WINDHOEK - Sanlam officially bid farewell to its first set of formalised interns. The eight interns were recruited at the beginning of August 2019 for a three-month period and were placed in different departments within the organisation. The interns were exposed to the day-to-day of office life and gained practical experiences in their respective areas of study. The formalised Sanlam internship programme was created with the objective of cultivating and nurturing skills development to assist students to acquire the necessary work experience and supplement their theoretical knowledge with practical work experience needed to get them ready for the job market.   

Speaking at the official send off, Sanlam Group CEO, Tertius Stears said; “The intention of the Sanlam internship is to expose students to the working world while equipping them with the necessary practical knowledge they need to complement the theoretical knowledge they acquired at school”. Stears acknowledged that often one cannot look for a job without experience but at the same time one needs a job to gain the required experience. This he said was also one of the objectives of the internship programme. 

Speaking on behalf of the interns, Dandago !Gaoses thanked Sanlam for the opportunity afforded to her and her fellow interns saying that the immense knowledge and skills they acquired during the last three months was invaluable. She added that; “this was a proper internship where we were treated like ordinary staff members and made to feel like part of the time”. More importantly she added that the internship exposed them to real work as they were expected to perform a substantial amount actual office tasks. “The internship was also good for our personal development and growth and we have acquired many skills which we would otherwise not have had without this opportunity” she added. 

The Sanlam Internship programme is open to students in their third or final year who need to complete work integrated learning or experiential learning as part of their studies. The programme is open to students studying Accounting and Finance, Business Managements, Economics, Marketing, Communication, Human Resources and Law.  

This year’s interns were; Nelmarie Nell (Bachelor of Law  - University of Namibia  - Legal and Compliance), Dandago !Goases (Bachelor of Law – University of Namibia – Legal and Compliance), Sandy Kamati (Bachelor of Accounting – Nust – Finance), Niita Shilongo (Bachelor of Human Resource Development and Management – IUM – Human Resources), Joel Kagola (Bachelor of Economics – Nust – Sanlam Investment), Stephanie De Groot (Bachelor of Business Administration – IUM  - Client Service), Charlet Engelbrecht (Bachelor of Business Administration – UNAM – Client Service), Michelle Kavari (Bachelor of Marketing – IUM – Marketing). 

The next call for the Sanlam Internship programme will be announced early next year through the local press as well as all the Sanlam social media platforms. Interested students are encouraged to look out for the announcement and apply.