​Prospective students who are in the fortunate position to choose which university they want to attend to study for a career in health scienes were hosted by the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS) on the Tygerberg Campus during the October holidays.

This recruitment initiative, known as the Visit@Tygerberg, is a strategic initiative of the FMHS to advance diversity at the Faculty. "The aim of the visit is to motivate and inspire prospective students to choose Stellenbosch University as their preferred choice of place to study," said Ms Farah Fredericks, the coordinator of Student Recruitment and Support at the FMHS.

The group of 59 newly selected black students were given ample opportunities to liaise with current students and staff members during information sessions on bursaries, workshops on academic support at the faculty and tours of the facilities on campus.

Feedback from the group was very positive and ranged from "An awesome experience" to the more serious "I feel like it cleared up any misconceptions I had about Stellenbosch University and it helped me to conclude about where I'll be next year".

During the visit, the students were accompanied by Student Ambassadors, which are current students who attended the Visit@Tygerberg when they had to decide where to study. They are encouraged to give honest and open answers to any questions or concerns the prospective students might have. One learner commented that the Ambassadors' friendliness and compassion were "awesome".

The general perception of many of the visiting learners was summarised acurately by one prospective student in the feedback: "I felt like this experience showed me what I really wanted out of a university. I am now working towards coming to Stellenbosch University next year. Yipppee!"