Internship Programme and the Ingredients of Good Principles (isiZulu)
Story by Vusi Shabalala & pictures by Mayibongwe Mnguni
Our story is about Mayibongwe Harmonious Cool Mnguni, an ‘Aquarius’ born on the 14th of February
and raised in Mahlabathini of the Northern KwaZulu-Natal. He should be a lucky charm or talisman
being associated with ‘valentine’ day. Having sadly lost his father in 2003, aspirations and inspirations
of a good life were imminent for Mayibongwe. Raised by his single mother, Thabisile Mnguni and
enjoying the family touch, love, values and cuddling, He is the second last born, with 2 older brothers
(Thando & Mfundo) and 3 older sisters (Faith, Anita & Nosipho) and Siphesihle, the younger sister. It is
indeed a coolest family to have. Isn’t?
Mayibongwe started his lower primary grades at Ulundi Independent School. He then proceeded with
grades 3 to 7 at Memel Primary School from 2004 – 2008, eventually being named Head Boy in 2008.
He then went to Inkamana High School, a Catholic school in Vryheid from 2009 whilst he also served as
Deputy Head boy for the completion of his matriculation academic year in 2013. In the process, little
did he know that he will land a ‘QS’ profession and also become a pilot.He is one of a kind, a multi-skilled or multitasked ‘kind-of-a-person’, with signs showing his ability to carry out many beneficial
roles. He is a ‘QS’ student whilst training through aviation programme to fly planes and also actively
engaged in marathon – a long distance road running programme. He is registered with the
department’s Internship Programme, while also training towards becoming a Professional Quantity
Surveyor (QS). He has registered as Candidate Quantity Surveyor with the South African Council for the
Quantity Surveying Profession and still doing his training with ProQS Quantity Surveyors, a quantity
surveying company based in Vryheid, North of KwaZulu-Natal. He has been contracted to the
department’s Internship Programme since 2017 until 2024. Hopefully, he may be with the department’s
staff complement as and when the time, circumstances permit.
Brief details on the two chosen professions are elaborated for our ease of understanding in response
to why and how he chose ‘QS’ and ‘aviation’ at once. Due to economic pressures, he could not afford
going to a flight school and chose to go for a career in the construction industry. Luckily, he had
knowledge and background about construction. During his academic journey at Wits University, he
ultimately realized the benefits of being a quantity surveyor without sacrificing his long dream of being
a pilot one day. The flexibility of such a career seemed the better option than other relevant careers in
the construction industry. He further reiterated that “over the years I have grown to love the career
and chose to utilize this opportunity to help me in the future.” He further confirmed that “The ‘QS’
career is flexible, much as that of being an airline pilot. With that being said, rather than having a ‘QS’
qualification and professional status as a back-up, I reckoned I can work both as a ‘QS’ and an airline
pilot at the same time”. Evidence reveal that he is good in numbers and drawings and enjoys working
with different professions; as a result, being a quantity surveyor was the best option he could take.
He grew up watching the ‘Air Crash Investigation’ television programme. Sharing his insight he said:
“From my first flight experience to Munich, Germany and back in 2012, as we landed and disembarked
on the aircraft, I looked at my friend and told him I want to be a pilot. From that day onwards, being an
airline pilot was and still is the only career choice that make sense to me. Ever since that day I never
looked back and I have always put my effort in making that dream a reality.”
In today’s world, opportunities and time reflect the future which translates into success. Therefore,
multitasking will assist one to carry out more tasks and be more competitive. However, it is very crucial
for one to keep multitasking to a limit one can handle, to ensure focus is maximised in the tasks one
carries out. The reality is that both professions (QS & Aviation) have an enormous but serious demand.
Focus, strength, wisdom, success and responsibility were for sure Mayibongwe’s key life principles. In
some way or the other, one would also require an intense understanding of life. For such achievements,
Mayibongwe must have been confined to a principled living. His personal principles have assisted him
to choosing a set of rules to live, making sense of his life by sticking to his decisions and actions.
One other aspect of life is about ‘people’ around you. How one gathers and cultivate friendships and
partnerships in the course. “How everything has unfolded for me is not what I imagined while I was in
high school. Whenever I look back, I reckon that I have achieved lot in terms of both my QS and Aviation
career. I was motivated to grab both opportunities and thanks to the inspiration and support from all
those who are close to me, I saw myself in both careers and making them both work at the same time.”
He remarked. It can be safely stated that there is interconnectedness between internship and the
individual’s good principles. This means an internship not only gives one the opportunity to gain skills
and experience one will need to take the first step in one’s chosen career but will assure you real
experience of it and assist one to decide if aspirations match the reality. It is so cool to be Cool.