This study is a qualitative review to identify factors impacting on the management of student development and support at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in a developing country. For the purpose of the study student development and support includes all developmental and supportive services and interventions for rural and urban students within an institution of higher learning, regardless of the current structuring of the functions. The study first contextualises the scenario of a developing country in terms of the socio-economic, political, higher education, labour and other factors that set the scene for student development and support and then continues with a systematic exposition of factors that have direct relevance and impact on the future of student development and support. A systematic investigation of NMMU by means of interviews with student affairs professionals make it possible to identify factors that have direct relevance and impact on the future management and provision of student development and support. The result of the study is a construction of the specific factors identified on the international, national and institutional levels as well as the intricate relationships between rural and urban students. This research provides a potential framework for future management and provision of strategic focus areas for student development and support functions within NMMU and higher education in a developing country to ensure that it effectively positions the function within higher education as a key component of the core agenda.

The purpose of this study was to critically investigate challenges in the provision of low-income housing in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM). In order to reach this goal, it was necessary to study the literature on the housing sector, especially as regards the impact between the external factors and the provision of low-income housing. A further supporting objective was to investigate and analyse the challenges in order to develop techniques and strategies for solving the challenges facing the NMBM in the provision of low-income housing. In order to address the reach problem and to fulfil the research objectives, an in-depth literature study was done. Empirical studies were also performed by means of face-to-face interviews and a questionnaire with the target group in the Housing Department of the NMBM. The literature and empirical study made it possible to identify underperformance and to recommend possible solutions for the challenges in the provision of low-income housing in the NMBM. These recommendations should be of value to all participants in the housing sector. From the investigation into the NMBM in the provision of low-income housing, the findings indicate that the constraints and challenges such as the housing backlog also exist in other parts of South Africa. Challenges such as availability of land in the NMBM can be considered to exist principally in the NMBM area. The new national policies and local government housing strategies should concur with the internationally accepted developmental approach. Recommendations were made with regard to sustainable development strategies, housing policies, finance and housing provision. Essential proposals were made, such as efficient financial support, and to train and improve certain unskilled staff in the NMBM. The study concludes with recommended techniques and strategies for the improvement of low-income housing in the NMBM, in order to overcome its challenges and to empower it on a sustainable basis.

This treatise investigates the representation of career opportunities for young girls as portrayed in three English-medium newspapers published in the Nelson Mandela Bay in 2010.While there have been numerous researches on the representation of women in the media, studies on career opportunities for young girls have yet to be conducted. Previous studies have established that girls were socialized to occupy nurturing roles in society: through parents, schools and social institutions like churches were chief socialization instruments. The use of language and rhetoric in the media often reiterates this socialization. Due to the power of the media to influence perceptions, this research reflects on the messages obtained by readers of the publications. The research is important because it aims to identify the trends of representation of career and life opportunities for girls in: The Herald, the Weekend Post and La Femme newspapers. A pilot study of articles on women and young girls was completed; this was followed by a main study. A content analysis of articles only on women and girls was conducted; whilst articles on young boys and men were excluded from this research, as its main focus was on women. The theoretical frameworks applied were the theories of journalism and feminism to determine the nature of representation. While the media organisations operate solely as a business, whose interest is to make profit, they have the fundamental responsibility of promoting values, particularly in South Africa. Under the leadership of the ANC-led government, plans have been executed to promote a 50/50 representation in government. Also, the participation of women in the private sector has improved through the requirements of the policy of Black Economic Empowerment, which aims to redress the wrongs of the past. This project has established that although the world has embraced feminism and the equality of women and men, much still needs to be done to reinforce these ideals, especially in the socialization of children.

