“What I enjoyed most about the course is learning more about renewable energy and how it can help save the world in the future. I also liked to see in the labs exactly how it happens from the first step to the last”, says Khanyisile Sihlava, one of the students who are graduating. This is her first qualification, and she plans to work in environmental compliance planning.
The one-year course starts with the basics of electrical and mechanical energy and then covers a range of renewable energy topics, says programme leader Electrical Engineering’s Professor Peter Freere.
As the most relevant focus, it concentrates on solar energy, but also includes wind energy and hydro energy, as well as some lesser-known renewable energies. Graduates are ready to be employed as assistants to artisans installing renewable energy systems.
The course also focuses on the practicalities of photovoltaic system design and graduates can design and build their own photovoltaic system as well as do basic fault finding of a damaged system.
