R10 million boost from Oasis

As the new academic year kicks in, with funding issues not yet off the table, a cheque handed to UCT in March this year is set to benefit a number of UCT students.

Asset management group Oasis pledged to donate R10 million in bursaries to UCT, and the group is hopeful that this will signal the rekindling of a long-term partnership with the university.

Over the next five years, R2 million will be allocated to the university annually. First-year student orientation and support will receive R250 000; undergraduate degrees and programmes will receive R1 million; and postgraduate studies will receive R750 000.

UCT and Oasis will collaborate in selecting students who are eligible for the funding. They would likely hail from academic areas relating to Oasis’s business activities, said Dr Russell Ally, executive director of UCT’s Development and Alumni Department.

“As an institution we remain grateful to businesses like Oasis for setting up this partnership, which we are hopeful will continue over the long term,” Ally said.

“This investment will contribute to the alleviation of funding pressures through the allocation of bursary grants to students attending the university, and we will also afford these students the same opportunities as our own bursary recipients to gain skills and much needed practical experience,” said Adam Ebrahim, Oasis CEO.

Story Yusuf Omar. Photo Supplied.