approach one needs to take in life, such as going to university and then going to look for employment. What I enjoyed about this session is that it taught us that we don’t necessarily have to go that route, and that there are different opportunities that you can take.”

Concluding the seminar, Matlabe expressed the hope that the session encouraged the students to be proactive as far as their future is concerned.