With English as the medium of academic exchange, Chinese students are the largest single overseas student group in the English speaking countries (2010). Relative to the outbound education market of other countries, the Chinese education market is large, and it is currently receiving much attention globally. Not only is South Africa one of countries where English is spoken, it has relatively speaking, low study fees and easily-accessed visas compared with countries in Europe and the United States. Therefore, South African universities have a virtually unlimited potential for receiving Chinese students. For South African education providers, particularly NMMU as the host university for the research in question, in order to render the expected education quality and to cater for the Chinese education market effectively, it is of utmost importance that the institutions have a clear understanding of Chinese students’ expectations as well as their actual academic experiences (in the broadest context) when studying at this university. The above is closely linked to the expected educational quality, the actual educational delivery as experienced by Chinese students, as well as the levels of satisfaction they experience as students at NMMU. The purpose of this research project is twofold. Firstly, it aims to construct a theoretical model showing the variables and relationships pertaining to expected and actual educational delivery as experienced by Chinese students. Having assessed the perceptions of the respondents based on the findings, another purpose is to design appropriate educational marketing strategies suitable to address the academic needs and expectations of Chinese students in the broadest context. By designing appropriate education strategies, the potential to develop the Chinese education market in South Africa will be enhanced. Given the purpose and nature of the research in question, methodological triangulation strategies were used. A Likert seven-point scale research instrument was developed and administered. Due to the limited number of respondents (n=61), the Likert scale instrument was further subjected to enrich the data by means of face-to-face interviews with 61 Chinese students (respondents), who shared their perceptions on the expectations and actual experiences of NMMU academic programme quality encounters. By following the methodological triangulation strategies, the validity of the findings is enhanced. The phenomenological dimension of the research was conducted according to guidelines as documented in secondary sources. The findings of the matched pair t-tests indicated that significant statistical differences do exist between the ‘expectations’ and ‘actual experiences’ of Chinese students’ perceived academic programme quality. Sufficient evidence is available at the 95 percent level of significance to support the hypothesis H1, namely: “There are differences between Chinese students’ ‘expected’ and ‘perceived’ academic programme quality (actual experience) of NMMU”. Besides the matched pair t-tests, further statistical analyses were performed by means of calculating Cohen’s ‘d’ values and relative percentage ratings to assess the magnitude of the “gap” between expectations and actual experiences of Chinese students studying at NMMU. The findings revealed that the Chinese students were not completely satisfied with their actual experiences when studying at NMMU. The above statistical findings were endorsed by the qualitative findings. Three sets of conclusions and recommendations were identified for this research. Firstly, conclusions emanating from secondary sources on service quality and students’ satisfaction literature were provided, such that students satisfaction is seen more as a psychological state which reveals an overall feeling of the students’ purchase and consumption experience. Secondly, the conclusions linked to the empirical findings revealed significant statistical differences between the expectations and perceptions (actual experiences) of Chinese students’ perceived academic programme quality. Finally, recommendations on relevant NMMU educational marketing objectives/ strategies can be grouped into four domains: - To build a customer-led education business which adheres to the principles of true marketing orientation with the focus on Chinese students. To achieve this objective a high level of understanding of Chinese students’ specific needs and wants when studying at NMMU is of utmost importance. The effective marketing positioning of NMMU can render leverage benefits to themselves and their clientele. - Findings from the biographic data analyses are significant to the positioning strategies and market segmentation strategies of NMMU. - The decision on a proper positioning strategy entails the choice of target market segments, which will determine where and how the education business competes and its choice of differential advantages. - The South African education providers should have appropriate educational brands to entice the Chinese students’ support.

The aim of the study was to gain a holistic understanding of the lived experiences of four South African, black, Xhosa-speaking lesbians in Nelson Mandela Bay. Contextual, exploratory, descriptive qualitative research based on a phenomenological approach was conducted and analysed through interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). A combination of purposive and snowball sampling was used to recruit participants and semistructured in-depth interviews were conducted with four South African adult, black, Xhosaspeaking females of homosexual orientation between the ages of 18 to 35 years. Findings indicate that the participants experience the following: (a) sexual development as a major influence on their sexual- and self-identity, (b) homosexual sexual orientation had a psychological impact on their lives, (c) they have a holistic understanding of who they are, and this understanding of themselves, has positively influenced their lives, (d) their homosexual sexual orientation has influenced the personal relationships in their lives in both positive and negative ways, (e) society has influenced their lives both positively and negatively because of their homosexual sexual orientation , (f) social networking can act as a risk to unintentional disclosure of homosexual sexual orientation and (g) they have experienced discrimination in various areas of their lives because of their homosexual sexual orientation. Some suggestions for future research included exploring lesbian stereotypes within the broader society, as well as inside the black lesbian community and examining the so-called differences between city and township lesbians with an emphasis on beliefs, attitudes, practices, subcultures and gender identity issues.

The increasing attention to the provision of accessible, decent, safe and academically appropriate student housing in South Africa has led to a closer investigation of the nature and levels of quality in both on-campus and off-campus student accommodation. Nationwide, student housing management recognises that quality student housing is of great importance to both the quality of the higher education system and the success of students. In recent years, many studies in the field of service quality have been conducted within higher education. However, fewer studies have focused specifically on service quality in student housing. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the perceptions of students with regard to service quality levels in on-campus and off-campus student housing at NMMU, and to identify those service quality dimensions that need attention. A literature review was conducted to explore the meaning and nature of service and quality in student housing. It was concluded that from the different facets of service that quality, customer expectations, customer perception and customer satisfaction are important constructs in evaluating fully the levels of service quality. An amended SERVQUAL instrument comprising 41 items was used for students, in order to evaluate the service quality at on-campus and accredited off-campus student housing at NMMU. The results showed that there are significant differences in the service quality dimensions of on-campus student housing and off-campus student housing. Oncampus student housing gleaned a positive assessment for the dimensions of reliability, responsiveness, empathy and assurance. However, negative perceptions prevail with regard to on-campus infrastructural/tangible issues. The off-campus student housing fell short in a number of service-quality dimensions, including reliability, empathy, responsiveness and infrastructural/tangible issues. The assurance dimension received positive assessments for both on-campus and off-campus student housing. The study proposes that the NMMU student housing management pay attention to the shortcomings and make the desired improvements. The findings of this treatise have practical implications for student-housing managers, as they could direct their resources to improving poor service dimensions, and similarly refine marketing strategies, so that students’ needs are met in an exceptional and satisfactory manner.

