​Annica Swart moved to Ingolstadt, Germany, one and half years ago. She started volunteering at the beginning of 2020, as she was looking for a way to expand her network.

“I really enjoyed my time at Stellies and reconnecting with other alumni has been a great experience for me. Ideally, I would be helping to organise in-person networking events in Munich, but thus far my volunteering has been limited to leading break-out groups during online networking and wine-tasting events."

Annica says that she would most definitely encourage other Maties to get involved and give of their time. “My experience has been that you gain a lot more than you give through volunteering in any capacity. The time investment is not that high, and you have the opportunity to give back to the university that provided all of us with so much."

She studied industrial engineering at Stellenbosch, followed by a master's degree in engineering management. She is currently part of the sales operations team at Amazon Web Services, based in Munich.

She adds that she is happy to connect with anyone based in Munich.

She has wonderful memories of her time in Matieland, especially her time as a resident of Nerina. “I was an avid visitor to the wine farms around Stellenbosch, but what I recall most vividly would have to be the great times we had at Nerina residence. Nerina and her residents truly became a home to me. The sense of freedom, excitement and adventure I experienced during my six years at the university will always remain special to me. I have to give a special shout-out to the Industrial Engineering Department and Tannie Karina for creating a memorable studying experience."

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