Why entrepreneurs should consider becoming MTN scholars

Find out how you can still study, and why you should.

"The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing." Walt Disney.

Running your own business doesn't have to mean the end of the road for furthering your studies. Visionaries, leaders and innovators are born out of MTN Solution Space Scholarships. Professionals who want to move beyond 'business as usual', those who are committed to local innovation and see the value of a postgraduate qualification as an essential part of their futures, are the people MTN and the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business (GSB) are looking for.

The programme is built to support mid-career professionals and entrepreneurs, and give them exceptional leadership capacity in the technology, media and telecoms industries.

Successful MTN Scholars

Some of the recent graduates have gone on to do big things. Lianne Du Toit was accepted to study her Masters in Philosophy in Inclusive Innovation and is now the co-vice-chairperson of Silicon Cape. One of her roles is to develop a community of tech entrepreneurs, developers and investors in order to create a collaborative environment for start-ups to flourish.

Khwezi Kondile works as a management consultant for McKinsey and Company. He was selected as a Mandela Washington Fellow in President Obama's Young African Leaders Initiative. Also studying Philosophy through GSB, this MTN scholar has represented South Africa in the G8 and G20 Youth Summits in Washington DC.

Click here to see the full list of the Class of 2016.

Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must be a citizen of an African country and a permanent resident for at least one year. Applications are taken for those who want to study an MBA or the MPhil in Inclusive Innovation at the UCT GSB. You'll have to be accepted into the University Of Cape Town Graduate School Of Business in order to qualify.

The areas of focus for 2016-2017 are education, health and wellbeing, smart cities and open imagination:

• Education: How might we use digital technologies, adaptive learning tools and analytics to enable personalised learning that leads to improved learning outcomes for the majority in Africa?
• Health and Wellbeing: How might we use digital technologies to address challenges in Africa across healthcare, nutrition, mental health or safety and violence for the majority?
• Smart Cities: How might we use the Internet of Things (IoT), civic tech and open data to address the challenges of urbanization in African cities, such as traffic congestion, waste disposal and rising energy usage?
• Open Imagination: We are open to outside-of-the-box technology-enabled ideas.
• Applications are open from now until midnight on 31 October 2016.

Why the programme is perfect for entrepreneurs

Applicants will need to have started working or worked in an entrepreneurial venture, or demonstrate innovative strategies within an organisation for at least one year. Professional integrity, active collaboration and a track record to prove it is imperative.

Successful candidates will need to be registered full time or part time to study either the MBA or MPhil, and take an entrepreneurial route in their studies. This means contributing to the GSB's Entrepreneurship or Technology club, and choosing subjects with a focus on entrepreneurship.

MTN Scholars are able to study under the programme for one to two years, and all tuition and registration fees are covered.

As Nelson Mandela once said, "Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." Click here for more details and to apply.