Now’s a good time to be a young black academic
Black South Africans are being incentivised to apply for a development programme.
If you are a black South African under the age of 40 and interested in becoming an academic, the department of higher education and training is urging you to join an academic development programme offered in no fewer than 24 academic institutions throughout the country.
To be eligible for this programme you must “show evidence of eligibility to undertake postgraduate study at master’s or doctoral level,” according to specifications released under the ‘Staffing South Africa’s Universities Framework’ document.
Themed “Revitalising and Transforming the Academic Profession”, this is the third stage of the programme.
The framework states that the academic development programme “enables you to immediately take up a permanent lecturer position, and earn a full lecturer salary as you study”.
During the programme, candidates will be able to study for a master’s or doctorate, or undertake post-doctoral work with substantially reduced teaching responsibilities while studying.
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Entrants into the profession will be “fully supported by a mentor for the duration” of this six-year comprehensive development and induction programme.
“At least 80% of the the positions will be allocated to black and/or [female] South African citizens,” the framework states.
Institutions participating in this programme include the isiXhosa department at the Cape Peninsula of Technology, isiZulu and medical physics at the Central University of Technology as well as maritime studies at the Durban University of Technology.
Statistics is offered at the Nelson Mandela University of Technology, applied mathematics at the University of Stellenbosch and industrial engineering at North-West University.
Rhodes is offering political philosophy, media studies and education, while town and regional planning is offered at the University of Johannesburg.
For more information, candidates are referred to the website of the department.
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