2 minutes read time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Vaal University of Technology (VUT)\u2019s Spring 2025 graduation season has been marked by pride and inspiration. On 16 September, the Faculty of Engineering celebrated one of its brightest moments as Ms Charmaine Kgomotso Funani graduated Cum Laude with a Master of Engineering in Chemical Engineering. Her dissertation, \u201cStruvite recovery from anaerobically digested waste activated sludge,\u201d<\/em> stands as both a significant academic contribution and a testament to her perseverance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For Ms Funani, the decision to pursue her Master\u2019s degree came after recognising that routine work in industry, while stable, was not fulfilling. \u201cI realised I don\u2019t like routine. The more I got accustomed to it, the more my mind grew hungry for education. In a simple sense, I get bored easily.\u201d That hunger for knowledge led her back into academia, where she found both challenge and inspiration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As a woman in STEM, she is acutely aware of the stereotypes that have discouraged women from pursuing careers in engineering and science. \u201cWomen were sidelined and restricted to traditional careers such as teaching and nursing for the longest time. There has always been this stereotype that women cannot occupy such roles, that they aren\u2019t sharp thinkers or innovative because emotions supposedly rule them. But this shows that women are intelligent and more than capable.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Her success shines as a beacon for young women and girls aspiring to follow similar paths. Her advice is simple yet profound: \u201cIf you want it, go get it. Opportunities are endless, and people are waiting for you to seize them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Graduating Cum Laude was not without sacrifice. \u201cTears were there. You will get hurt. Your intellectual capabilities will be tested. But with the right support, I could make it.\u201d She credits her supervisors, Dr Benton Otieno, Professor John Kabuba Tshilenge, and Professor Peter Osifo, for their discipline and constructive criticism. \u201cThey were strict, and sometimes it hurt, but I know they only tried to build me. Ultimately, you must show that you want it; no one will push you if you don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Her personal and spiritual journey has also shaped her academic path. After completing her BTech in Chemical Engineering, she paused her studies to focus on spiritual growth. \u201cTill today, my spiritual journey still takes a toll on me, but I\u2019ve learnt to balance.\u201d That balance gave her strength and clarity to succeed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With her Master\u2019s degree, Ms Funani embodies resilience, courage and academic excellence. Her story is a powerful reminder that women in STEM can break barriers and rise to the highest levels of achievement, proving that ceilings are made to be shattered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" “Charmaine Funani\u2019s Cum Laude triumph inspires women in STEM, graduating with a Master of Engineering in Chemical Engineering from VUT.” […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":27839,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27838","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-news-vaal-university-of-technology"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vut.ac.za\/nso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27838","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vut.ac.za\/nso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vut.ac.za\/nso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vut.ac.za\/nso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vut.ac.za\/nso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27838"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/vut.ac.za\/nso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27838\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27841,"href":"https:\/\/vut.ac.za\/nso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27838\/revisions\/27841"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vut.ac.za\/nso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27839"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vut.ac.za\/nso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27838"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vut.ac.za\/nso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27838"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vut.ac.za\/nso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27838"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Charmaine](\"https:\/\/vut.ac.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Charmaine-Funanis-Cum-Laude-triumph-inspires-women-in-STEM.webp\")
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