What our graduates say about SACAP – Ntuthu Mpondo

Ntuthu Mpondo’s career story is inspiring. From embryonic engineering beginnings to fulfilling her innate passion for people, it’s a tale of hard work, tenacity and triumph.

The overarching theme? “Seeing people’s lives change for the better,” she says.

Prologue

We met Ntuthu, 44, in 2020 when she successfully applied to study SACAP’s Bachelor of Social Science Honours in Psychology [BPsych Equivalent Programme] at our Pretoria Campus. She was already two decades into her academic journey, which had begun with an unexpected fork in the road.

Keen to learn more about her journey and how it’s shaped what she is doing today, we caught up with Ntuthu and asked her.

This is what she has to say…

Chapter one

A year out of school Ntuthu enrolled at Nelson Mandela University to embark on an electrical engineering degree. “It was 1999 and I was in my second semester,” she recalls. “While building a power supply box in the lab, I kept blowing up my transformers. It was so frustrating!”

“The whole time a voice in my head kept demanding: ‘How did I get here? Why am I working with things and not people?’ It was a defining moment that would ultimately change the trajectory of my life,” she says.

“I elected to study engineering because of the many opportunities I hoped to gain as an engineer,” Ntuthu explains. “The following year, however, I didn’t return to my studies.”

Chapter two

What follows is a period of hard graft in the workplace for Ntuthu. “Although I knew I really wanted to be a clinical psychologist, it took me years to finally decide to study psychology at Unisa,” she notes.

“I began my studies in 2003 and completed my undergrad in 2006. In January 2007 I started working for Ubuntu Education Fund (currently known as Ubuntu Pathways) but resigned so that I could study full-time towards my honours,” she says.

Chapter three

Unfortunately, Ntuthu failed her honours and had to repeat three modules. “This killed my dream of becoming a clinical psychologist,” she says. “It meant it would be very hard for me to gain acceptance into a master’s programme.”

Juggling life, full-time work and family, she took another three years to complete her honours. “I was employed as a Learner Support Coach at Deloitte and Touché until 2018 when I got retrenched,” she says.

“I contemplated opening my own private practice as a counsellor; however, the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) told me this would not be possible. Having only completed my academic honours, I was not sufficiently prepared to work as a practitioner, and they suggested I look to SACAP for assistance.”

Ntuthu was impressed by SACAP’s website and decided to approach the college for an interview.

Chapter four

“In December 2019 I was accepted into SACAP’s BPsych Equivalent Programme that was due to commence the following year,” Ntuthu continues.

“I was thrilled!” she exclaims. “Coming up with the registration fees proved to be incredibly difficult, though. A series of non-payments by a previous employer left Ntuthu out of pocket, she says. She approached various organisations for financial support, but none was forthcoming.

“I decided to let go of my dream of studying at SACAP, but my parents would not let me,” she shares. Despite being pensioners with meagre financial freedom themselves, they committed to assisting Ntuthu with rent as well as the registration money.

“There was no turning back!” she asserts. “I did not know how I was going to fund my studies, but I was optimistic and had faith that there would be a way.”

Chapter five

Then, the Covid-19 national lockdown truncated Ntuthu’s training at the Pretoria Campus. “I relocated back to Port Elizabeth which was a blessing in disguise as I had left my husband and three children to embark on my studies,” she says. “Also, returning home meant I did not have to pay rent and other expenses.”

Unfortunately, Ntuthu was still unable to honour SACAP’s monthly debit order and she accumulated a lot of debt as a result. It was a stressful time, and she was very worried she would be precluded from finishing the programme, she says.

Chapter six

“Towards the start of my third term, SACAP began investigating the impact of Covid-19 on students who struggled to pay their fees,” Ntuthu says. “Fortunately, I was granted financial assistance. It felt like a miracle! I was very grateful because a huge burden had been lifted. I cried for days in disbelief.”

“SACAP changed my life!” Ntuthu exclaims. “Had I not received the assistance I would not have been accepted into Rhodes University’s master’s programme in 2022.”

Supporting character

There’s no doubt SACAP prepared Ntuthu for the rigorous hours required to complete her master’s, she says. “The level of excellence offered by SACAP is unparalleled. SACAP sharpened my academic writing skills, which are so important for postgraduate studies. Its research and thesis submission protocols familiarized me with the whole process of having a supervisor, too.”

“My first year as a student psychologist felt like a continuation of my Work Integrated Learning experience at SACAP, which was great!” she asserts. “After classes at Rhodes, I would see clients and then discuss them with my therapy supervisor, a procedure I had practised at SACAP.”

“Furthermore,” Ntuthu says, “I was able to finish my master’s research in record time, thanks to SACAP. There was no delay as I learnt to push myself. I started in 2022, completed it in December 2023, and graduated in April this year.”

Epilogue

Today Ntuthu is a qualified clinical psychologist fulfilling her community service obligations at the Department of Correctional Services in East London.

Her ultimate dream job? “Owning my own private consulting firm. I want to improve people’s lives by providing psychotherapeutic services to individuals, families and organizations.”

Despite the sometimes-rocky road, Ntuthu has remained true to herself and worked hard to pave her own unique path to success. You can too! No matter what you’re doing in your career or studies right now, if it doesn’t feel like the right fit anymore, you can make a change.

Love working with people like Ntuthu does? Get in touch. SACAP’s range of people-centred psychology courses serve a diverse student body from school leavers to postgraduates and beyond. Find one that fits.