Meet Thando Gono, a recent graduate from the University of Pretoria (UP) who built herself a customised home while busy with a master’s degree, pregnant and working full-time as a town planning technician.

Gono, who obtained her master’s degree in town and regional planning this year, says some of her responsibilities at work include assessing building plans, housing developments and review of policies, Spatial Planning and Land Use Management development Applications. It was this experience she gained through her everyday work that made want to create her own home.

“‘Building’ the house myself instead of purchasing an already finished house was because I aspire to be a property developer and project manager one day. I used my own ‘little heaven’ project as an opportunity”.

“It is a three bedroom – including the main bedroom with an en-suite, a nursery room and a guest bedroom - with an open lounge kitchen on an 800square metre site. I am currently working on the designs for the outside; that is, driveway, retaining, boundary wall, etc. I am hoping to extend the house in the coming years,” Gono says.

She admits that it was not all smooth sailing, balancing schoolwork, personal life and building her house

“It was the hardest and most stressful time of my life because I had also just found out I was pregnant. However, I believed I could do it and had a very strong support system through my family, friends and colleagues.”

“It also took a lot of scheduling and proper planning. I had to go on-site to ensure everything was running smoothly with the construction, but I had to make sure it did not interfere with my classes. All of this while working a full-time job that I must report to from Monday to Friday. It was extremely exhausting, but I enjoyed being busy. I felt alive.

She says her research played a huge role in seeing things with a different perspective. Her thesis was titled: Making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable through the provision of adequate housing: Evidence from planning research and the implication for policy and practice. The research was a systematic literature review of planning research articles in relation to housing, with a specific focus on the link between research and policy and practice, to better understand how research could accelerate evidence-based spatial transformation across South African settlements.

The town planning technician from KwaZulu-Natal says that getting her qualification at UP was a perfect choice as the master’s programme focused on municipal planning.

“As a municipal employee, the programme helped me expand and acquire new skills such as how to better prepare policy documents, better interpret legislation, as well as refresh and update my knowledge while gaining more experience. I can easily implement the skills into real-life work situations. The qualification has also opened doors to other courses and qualifications such as property development and project management which are courses that I would love to embark on in the future”.

Gono says she is a reflection of the University of Pretoria.

“It is imperative that I enhance the image of the institution in my field of work. It is also my responsibility as alumni to form partnerships with students for opportunities. Where this kind of synergistic cooperation has been fostered and maintained, the benefits for both students and alumni are considerable,” she says.

In future, Gono sees herself advancing to a more senior level, with more knowledge, skills, and experience in her field of work and other related fields such as human settlements, property development and building control.

Her advice to people is clear: “It is not easy… nobody said it would be, but the fulfilment that comes with the accomplishment is immeasurable. It leaves you motivated in life as well as your career”.