20 Sep 2020

First year students at the Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST) have been urged to use their knowledge to help transform the economy from resource to knowledge based.

Welcoming new students at the university recently, vice chancellor Professor Otlogetswe Totolo said by enrolling at the institution, they had embarked on a journey of scholastic and scientific enquiry. 

“We welcome you to our world of scientific and technological ideas and their practical application,” he said. Prof. Totolo said scholars at the institution were leaders in their own fields and continually applied expertise through scholarly research that addressed the most pressing challenges of today’s world.

Other than academic programmes, the university also offered a wide range of leisure, sporting and recreational activities, leadership development programmes, clubs and societies geared towards ensuring that their stay, learning and other academic pursuits were enjoyable and memorable.

He said new students were bound to initially feel overwhelmed and urged them to be engaged in all activities available, adding that in doing so, they would consequently lead to professional and career accomplishments.

On their orientation which started last week, Prof. Totolo said the was to provide students with vital information about the university resources, programmes and services.

Again, he said it provided them with an opportunity to meet other students, prepare themselves to meet new people with different cultures, build friendships and design their career path and subsequent professional and personal life while they were still in the throes of their studies.

On one hand, Prof. Totolo stressed that university life could present many unprecedented challenges for new students.

“This is because as new students, you are transitioning from secondary school education to tertiary education and the two are very different in many ways,” he said.

He added that the transition must therefore be managed well by both the university and students, adding that if not managed well, it might lead to high drop-out levels, loss of focus on studies, engagement in criminal and other anti-social activities as well as disengagement from curricular and extra-curricular activities.

He encouraged them to adhere to the code of conduct and other policies that dealt with their academic and social lives.

He also urged them to thoroughly prepare for their lectures and constantly engage the academic staff. “Get to know your lecturers and professors, talk to them after class, engage them in discussions about their research and about your own ideas, by so doing, they will guide you and open doors to new possibilities,” he said.

Students were also urged to participate in Student Representative Council (SRC) activities.

“Make use of your SRC as a focal point for your initiatives in conjunction with the university’s division of student affairs and campus life,” the professor said. ENDS