Share Tweet

Finding connection, belonging, and room to grow.

When Beatrice Mbamba arrived at Stellenbosch University as an African STARS Fellow at CERI, finding a community among fellow postgraduate students helped make the transition easier.

Through events and activities organised by the Tygerberg Postgraduate Student Council (TPSC), she became increasingly involved in the postgraduate community beyond her own academic work.

“TPSC made me realise the importance of having people around you while navigating postgraduate life and, somewhere along the way, I found myself wanting to contribute to that community too,” she says.

On 18 September, Beatrice was inaugurated as Secretary of the TPSC for the 2026/27 term.

“When I started my African STARS Fellowship journey, I wanted to step outside my comfort zone and embrace opportunities that would help me grow, and this is one of those moments.”

The experience is also shaping how she understands leadership. “I am beginning to understand that leadership is much more than a title,” she says. “It is in the small, unseen things like listening when someone needs to be heard, noticing when someone is struggling and connecting them to the right support.”

It can also be as simple as helping people know where to turn, she says, and creating spaces where everyone feels that they belong. “We may never know the full impact of those moments on someone else’s journey, but now I get to play a small part in building that community for others – and I am excited for this chapter.”

News date: 2026-10-05

Links: