At some point during his tenure at a global bank based in New York, Stellenbosch University alumnus Nick Smit and husband, Francois Conradie, decided it was time to reinvest some of their privileges into a positive bank balance for deserving students, leading to the creation of the NY Postgrad Bursary Fund in June 2022.

The couple, both volunteers at a charitable organisation and soup kitchens, have dedicated their time to promoting donorship to the fund. They also encourage donors to challenge their employer companies to match, per rand or dollar, any individual donations towards the fund. The bursary targets full course fees of $9,650 per year to support one successful SU student who wishes to complete their Honours or Masters at SU, but who does not qualify for government funding.

Nick heads up Financial Institutions – North America at ING Bank, which agreed to a one-and-a-half-time match when the bursary was founded. “We encourage other people to participate in this and specifically investigate with their companies if they have a matching programme. It’s regular in the US that if you donate to a charitable company and it qualifies for your company’s matching programme, that your company will match the donation up to a certain level.”

Nick also serves as treasurer and a trustee on the board of the Friends of the Stellenbosch University Foundation, a 501 (c) tax-exempt entity registered in the United States. Through the foundation all donations and sponsorships remain tax deductible, ensuring an all-round “win-win”, as Nick puts it.

With the fund, they also hope to create more opportunities for interns. “I was hoping that we could use the bursary as a basis for internships. If you graduate at any international university under the J1 visa, you can come to the US for an internship (under the J1 visa programme) and of course that will give you fantastic exposure to the US and US companies. Most companies run a summer internship, as do we, at ING Bank.

“J1 visas can also qualify for this internship, so the idea was to see if we could assist someone or two, to become part of the J1 visa programme as first recipients to participate as interns in the US. That’s still quite far off, but I’ve seen a lot of European universities do that. And why not South Africa, or Stellenbosch?”

“We got so many opportunities throughout our education – maybe in a sense in a privileged way, in South Africa – that we would really like to give back. That was the main driving force behind creating the fund,” says Nick. But “drastic changes” at SU were a drawcard for them.

“We have great respect for Stellenbosch University, and the way the university has repositioned itself to be diverse and inclusive. I also respect the way the university has progressed to include all communities. That was not my experience when I studied there. I’m proud that the university could reposition itself in that way,” says Nick. “A lot of people talk about diversity and inclusion, but it’s not often that you must ‘put your money where your mouth is’. So I found it was about time I contributed in a way I am able to.”

“And then there’s something that Francois and I would like to underline as well – we are gay and therefore if that bursary could help somebody somehow that has an LGBTQ-plus orientation, that would be very valuable to us. That was a tertiary consideration, but still important to us.” Francois adds: “Little bits of money here and there that don’t really help, that’s why we’re focusing on Stellenbosch.”

When they arrived in the US, Francois could not work due to their Green Card status. That’s when he got involved in the charitable Broadway Cares organisation, which helps actors and theatre people get housing and medical care, groceries, and in other ways complement their social security. The couple spends time there weekly – Francois sometimes twice or thrice a week, where he helps with anything from menial tasks to planning events.

Francois, a qualified accountant, says volunteering is currently his occupation. “It’s so unbelievable how much happiness you get from volunteering,” he says. Besides Broadway Cares, the couple also volunteers at two local soup kitchens. Nick adds: “We have a large influx of immigrants. A lot of people became homeless during the lockdown, so these kitchens are playing a crucial role. They don’t get money from the state to give food to needy people. It’s a very, very sobering and good experience.”

For now, the couple – who loves travelling – are looking forward to a visit to sunny South Africa. “There are only two things important in life: to have friends and build up friendship, and to love. Those things drive me,” says Francois. For Nick, his drive is “definitely not having a job or working on million-dollar deals. It’s much, much more important that you have a sense of meaning and a sense of belonging. That’s what drives me.”

To donate to the NY Postgrad Bursary Fund visit www.matiesalumni.com

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