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MINERALS INDUSTRY EDUCATION AND TRAINING II

through the joint supervision of student dissertations across faculties and
research groupings. Current research topics cover aspects of mine closure
planning and rehabilitation of degraded mine land; performance analysis &
policy - making for mineral value chains; entrepreneurship in communities
around the mining & minerals beneficiation; systemic approaches to mining
accident causality analysis; legal frameworks for mitigating environmental
and social impacts; the downstream use of mine wastes; gender equality in
mining; and the reconciliation of different stakeholders.

Student Recruitment and Admission

This programme targets graduates from across a spectrum of disciplines, who
have an interest in pursuing or advancing their careers in the field of mining
and minerals beneficiation in a variety of areas e.g. geologists, engineers,
economists, planners, lawyers, regulators, health & safety specialists,
environmental officers, social scientists, etc. The basic entry requirement is a
four-year Bachelor’s degree or an Honours degree in any relevant field. The
number of students accepted into the programme in any year is restricted
by the resource capacity of the programme for that particular year. Selection
is based on an applicant's academic record and relevant work experience.
In keeping with the inter- and trans-disciplinary nature of this programme,
selection is also be aimed at promoting diversity amongst the students in
terms of fields of study, expertise and/or experience.

Programme Implementation and Outcomes

The programme was inaugurated in 2014 and, by the end of 2016, comprised
36 students, 21 of whom were enrolled at UCT and 15 at UNZA. This
cohort represents a number of disciplines (including engineering, forestry,
law, economics, psychology, social science), and countries (South Africa,
Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Australia and Japan). Many of these students
hold middle to senior senior management positions in government,
mining houses, consultancies and in their communities. Others are recent
graduates studying full time. This diversity has helped to enrich the
learning experience and made for many inspiring classroom discussions
and activities. Workshops with student cohorts at the end of their first

Innovative Practice in Mineral
204 Section 5
Processing Education