Phiwokuhle Mazibuko, will be the first to graduate in her family and she is grateful to the Almighty, family and friends for making it possible. Mazibuko, 23 years of age, was born and bred in a small village called eNtshongweni, Durban outer west. She will be graduating Cum Laude for her Diploma in Taxation at the Durban University of Technology’s (DUT’s) Virtual Autumn Graduation ceremony on Friday, 13 May 2022.
Mazibuko’s journey at DUT started when she registered for her National Diploma in Taxation. She said, her journey has been filled with exciting and sad moments.
“I really enjoyed the university life, making friends and attending classes. My lecturers were extremely good and they provided excellent mentoring even when COVID-19 erupted, we were given more than enough tools to help us study those extra classes, recordings and mock tests made a huge difference,’’ said Mazibuko.
When doing her first year, Mazibuko did not have NSFAS and coming from a disadvantage background it was a very hard moment for her but her friends really came through for her, they helped her with food and clothes. “I’ll be forever grateful,” she said.
Adjusting from high school life to the university was very much challenging for her, because the volume of school work and time was so different from what she experienced back in high school. The pass mark and the standard of living was so different from what she experienced back home but she tackled all of that by having a time table and joined study groups.
“I started to notice my passion for Accounting when I was in grade 10, when I met Mr Langa who was my Accounting teacher at Wozamoya High School. Mr Langa was very good at his job I won’t lie, he made sure that he always comes up with new and many ways to solve certain transactions, that helped me understand the field better, even today I still use his tactics in Accounting,” said Mazibuko.
She is grateful and very proud of her that for officially obtaining Cum Laude in her studies since she was just an average student back in high school.
“Indeed, hard work pays and I believe this Cum Laude is going to open closed doors for me,” she added.
Mazibuko is currently doing her Advanced Diploma in Taxation. Her current goal is to find an internship so that she can learn new things and grow in the accounting industry. She hopes to one day become a Tax Practitioner.
“To first years who want to study Taxation, all I can say is that learn to understand not to pass. If ever there is something that you don’t understand always find someone who has a better understanding than you to help you, don’t be afraid to ask for help,” said Mazibuko.
Pictured: Phiwokuhle Mazibuko
Nomvelo Zulu