The Technology Transfer and Innovation Support (TTIS) office at the North-West University (NWU) is helping innovators and entrepreneurs to realise their dreams.

When a third-year BCom student, Irene Nompini Tsele, conceived her idea for a cosmetics business, little did she know that partnering with the university’s TTIS office would one day make her business flourish.

Aristotle said that music has the power to form the character and should therefore be introduced into the education of the young. This quote is befitting of the Musical Arts in South Africa: Resources and Applications (MASARA) research niche area at the North-West University (NWU).

MASARA is part of the NWU’s School of Music and Conservatory, and their focus is music and music well-being. The research niche area also focuses on the conservation and use of indigenous music and was established in November 2008.

Offering an enhanced learning experience using multimedia online learning platforms is the key to encouraging participation among Generation Z students – people born between 1997 and the early 2010s.

This is one of the findings of a North-West University (NWU) research team after they investigated both the ins and the outs of the development of student pages on learning management systems (LMSs).

A master’s-degree study conducted by North-West University (NWU) student Katlego Botlhoko from the School of Nursing explores the experiences of nurse educators with regard to the new diploma in general nursing (R171) curriculum in North West.

The diploma in general nursing is a three-year programme, leading to registration with the South African Nursing Council as a general nurse. The programme consists of a theoretical and a clinical component, which must be completed in each academic year.

Dr Marinda Neethling and Dr Susan Greyling, both academics from the North-West University’s (NWU's) research focus area Community-based Educational Research (COMBER), recently travelled to Namibia and Zimbabwe to collaborate and build relationships in the field of early childhood development.

Dr Neethling's research focuses on providing comprehensive training to caregivers in African early childhood development centres, where many caregivers are unqualified grandmothers or mothers.

North-West University academic Dr Ankit Katrodia’s paper – titled “Generation Y’s perception towards and actual usage of African language radio Stations in South Africa” – recently earned him the Best Paper Award at the 3rd International Conference on Leveraging Industry 5.0: Sustainability, Innovation and Disruption that took place in Mumbai, India.

In the paper, co-authored by Dr Katrodia and his master’s student, Nkosinathi Ntuli, Dr Katrodia said that radio broadcasting is the most consumed form of broadcast media in the world.

Seipati Poopedi, a master’s student at the North-West University (NWU), recently participated in the Wetskills Water Challenge in Cape Town and her team walked away with the spoils.

Her team members were Tariro Marekwa, an MSc student from the University of Cape Town, Dr Fulya Kandamir from Antalya Metropolitan Municipality Climate Change in Turkey, Zanele Lulane of the Joint River Basin Authorities Project Board in Eswatini, and Nomandla Nxusa from Rand Water South Africa.

Prof Louis du Preez, professor of zoology at the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University (NWU), was honoured by having a newly discovered Malagasy frog species named after him.

The honour was bestowed by a group of German scientists from the University of Braunschweig, Landesmuseum in Darmstadt, and the Zoological Museum in München, in recognition of Prof du Preez’s substantial contributions to understanding the flatworm parasites of Malagasy anurans.

For most newly graduated pharmacy students, the compulsory one-year pharmacy internship is the first step towards their service to the community and the start of their professional pharmacy careers in South Africa.

Prof Elmien Truter, associate professor of social work and research coordinator at Community Psychosocial Research (COMPRES), recently arranged a one-day workshop for researchers at the North-West University’s (NWU’s) Vanderbijlpark Campus.

COMPRES is a research focus area that provides research support and services to researchers and students within the field of social sciences.