The Academic Institute of Excellence (AIE) has launched eight new qualifications spanning engineering and information technology, marking the institution’s most significant academic expansion to date and reflecting a deliberate commitment to equipping South Africans for careers in two of the country’s most under-skilled sectors.
The new qualifications range from Higher Certificate programmes at NQF Level 5 – designed to open the door for first-generation students and career changers – through to Bachelor’s degrees at NQF Level 7 across both engineering and technology disciplines. Together, they create a structured, accessible pathway from entry-level study to professional-grade qualification within a single institution.
On the engineering side, AIE has introduced Higher Certificates in Civil Engineering, Electrical and Electronics Engineering, and Mechatronic Engineering at NQF Level 5, a Diploma in Mechanical Engineering at NQF Level 6, and a Bachelor of Engineering Technology in Civil Engineering at NQF Level 7. On the technology side, three Bachelor of Information Technology degrees have been launched at NQF Level 7, covering Software Engineering, Network and Cybersecurity, and Data Science.
The launch coincides with a pivotal moment in South Africa’s skills development landscape. The recent phasing out of pre-2009 legacy qualifications – 1,475 of which have reached the end of their registration period – has created both urgency and opportunity: urgency for students enrolled in outgoing programmes to secure modern, recognised alternatives, and opportunity for institutions like AIE to position current, industry-aligned qualifications as the standard for the next generation of South African professionals.
Leon Smalberger, CEO of AIE, said, “This expansion represents a defining moment for the institution and for the students who choose to study with AIE. Engineering and information technology are not simply career choices – they are the disciplines that will determine whether South Africa builds its own infrastructure, secures its own data, and writes its own code, or continues to depend on skills it does not produce in sufficient numbers.”
He said AIE’s eight new qualifications, from NQF Level 5 entry certificates through to NQF Level 7 degrees, are designed to change that – one student at a time, at every level of the qualification ladder.
The qualifications are open for enrolment now. For more information, visit: www.aie.ac