The South African Institute of Electrical Engineers (SAIEE) Student Chapters are dedicated groups within universities and technical institutions across South Africa, established to connect students with the professional engineering community.
These chapters serve as a bridge between academic learning and real-world engineering practice, offering students opportunities for networking, mentorship, skills development, and participation in industry-related events. Through workshops, seminars, site visits, and competitions, SAIEE Student Chapters empower aspiring engineers to deepen their knowledge, develop leadership skills, and prepare for successful careers in electrical and electronic engineering.
WHAT IS A STUDENT CHAPTER?
A student chapter comprises at least six registered SAIEE student members. It is a sub-unit of the SAIEE. The student chapter is required to hold at least four meetings per year and maintain activity levels acceptable to the SAIEE regional centre and the regional student activities committee chair. The student chapter will host at least 3 activities per year to foster an atmosphere that encourages other students to join. These three activities may include a launch/opening event, an industry-related event, and a year-end event to reflect on achievements and assess satisfaction among student members.
Why Join an SAIEE Student Chapter?
The student chapter is formed to assist students in gaining pre-professional benefits and to build a link between students and industry. These benefits can be summarised as follows:
• Introduce students to the SAIEE
• Mentorship (Access to mentors who are active in the SAIEE and the industry at large)
• Promote networking and improve interaction between students and the industry
• Opportunities to be addressed by high-profile speakers in the field
• The SAIEE pays for student-organised activities
• Access to job shadowing opportunities
• Industry field trips
• Community outreach projects
• Become a part of the organising committee
The objective is to help students gain an appreciation for the electrical engineering profession and be better positioned to participate in it, either as employees or by forming their own companies.
Student Chapter Committees
A minimum of six SAIEE student members are needed to form a chapter at a learning institution. These six committee members will fill the following portfolios:
- Chairperson
- Hosts student chapter meetings, approves meeting schedules, and provides firm direction to the student chapter. Liaises with the Centre on behalf of the student chapter.
- Provides the student chapter centre with annually planned activities and feedback, such as presentations. The Chair, or his/her delegated representative, automatically becomes a member of the Centre committee and attends Centre committee meetings.
- Vice-chairperson
- Hosts student chapter meetings in the chairperson's absence. Assists the chairperson with some duties, as needed by the chapter. May attend Centre committee meetings to support the chairperson.
- Secretary
- Takes minutes of the student chapter meetings. Sends out contact lists, event attendance and minutes to the student chapter committee before subsequent meetings. May assist in preparing the agenda with the chapter chairperson. Circulate the contact list.
- Treasurer
- Assists with annual budgeting for planned activities. Liaises with the SAIEE Centre to ensure payments are made to service providers. Keeps a record of expenditures to ensure all are within the annual budget. May also need to attend the Centre's annual student chapter year-plan presentation.
- Public Relations
- Assists in making the student chapter more visible on campus. Make sure that marketing material, posters, etc., are posted either on social media or on campus in designated areas (might need SRC approval for advertising). Create and maintain the student chapter's social media group (regular updates).
- Activities Coordinator
- Assists with booking venues for student chapter events and identifies suitable service providers. Resolves logistics issues on catering, transportation, etc. (The coordinator may also delegate where assistance is needed; it’s teamwork after all.) Assists the Treasurer in soliciting event quotations from service providers and submitting them to the Centre Treasurer.
SAIEE student members would vote for their respective portfolio members to form the student chapter. Ideally, it would be beneficial for postgraduate and undergraduate students to serve on the committee, as this will ensure continuity in the coming years.
Role of a Student Chapter Committee
One of the primary roles of the student chapter committee is to prepare and present an annual activity plan, along with a budget, to the SAIEE regional centre for approval and input. Once the regional centre has reviewed and approved the activities plan and budget, it will allocate funds to the student chapter to enable its activities to be realised. Since the SAIEE regional centre is directly linked with the engineering industry, some of the activities proposed by the student chapter may require assistance from the SAIEE regional centre. In addition, the student chapter's role also extends to the following:
- Collaboration between student chapters
- Collaboration with regional centres on activities organised by the regional centres or the student chapters
- Seeking external sponsorship in order to increase their presence on campus and in the community and to fund gifts, etc.
It is paramount that the student chapter makes it its mission to be as beneficial as possible to students. That means they should inform the regional centres about what students need from industry and what they would like to see organisations, such as the SAIEE, do to encourage students to stay and succeed in the field, e.g., transformation issues.
Institutions Club Membership of a Student Chapter
At certain institutions, it is beneficial for the student chapter to register as a club. Here are some of the possible benefits of registering the SAIEE chapter to form part of the institution's club:
- The student chapter will be allowed to place its adverts for events and activities on the advert boards within the institution.
- SAIEE Student Membership is free.
