Dylan Bettencourt
A student at the University of Pretoria (UP) named Michael Barnes stunned examiners with a master’s thesis which was so outstanding, they had no choice but to give him a PhD instead.
Barnes, who is a full time meteorologist at the South African Weather Service in Cape Town, graduated in September.
He told the University publication, UP News, that he could not believe that his master’s degree was converted into a PhD, the highest qualification possible.
“I couldn’t believe it. Imagine preparing work for your master’s and ending up with a title of doctor at graduation. My academic supervisors said they were flattered by my work. They were quite happy,” he said.
The thesis Barnes submitted was based on atmospheric dynamics and received high praise from an examiner at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.
The UP student said by the time he had begun working on his master’s thesis, he had already seen some of his work published in renowned journals. This has been cited as one of the reasons his degree was upgraded.
Dr Thando Ndarana, Barnes’ supervisor during his thesis, praised the student for his work ethic as he managed to complete his degree while working at the same time.
“The remarkable thing about Michael’s journey is that he was working as a full-time researcher at the South African Weather Service, which is a technically demanding operational organisation,” Ndarana said.
Speaking about his future career plans, Barnes said he is looking out for opportunities that may come forward.
“Work is good here in Cape Town. I wasn’t expecting a doctorate. So, at this point, I am not about what lies ahead in my career. I will look into opportunities should they present themselves in the future,” the newly qualified doctor said.
Image source: @UniversityofPretoria
