College of Human Sciences

From trolley collector to media guru: Ngcayisa's journey of lifelong learning

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Born in Gqeberha’s Walmer township, Luphumlo "Lupi" Ngcayisa, a renowned media personality, received his Bachelor of Arts Honours degree in Media Studies at Unisa’s 2024 autumn graduations, his second degree after completing a Bachelor of Communication Science in 2018. His awe-inspiring journey from humble beginnings as a trolley collector to becoming a media guru is one of the many illustrating the university’s commitment to changing lives and shaping futures in the service of humanity.

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Luphumlo "Lupi" Ngcayisa

Ngcayisa started working at age 14 as a trolly collector at Pick 'n Pay. At 16, he taught isiXhosa to German executives at Volkswagen. Ngcayisa completed his matric in 1994, thereafter securing a job as a bank teller at Nedbank. Since then, he has been involved in various sectors and industries such as advertising, public relations, marketing, television productions, radio broadcasting and government. 

Today, Ngcayisa is not only a revered media personality. He is the creative director at Fullswing Multimedia, an agency he founded in 2006, which, among its projects, has successfully staged and produced the 14th Annual Thabo Mbeki Africa Day Lecture. "This was our third production of the Thabo Mbeki Africa Day Lecture," he says. "We offer a variety of services such as reputation management, media relations, stakeholder management, project management, film and event production. I conceptualise, produce, stage, coordinate and direct events."

Through the teaching modality of ODeL (open distance and e-learning), Ngcayisa was able to enrol at Unisa to broaden his communication and media knowledge, and he eventually completed his  first degree in 2018, and his second in 2024. He comments: "ODeL is hard and lonely at times. It requires extraordinary discipline and commitment. Be patient with yourself. Try to immerse yourself in your chosen field of study. Widen your networks by taking full advantage of the seminars and other opportunities offered by the university, while making time to have fun and enjoy the process."

Ngcayisa plans to pursue a master’s degree in 2025 with the Thabo Mbeki African School of Public and International Affairs (TM-School), explaining that this decision comes from his belief not only in inventiveness, but in knowledge sharing. He states: "We pursue and acquire knowledge not only for our own growth, but for the betterment of the world around us. The key insights gained through rigorous academic pursuits aid the creation of new thinking, and that thinking gets reflected on the initiatives, campaigns and programmes we roll out in communities and in the institutions that we serve."

In addition to expressing his admiration for the university’s rich heritage and revered alumni, Ngcayisa says that its curriculum is of high standard, refined throughout the university’s 150 years of existence. He adds: "The institution is constantly seeking ways to forge ahead and be a cut above the rest."

Ngcayisa expresses his hope that the university will remain committed to advancing and promoting knowledge creation and knowledge generation. In addition, he urges the university continue to place the ever-changing needs of its main stakeholders (the students) at the centre of its evolution. "Long live the university of the land," he concludes. 

* By Godfrey Madibane, Acting Journalist, Department of Institutional Advancement

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Publish date: 2024/06/27

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