Who says a working mom of two cannot graduate in three years?

Mrs Le-André Sheldon graduated with a BAdmin in Public Management (Option: Public Administration) degree on 7 May 2018. Mrs Sheldon, an administrative staff member in the Department of Marketing Management, juggled many balls, being a wife, a mom, an employee and a student, to successfully complete her studies in three years.

 

She commented: “The three years were intense and gruelling at times, but I knew what my goal was. Life did not suddenly come to a standstill because I was a student. Life as I knew it had to carry on. I was still a wife, mom and employee and my responsibilities still had to be carried out. Time management and a great support structure was essential to my success.”

 

Mrs Le-André Sheldon with her two sons, Joshua (left) and Noah (right), on her graduation day

 

The BAdmin Public Administration degree is a three-year programme offered in block release sessions to accommodate the working individual in the public sector. It scientifically studies of the managerial and administrative functions performed in the public sector. It further aims to capacitate students to participate in and contribute to managerial tasks, such as policy making, human resource management, organisational restructuring and ensuring accountability. It introduces students to the realm of leadership and governance in order to familiarise them with the responsibilities of public institutions in all three spheres of government and the respective roles of these spheres in improving the quality of life of all members of society.

 

Graduates of the School of Public Management and Administration are in demand in all three spheres of government’s public institutions. They are often employed in the human resource sections, the planning divisions and the general administrative divisions of organisations. Other graduates are employed in the private sector, non-governmental organisations and international organisations and embassies.

 

Mrs Sheldon says people often ask her now what she does with all her free time now. “What free time is this that you speak of? I sleep like a normal person now. My studies took priority when everyone and everything else was sorted. Many late nights and very little sleep is only a drop in the ocean compared some of the sacrifices not only I made but my family as well. Standing on that stage was such a proud moment not only for me as the student, but for my family as well, as they all sacrificed to assist me in achieving my goal. It is not only the student who graduated, but the entire family.”