ISSUE No. 12: February

2014

E-NEWSLETTER

MINISTRY OF TERTIARY EDUCATION,

SCIENCE, RESEARCH & TECHNOLOGY

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

1 Editorial i

2 International Student of the Month 1

3 Interactive Session by Study Mauritius 2

4 Mauritius International University Career

and Job Expo at SVICC 2

5 MoU between Microsoft and Université

des Mascareignes 3

6 Handing Over Ceremony for the

Construction of new University Campus at

Montagne Blanche 3

7 UoM Alumni – Building the Future 4

8 Launching of Junior Mobile Science 2014 4

9 Science on the Move at Quartier Militaire 4

10 Caravane de la Science at Ebene SSS Girls 4

11 Courtesy Calls and Photo Gallery 5

EDITORIAL TEAM

Ms. Shaina Woodun

Mr. Nehrroy Seechurn

CONTRIBUTORS

Ms. B. Kamudu

Rajiv Gandhi Science Centre

EDITORIAL

Study Mauritius continues its outreach activities by

organizing interactive sessions for secondary students,

with a view to increase their knowledge of the tertiary

education sector and future career prospects.

The construction of a New University Campus at

Montagne Blanche starts!

The Rajiv Gandhi Science Centre kick-starts year 2014

with a series of activities to promote science and

technology.

Who is the ‘International Student of the month’? Find out

more in this edition!

Editorial Team

1

INTERNATIONAL STUDENT OF THE MONTH

Name: Patricia Khonje

Country of Origin: Malawi

Studies Enrolled: BSc Computer Science with

Network Security

Patricia Khonje

A. For how long have you been studying in

Mauritius? It’s been more than 1 year now.

B. How did you come to know about

Mauritius as a destination for tertiary

education? I had a friend who was already

studying here and she encouraged me to

pursue my studies in Mauritius. Information

I got from the website enabled me to

choose the correct course of study.

C. And how do you find life in Mauritius? I

have not been to many places yet, but I

really enjoyed going out and visiting the

cities. There is a language barrier on the

campus but overall it’s been nice.

D. Have you been going out for leisure since

you came? Not often but I go to church

every Sunday!

E. What is your favorite food? I love nsima

(local food), though the Mauritian biryani is

delicious.

F. If you could meet anyone in the world,

dead or alive, who would it be? Nelson

Mandela. Nothing can compare to listening

to him!

G. If you were stranded on a desert island,

what three items would you take with you?

1. Food

2. Books to read

3. My toothbrush

H. What is your most irritating habit? I tend to

think too much about unimportant things.

I. How do you handle stress and pressure as a

student? By listening to Gospel music.

J. How do you see yourself in 10 years,

professionally? As the manager of my own

IT company!

2

Interactive Sessions by Study Mauritius

The first interactive session of this year held on

18th February 2014 brought together students

from Loreto Convent, Rose-Hill, St Mary`s

College and La Confiance College. The resource

persons were Mrs. Y. Sibartie-Taukoor from

ACCA Mauritius and Ms. S. Issemdar from RT

Knits. Students were encouraged to ask

questions regarding career prospects.

Interactive sessions are organized on a regular

basis, with the collaboration of resource persons

from various industry sectors, for Lower VI

students since May 2013 to create awareness

about educational and career prospects in key

and emerging sectors of the Mauritian economy.

Over 200 students from secondary schools have

participated in these interactive sessions.

Secondary schools interested to participate in

forthcoming ones are invited to contact the

Study Mauritius Office by phone 454-7112 or

email studymauritius@mail.gov.mu.

The Mauritius International University Career

and Job Expo at SVICC

The annual Mauritius International University

Career and Job Expo organized by Rotary Club of

Grand Baie was held at SVICC Pailles on 15th to

17th February 2014. Some 80 institutions from

various countries such as USA, Canada, China,

Malaysia, Australia, Reunion, France, UK and

India were present.

The event provided a proper forum for students

to obtain guidance and advice to enable them to

make the right career choice..

The opening of the event was held on 14th

February 2014 by the Hon. Dr. R. Jeetah,

3

Minister of Tertiary Education, Science,

Research and Technology.

MOU between Microsoft & Université des

Mascareignes

A memorandum of understanding was signed

between Microsoft Indian Ocean Islands Ltd and

Université des Mascareignes on 20th February

2014 in the presence of the Honourable Minister

of Tertiary Education, Science, Research and

Technology Dr. R. Jeetah.

Paul Bunting, the Country Manager of Microsoft

and Mrs F. Driver, Chairperson of the Board at

the University agreed to a partnership to

facilitate access to the latest, innovative and

sophisticated software at an affordable price.

The collaboration will also enable students and

academic staff to be well versed with those

software.

The MoU will enable the university to dispense

high quality IT courses, its academic staff to be

trained on the latest Microsoft tools. Students

will also be able to benefit from this training by

paying a small fee. This will open new avenues

for research in different fields and will also

create a paradigm shift in the tertiary education

sector.

Handing over Ceremony of the site for the

construction of the New Montagne Blanche

University Campus

Construction work for the University Campus at

Montagne Blanche started on 28th February

2014.

With a land area of 50 arpents, the University

campus will have a 7 floor building with a total

area of 4950 m2.

4

UoM Alumni: Building the Future

Alumni are fundamental to the life of

universities as they encourage the participation

of members in the growth and development of

the University. The University of Mauritius held

a special event entitled "UoM Alumni - Building

the Future" on Thursday 13th February 2013 at

The CORE located at Ebène which now forms

part of the campus of the University of

Mauritius.

Launching of Junior Mobile Science 2014

The Junior Mobile Science, is a new initiative of

the Rajiv Gandhi Science Centre, which aims at

demystifying Science and Technology for

Primary School Pupils. It consists of a series of

mobile interactive exhibits tailor-made for

primary school pupils of standard IV, V and VI.

The first edition of Junior Mobile Science was

held at M. Parsad Government School, Piton on

20 and 21 February 2014.

Science on the Move at Quartier Militaire

The Rajiv Gandhi Science Centre was present at

the Quartier Militaire Post Office on Friday 06

February 2014 for the ‘Science on the Move’.

This science-based activity is a travelling

exhibition destined for the public to have the

opportunity to conduct experiments by

interacting with staff.

Caravane de la Science at Ebene SSS Girls

The first ‘Caravane de la Science’ was held at

Ebene SSS Girls on Thursday 13 and Friday 14

February 2014.

‘Caravane de la Science’ is a set of science

activities comprising of demonstrations, talks

and exhibitions aiming at triggering the

enthusiasm of students for Science Subjects.

The opening ceremony was held in the presence

of Dr the Hon R. Jeetah, Minister of Tertiary

Education, Science, Research and Technology.

5

Courtesy Calls and Photo Gallery

Meeting with representatives of Harvard

Business School

Open Day at UoM

Meeting with Middlesex International

Students Association Mauritius (MISAM)

6