Sasol learnerships can offer South Africans an opportunity to pursue occupational training, while simultaneously gaining workplace experience in a range of technical, artisan, production, and business administration fields.
However, learnership applicants should be aware that qualifications, occupation, location, duration, stipend, and closing date information can vary from one Sasol learnership to the next.
It is therefore necessary to use the specific advertisements for the advertised intake, rather than a generic set of Sasol learnership requirements, when determining whether an applicant meets the necessary criteria.
What is a Sasol learnership?
A Sasol learnership combines elements of structured learning and workplace experience.
Applicants can gain technical, artisan, production, maintenance, or business administration training, depending on the advertised occupation.
The inclusion of the workplace element means that learners can gain experience in the occupational environment, as they complete their learnership.
The nature of the training and the duration of the programme will depend on the field of the learnership.
Business administration, for example, will have different requirements to technical occupations.
This is why it is necessary for learners to read the advertised conditions for the programme that they are applying for.
Which fields can Sasol learnerships cover?
A variety of occupations can be covered by Sasol learnerships.
Chemical Plant Operations, Electrical, Instrumentation, Fitting, Turning, Welding, Boilermaking, Business Administration, Production-related occupations, and Maintenance-related occupations can all be included in the advertised vacancies, depending on the Sasol learnership intake.
However, these fields should not be considered as a permanent list of available occupations; instead, learners should ensure that their preferred field is included in the advertised programme, prior to applying.
What qualifications are needed?
The necessary Sasol learnership requirements will depend on the occupation that the applicant is applying for.
Some of the possible requirements for Sasol learnerships include:
- Grade 12 or a National Senior Certificate, or an equivalent;
- Mathematics or Technical Mathematics;
- English;
- Physical Science or Technical Science;
- N3 or a relevant technical qualification, for certain artisan programmes;
- South African citizenship;
- Additional requirements, depending on the programme.
Technical and artisan-related learnerships can have more specific academic requirements than programmes such as business administration. As such, it is necessary for learners to review the requirements for the specific vacancy, and not assume that any Grade 12 will be sufficient for a learnership.
Why the subjects matter
Mathematics, Technical Mathematics, Physical Science, or Technical Science can be one of the Sasol learnership requirements for technical occupations.
The subjects that can be used to meet the learnership requirements will depend on the occupation that is being advertised. Learners who do not meet the academic requirements for a particular programme should not assume that any generic Sasol learnership requirements can be used.
How long does a Sasol learnership last?
The length of the learnership will depend on the programme and the occupation for which the applicant is applying.
While some learnerships can be completed in 12 months, technical and production-related programmes can take up to 36 months.
Longer learnerships can include a more comprehensive set of occupational and workplace elements, depending on the field of the programme.
This is particularly applicable to technical and artisan occupations, as learners will be required to obtain qualifications as part of their learnership.
The programme duration should always be taken from the specific advertisement for the intake that the learner is applying for.
Do Sasol learnerships pay a stipend?
Applicants should be aware that some Sasol learnerships offer a stipend to the successful candidate.
However, stipend amounts can vary between different learnership programmes.
As such, learners should use the stipend information from the vacancy that they are applying for, rather than stipend figures that were included in older advertisements or on other websites.
Is a Sasol learnership a permanent job?
A Sasol learnership should not be considered as an automatic offer of employment.
While a learnership can include a stipend and workplace experience, it will typically be a fixed-term training programme.
As such, the completion of a learnership will not automatically lead to a permanent position with Sasol.
Nevertheless, the successful completion of a learnership, which will include occupational training and workplace experience, can be beneficial to a learner, as they will be able to apply the skills that they have learnt in the workplace.
Where are Sasol learnerships offered?
The location for a Sasol learnership will depend on the specific programme.
Learners should not assume that all learnerships will be available at the same location or that any location can be used for a learnership.
Instead, the learners should identify the location according to the advertisement, and ensure that they are able to comply with any location-related requirements for the programme.
Location is an important consideration for learners who may need to travel or relocate in order to participate in a learnership.
How should applicants apply?
The application procedure will depend on the learnership for which the applicant is applying.
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Applicants should always use the application procedure that is specified in the advertisement for the vacancy and should not rely on any generic application procedure or one that is specified on a website.
Prior to applying, it is recommended that the following information be reviewed:
- Occupation – ensure that the field of the learnership is of interest to the applicant and that they will be eligible to apply;
- Academic requirements – review the specified qualifications and ensure that the applicant will be able to comply;
- Citizenship – confirm whether South African citizenship will be a requirement;
- Location – ensure that the programme can take place at the specified location;
- Duration – confirm whether the learnership will take place over 12 months, 24 months, or 36 months (or any other specified duration);
- Stipend – review the amount that will be specified for the stipend;
- Closing date – ensure that the application can be submitted prior to the specified closing date;
- Application method – ensure that the application procedure will be followed correctly;
- Any additional conditions that may apply to the programme.
Why a Sasol learnership can matter for young South Africans
For many South Africans, the ability to gain practical experience is as important as obtaining a qualification.
A learnership can offer both of these benefits, as it provides the participants with the opportunity to obtain structured training and to also obtain workplace experience.
This is particularly applicable to technical fields, where the workplace element of the learnership will enable the learner to develop an understanding of the working environment.
For South Africans who are considering a career in plant operations, electrical, instrumentation, maintenance, production, or business administration, a learnership can be an opportunity to develop the necessary skills in that field.
However, learners should be aware that each learnership will have its own requirements, and that a learnership is not a guarantee of employment.
What applicants should check before applying
One of the biggest mistakes that learners can make is to assume that information from one learnership will apply to another learnership.
Applicants should always review the specific information for the learnership that they are applying for, including:
- The occupation for which they are applying;
- The qualifications that will be required;
- The subjects that will be required at school;
- Additional technical qualifications;
- Citizenship requirements;
- The location at which the learnership will take place;
- The length of the learnership;
- The stipend that will be offered;
- The closing date for applications;
- The application procedure;
- Any additional requirements for the programme.
This will ensure that the learner is aware of the requirements for the advertised programme and that the learner will be able to apply for the programme.
The bottom line
Sasol learnerships can offer a range of occupational training programmes in technical, production, and business administration fields.
These programmes can differ significantly, however, from one learnership to the next.
As such, rather than relying on any generic set of learnership requirements, applicants should use the specific learnership advertisements in order to identify whether they will be eligible to apply and the application procedure that they will need to follow.
Editorial and fact-checking information
Editorial approach: This article aims to provide information about Sasol learnerships for South African readers.
The article distinguishes between generic learnership information and the specific learnership requirements for each Sasol learnership intake.
Fact-checking: The factual information in this article is based on the supplied Sasol learnership information.
Programme-specific information should be verified against the relevant current Sasol advertisement before applying for a learnership.
Corrections: If information changes or an error is identified, the article should be reviewed against the applicable programme information and the article corrected where necessary.
Important: Readers should verify current requirements, closing dates, locations, stipends, and applications instructions prior to submitting an application.
