Nhlakanipho Colin Mkhize has been awarded the Oxford Rhodes Scholarship and also has been accepted to study DPhil in Material Science at Oxford University, which is a competitive course with limited space.
“I had heard about it through the postgrad funding office first of all, but it was something that I had always heard about via the grapevine, seeing friends who had gone, but when I applied again this year it was honestly just me trying my luck.
“I didn’t know how far I would get but I’ve always wanted to go and study abroad for anything since childhood. So this was an opportunity to try and pursue this and see how far I could get,” explains the tenacious Mkhize.
“I’ve been looking at a couple of topics which interest me and one of the main ones that interests me is looking at the toxicity of nanoparticles and that project is offered by Professor Harish Bhaskaran,” shared Mkhize whose second choice is a PhD in Physical Chemistry.
“I’ve been really inspired by my current supervisor, Prof Nyokong, who is trying hard to make research something which is useful in society.
“I think after having been exposed to that kind of passion and resolve towards social change in research I definitely also want to go into research but make functional products in the lab that can better society so whether it be for cleaning water or designing new energy efficient materials, whether it be making compounds that can help heal people and work for the betterment of society, I think that is where I want to end up. So whether that be in research or industry, time will tell but I’ve got more of a research calling,” adds Mkhize.
His MSc looked at polymer thin films which he combined with a dye known as phthalocyanines to make materials that can protect people’s eyes and other delicate sensors from intense laser light.
“We’ve seen examples where lasers shined at aeroplanes could potentially blind pilots leading to catastrophes. Its been seen in the military and different spheres of aviation where people using these lasers, whether it be maliciously or not.
“it’s still a problem so we need to make materials that can protect people’s eyes and other sensitive optical sensors which require there to be a specific level of light intensity. It’s been a very interesting research project. We’ve managed to get a couple of papers out based on the research which is fantastic and we’ve got some promising results,” he says.
“I am going to be terrified of missing the sun for the next three and a half years, other than that there are not any fears. I know Oxford is bigger than Rhodes but it still has that small-town feel. I don’t think I will be out of my depth too much.
“There are some people that I know there which is fantastic. The current scholars and the support that the Rhodes scholarship gives you is also quite extraordinary. They have a whole House called Rhodes House dedicated to ensuring your Oxford experience is smooth,” says Mkhize.
“I’ve seen how much of an influence one can have after studying at Oxford. It’s definitely an opportunity which opens doors which very few other universities around the world can. It’s one of the best in the world which is a major drawing card but at the end of the day as long as I get to go overseas I think I am happy.”
He has looked at academic colleges which have a Catholic heritage such as Trinity College, Queen’s College and St John’s, and might have a stronger scientific feel to it.