Work-readiness community-based service learning in Geoinformatics prepares students for the workplace. Students, as part of their final year geoinformation project, give back to the community while applying knowledge and learning soft skills such as solving group conflict. Coordinated by Dr Victoria Rautenbach, the module gives students the opportunity to complete a project from start to finish. To facilitate this, they rely on a community-based service learning approach in an informal settlement in the east of Mamelodi, called Alaska where they have to map the settlement and implement a web solution for a problem they identified. Through this project, students experience the entire project lifecycle from data acquisition to presentation of their final results in an easy-to-understand format, while at the same time having the opportunity to put into practice GISc knowledge and skills acquired in individual modules. This approach provides the students with a glimpse into the working environment and how to solve conflicts within the group to ensure that a successful product is delivered in the end. Furthermore, the community engagement provides the students with an increased sense of social responsibility and an awareness of the importance of it in their future career. As usch, incorporating community-based service learning into the Geoinformatics curriculum promotes the development of work-readiness skills by the students. For more information have a look here.