Students in the Faculty of Business and Management Sciences who are outstanding research presenters won cash prizes during this year’s BTech Conference.

The faculty held the conference on the District Six Campus recently under the theme, driving economic development and empowerment through research and innovation.

The faculty’s Dean, Prof Paul Green, said the conference was the initiative and drive of acting Assistant Dean: Research & Innovation, Prof Chux Iwu.

Green added that the purpose of a conference of this nature was developmental, as well as to stimulate and provoke critical thinking and provide for the extension of learning.

“It is the basis of an academic or anyone pursuing the route of academia,” he said.

He argued that South Africa was calling out for action, particularly in the area of economic development so much that some even argue that economic reform should be done radically.

The prizes for individual presentations were R5 000 for the winner, R3 000 2nd prize and Special commendation R750, while for group presentations the prizes were R8 000 for the winners, 2nd R5 000 and  Special Commendation R1 000.

Prizes for the individual presenters were awarded as follows:

Commendation prizes went to the Retail Business Management, Cost and Management Accounting, Financial Management and Tourism Management departments;

The runner-up went to Internal Auditing Department and the winner was the Sport Management Department.

For the presenting groups Commendation Awards were given to HR Management, Business and Information Administration and Hospitality Management departments. The Entrepreneurship and Marketing departments were awarded runners-up and winners, respectively.

Sibusiso Zondi, of Emerald Group Publishing, which was one of the conference sponsors, said 37 CPUT authors are published through Emerald and that the group offers annual research funding awards.

The Faculty of Business and Management Sciences recently welcomed a group of international exchange students from its partner universities in Europe.

The 24 students are from Germany, The Netherlands, Austria, Belgium and France. They will be attending classes at various departments within the faculty.

As part of the students’ orientation week a luncheon was hosted recently by the faculty’s Associate Dean, Ivan van der Heever, at the Cape Town Hotel School.

Van der Heever welcomed the students to the university and to Cape Town and informed them about the current water crisis.

He urged them to save as much water as they can.

Luke Geraets, an Entrepreneurship student from Fontys University, Netherlands, says he came to Cape Town to experience a different culture as he has always wanted to study abroad.

“The people in Cape Town are open, they are eager to know you and tell you about themselves,” he says. “And they are very proud of their city and country.”

Florean Hagner, a Real Estate student from Anhalt University, Germany, says Cape Town is a beautiful city.

“The local people are friendly and the city is an ideal location in which to shoot nice photographs,” says Florean.

He says that he chose to come to South Africa over European countries because he had never been to Africa.

As part of their orientation the students also participated in a CPUT Library Orientation and Information Literacy training, a tour of the exciting tourism destinations around the Peninsula as well as a Cultural Tour of local townships, which included opportunities for the European students to interact with the faculty’s community-based partners.

During the tours the students were guided by the faculty’s staff members Nizaam Peck, a qualified tour guide, and Nicole Umwizerwa.