APPLIED SCIENCES

Name of Degree: Master of Food Science & Technology

Dissertation Title: Proximate composition and fatty acid profile of South African Sardines (Sardinops sagax ocellatus) using conventional techniques and near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS)

Ziyanda is from a small village called Machubeni in Lady Frere, Eastern Cape.  She currently lives in Guguletu, Cape Town.

In 2010 she was accepted at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) for a National Diploma in Food Technology. She recently completed her Master’s in Food Science & Technology from CPUT and is currently enrolled for a Diploma in Animal Production. Her Master’s research focused on proximate composition and fatty acid analysis of sardines using near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) as an alternative to conventional techniques. Ziyanda has a keen interest in evaluating alternative feed resources for animals.

My advice for succeeding at postgraduate studies is to NEVER GIVE UP!

My greatest achievement was completing my Masters degree when everything seemed impossible and I was close to just giving up. My advice for succeeding at postgraduate studies is to NEVER GIVE UP!  Always persevere. If you fall down, get back up and try again. Or as Thomas A Edison said: “Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.”

Ziyanda explains her research in an English and isiXhosa video here.