GRADUATION
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An old typewriter launched the career of top TV journalist NDUDUZO NDLOVU ENCA’s KwaZulu-Natal based journalist Dasen Thathiah, graduated with a BTech in Journalism during the Durban University of Technology Faculty of Arts and Design autumn graduation ceremony. Thathiah shared his fascinating journey of how he enrolled for an Information Technology (IT) programme after matric but soon realised that journalism was his true passion. “Although I didn’t get to journalism immediately, but I became obsessed with the idea of learning about journalism while studying IT. So much so, I talked my way into a journalism entrance assessment at DUT while accompanying a friend to his registration in 2003,” he said. He started writing at a very young the age, using a typewriter his mother gave him when he was seven years old. “It was thrown out by her employer, but it was gold to me. It was the tool I used to type my first story. I’m not sure how good it really was, but my parents told me it was great and that’s what I will go with,” he said. eNCA journalist and Journalism graduate, Dasen Thathiah. The multi-award winning Journalist said even though the accomplishment of this degree has been pending for some time, he is ecstatic to have finally achieved it despite his hectic schedule. “It was no easy feat. 2018 was one of the busiest years of my career. I travelled a lot, covered some really taxing stories and had extremely long days. BTech classes are full-time and there was no way I could attend every lesson. My lecturers understood this, and made concessions around attendance where they could. I was very fortunate that my editors supported this, and I was able to shuffle my days around in this way.” Fast – forward to 2019, and Thathiah is now a reputable and multi – award winning journalist, who is admired by his peers within the media industry. He has won the Vodacom Journalist of the Year Award on eight occasions. His illustrious career has seen him being featured on many international broadcasting platforms such as the BBC in London and the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation.
