North-West University academics receive prestigious international scholarship

Issued by
Johannesburg, Apr 13, 2016

Mafikeng Campus Faculty of Agriculture, Science and Technology lecturers have received a top scholarship from a leading international university.

Isaac Mokgada and Nombulelo Zulwayo, Psychiatric Nursing lecturers from Department of Nursing Sciences, were awarded the Tirisano Scholarship from the University of California in Los Angeles.

The two lecturers from were among the six candidates selected after a robust competition for Tirisano scholarship in October 2015. They will leave for Los Angeles, California, USA, in March 2016 and return in June 2016.

Tirisano is a five-year (2015-2020) training programme to prepare post-baccalaureate, master's and doctoral students and early career professionals studying and working in the mental health field to conduct research on substance abuse, depression, chronic stress, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) across the life course.

The programme scholarship aims to increase the number of well-trained South Africans conducting research in chronic stress, substance abuse, depression and/or PTSD, translate research findings to culturally congruent substance abuse and mental health treatment interventions and programmes; and lastly, facilitate the building of clinical and research capacity and infrastructure that will benefit the South African people.

The training initiative is an international collaboration between University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA), South African universities and research institutions, including the University of Cape Town, the University of Stellenbosch, the Human Sciences Research Council and North West University.

IO Mokgaola and NV Zulwayo, both attained their basic degree, Bachelor of Nursing Science, from the university in 2010. They both were recruited for nursing fellowship in 2011 and enrolled and completed their master's degree in nursing.

"We are very excited to receive this scholarship. It will give us an opportunity to grow in our field and become leaders in the future".