Momentous Achievement for UKZN Staffer who Earns First Social Sciences Degree

BY: .

Administrator within UKZN’s College of Humanities Student Academic Services Division, Mr Marlon Lazarus recently graduated with his Bachelor of Social Sciences degree majoring in Industrial Psychology and Management.

Passionate about leading people, Lazarus believes that majoring in this field will provide him with the foundational knowledge needed for his career. While his greatest challenge was to strike a balance between work, life and full-time study, he managed to push through to the end.

‘My undergraduate academic years on campus were empowering, but as someone who had not studied in a while - it was intimidating. However, the entire experience was not as stressful as I thought it would be,’ he said.

Lazarus revealed that during his first year, he struggled with time management due to work commitments and planning his wedding. He found his final year the most difficult but also rewarding as he became a father for the first time.

He sees his sacrifice as temporary with the reward of graduating with his degree as the main goal. ‘I’m grateful for my work colleagues and family for not being too hard on me. I’m forever indebted to them for the time they have invested in me,’ said Lazarus.

Through hard work and commitment, he sees his degree as his greatest achievement and urged his peers to always trust the success process, never the event, adding ‘failure is never a person, but rather something that happens’.

Lazarus is grateful to everyone who supported his journey, especially his wife who was always in his corner. To his spouse, he said, ‘Thank you for always being the most reliable and supportive person I could ever hope to know. It feels awesome to have a strong safety net - knowing I have you to turn to. It gives me the strength to do it all again. Thank you for supporting me. You are my lifeline.’

He plans to further his studies by doing an honours in Management or Industrial Psychology.

Words: Sinoyolo Mahlasela

Photograph: Rogan Ward