Train-maker Gibela is looking for eligible candidates for the 210 bursaries it is offering this year, for post-matric study in an array of engineering-related fields.

Established in 2013 as a black economic empowerment company, the Gibela Rail Transport Consortium comprises French rail company Alstom and South Africa’s Ubumbano Rail.

Engineering-related skills are in short supply in South Africa and the Covid-19 pandemic has further underlined the country’s need for the kind of skills required to make meaningful headway in the twenty-first-century job market – literacy, numeracy, problem-solving, communication, self-management and the ability to learn continuously, Gibela says in a statement.

Gibela is, this year, offering 150 bursaries for study at technical and vocational education and training (TVET) colleges, and 60 for study at universities and universities of technology.

Sponsoring education and training, for staff and for the communities around Gibela’s Dunnottar, Nigel, headquarters, is part of the company’s R53-billion contract with the State-owned Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) to produce 600 trains.

Each bursary is for the 2021 academic year and is renewable based on the recipient’s academic performance. Each covers full tuition and a book allowance.

To qualify for the TVET bursaries, candidates must be South African citizens who have a bar-coded identity document, and be enrolled or intend to enrol at a TVET college to study in the fields of boiler-making, electrics, mechanics, fitting and turning, milling, welding, pattern making, vehicle building, plumbing or control and instrumentation.

Current national level three and four (N3 and N4) students are encouraged to apply.

For entry-level students, these fields of study at a TVET college require matriculation with Maths, Science and English at level four (50% to 59%).

The bursaries for study at a university or university of technology are also available for one year, renewable yearly depending on academic performance.

The fields of study covered are electrical, electronic, mechanical, metallurgical and industrial engineering; computer science and information technology; accounting; and supply chain and logistics management.

For entry-level students, matric with Maths and Physical Science at level six (70% to 79%), Accounting at level six, if required by the chosen course, and English at level five (60% to 69%) is a prerequisite.

To apply for any of the set of bursaries, applicants are to send a short curriculum vitae, a certified copy of their matric results and a certified copy of their barcoded identity document to gibelabursaries@communityrail.co.za by February 26.