Students fight to complete engineering studies
Three Wits students automate university's health system in a bid to be readmitted after they were academically excluded.
18 March 2009
Three students who were excluded from the University of Witwatersrand's third year automated the university's health management system in a bid to be readmitted for the 2009 academic year
Zeeshan Khalique, John Rathete and Mofolo Mamabolo were academically excluded from Wits University's Electrical and Information Engineering programme in 2007, following their failure to meet academic standards.
"The university council recommended that we work in the engineering field for at least a year to demonstrate our commitment to our studies and the industry, before they would consider us for re-admittance," says Khalique.
After being excluded most students never return to tertiary education.
However, instead of leaving the University environment completely, they were given employment in the Joburg Centre for Software Engineering's Intern Programme. The JCSE, an industry organisation, which aims to assist in growing South Africa's capacity to deliver world class software by developing research and training initiatives that strengthen the local software development industry is based at Wits.
The students landed the project to develop software that would automate Wits University's health care system. The system also allows researchers to capture and access the HIV/AIDS data gathered in real-time.
Previously, data was captured manually, with the student filling in a form that was given to the receptionist, and then passed on to the medical personnel, says Khalique.
Now students who require medical assistance type their details into a terminal, creating a file which can be accessed by the receptionist through her PC to review the data and the doctor to input details of his medical investigation, he says. HIV/AIDS researchers at the university can also access the file in real time.
The software they developed supports the medical staff at the Health Centre by managing appointments and case records. It also supports researchers at the University who are collecting statistics on the incidence of HIV/AIDS amongst the student population. A great deal of emphasis had to be placed on issues of privacy and security of data.
Renier Dreyer, a Wits University lecturer and the students' project supervisor, notes that it took the students about six months to build the system. Planning began in March last year, with development of the first phase where core automation was developed starting in June, he says. The system was successfully completed, tested and installed at the Student Health Centre by the end of 2008.
In the second phase of development, the students will add advanced features that increase the research capability of the system. There are also plans to roll out the system more widely to remote sites of Wits University.
Early start
Rathete was exposed to computers in high school, where he did computer studies. Khalique, on the hand, gained exposure much earlier, as his father bought him a PC when he was 11 years old. "I soon some realised that I couldn't accomplish the tasks I wanted to do unless I knew how the computer worked. So I started experimenting with it. Studying engineering at university seemed to be a natural extension of this early interest," he says.
He adds that the reason he was excluded is because he lacked discipline. "I'm a night person, but working on this project I had to come in at nine in the morning. Also, watching Renier teach at university, supervise our project and start his own company at the same time made me realise that you can make a lot of money if you are disciplined."
Mamabolo also received a PC as a gift from his parents at an early age. "I wanted to know how the thing worked, and that interest continued throughout high school. But here at university, I lost focus of my initial goals, and was excluded. It was worth being excluded and trying to get back in," he adds.
Second chances
While on the JCSE Intern Programme, Khalique, Rathete and Mamabolo not only worked on an interesting and relevant software project, but they also gained valuable entrepreneurial and technical skills. With the support of Microsoft, a JCSE Platinum Partner, they were able to study for a Microsoft Certified Professional Developer (MCPD) qualification.
The stint working at the JCSE also provided them with entrepreneurial skills. "We were involved in every aspect of the project, not just the coding to develop the software. We also realise that starting a business is not easy, but we are willing to work hard. We've seen Renier do it."
"They have the tools and expertise to develop customisable software, which they can adapt for other universities to meet different requirements. They can also develop systems for companies," says Dreyer.
Based on the work they have done at the JCSE, and the dedication they have displayed, they were all allowed by Wits to re-register as full-time students in 2009 and continue their engineering studies. After graduating they all aim to work as software engineers and have ambitions to set up their own software development company.
The moral of the story is: you must never give up, says Khalique. "You should always think about what you want to do. And if, at some point doubt whether you are supposed in choice of study, it might help you to go into the field and see if it's worth it, and then go back to university and finish it," he says.
The JCSE's Intern Programme has undoubtedly given these three students a second chance!