NSFAS is a government-funded scheme that was established in 1996 with the objective of assisting financially needy students who are able to perform well academically, but are financially disadvantaged, and cannot afford higher education. The scheme was introduced as a mechanism to develop the country’s human capital and to also eradicate inequalities leading to poverty, crime, skill shortages and high levels of unemployment. This research was encouraged by the realization of the high drop-out rates amongst students funded by NSFAS. The research, therefore, wanted to investigate the adequacy of NSFAS in qualification completion, specifically at NMMU. In order to elicit responses from participants, a mixed method, with both quantitative and qualitative approaches was preferred. Questionnaires containing closed and open-ended questions were used as instruments for collecting data from participants. The study used a selected group of participants, with certain characteristics; and hence, the study was a purposive study. Five main areas were formulated as a framework to present the findings. The five areas involved the economic background of parents of NSFAS recipients, challenges faced by NSFAS recipients, as well as to determine whether NSFAS recipients were motivated to work hard as a result of attaining financial assistance. The last two areas involved reasons for NSFAS recipients to drop out and lastly the available support for NSFAS recipients. In relation to the economic background of parents of NSFAS recipients, findings revealed that almost 50 percent of their guardians were employed, with 26 percent of them being in skilled positions. The challenges faced by NSFAS recipients, were revealed, as being both academic and financial. About 52 percent of participants did not obtain full funding; and therefore, were expected to contribute towards their uncovered expenses. These participants were eventually faced with financial challenges that led them to drop out. To determine whether participants were motivated to work hard, as a result of acquiring financial assistance from NSFAS, about 52 percent of participants agreed to have received financial relief from NSFAS, but were not motivated to work hard. Findings revealed different reasons that led students funded by NSFAS to drop out before qualifying. The reasons included less Lecturer support (17.6 percent), unbearable workload (51.8 percent), bad qualification choice and financial challenges (21.4 percent). The last main area focused on available support from NSFAS as an Organisation to its recipients. Findings revealed no structured support system in place from NSFAS that was directed specifically to see its recipients succeed. Findings of the study can be used to identify students funded by NSFAS who might drop out before finishing their intended qualification. The findings could also guide NSFAS on what the student requirements are – in order to qualify. Recommendations on drop-out reductions and retention successes from local and international countries are provided. Further recommendations directed to NSFAS as a provider and it’s recipients are also provided.

This study sought to investigate the relevance of Person-Environment (P-E) fit amongst Human Resource (HR) graduates from Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) within the Nelson Mandela Metropole (NMM). A secondary objective of this study was to determine whether P-E fit was a determinant of Human Resource (HR) graduates’ migration. The study comprised a pilot study and main study (n=50). The study was qualitative in nature, but incorporated a quantitative research component to support the qualitative research findings. Results showed that HR graduates from the NMMU perceived P-E fit as important. Immense emphasis was placed on achieving P-E fit by means of finding employment related to Human Resource Management (HRM). The lack of P-E fit, amongst HR graduates, was furthermore revealed as a determinant of graduate migration. HR graduates would relocate to pursue a career in HRM. Implications of the findings are that organisations should use the theoretical knowledge of HR graduates to develop their skills and broaden their practical knowledge. This will secure competent future HR managers for the NMM and help to combat scarce skills migrations from the area.

This dissertation examines booksellers in multiple roles as cultural agents in the small press field. It proposes various ways of understanding the work of booksellers as actively shaping the production, distribution, reception, and preservation of small press works, arguing that bookselling is a small press act unaccounted for in existing scholarship. It is structured around the idea of “contributive” bookselling from Nicky Drumbolis, wherein the bookseller “adds dimension to the cultural exchange […] participates as user, maker, transistor” (“this fiveyear list”). The questions at the heart of this dissertation are: How does the small press, in its material strategies of production and distribution, reshape the terms of reception for readers? How does the bookseller contribute to these processes? What does independent bookselling look like when it is committed to the cultural and aesthetic goals of the small press? And what is absent from literary and cultural records when the bookseller is not accounted for? This dissertation covers a period from 1952 to the present day. I begin by positing Raymond Souster’s “Contact” labour as an influential model for small press publishing in which the writer must adopt multiple roles in the communications circuit in order to construct and educate a community of readers. I then examine the bookseller catalogue as a bibliographic, critical, and pedagogical genre of publication that mediates productive encounters between readers and books. I next position the material, affective, and effective labour of the bookseller within the small press gift economy. Finally, I theorize the bookstore as a potential small press archive that functions as a viable counterweight to institutional collection and preservation. My reconsideration of the labour of the bookseller realigns relations between production, distribution, reception, documentation, and preservation of small press publications, making possible a more complete accounting of the histories of the book and of the small press in Canada.

No abstract included. / Arts, Faculty of / History, Department of / Graduate