MegChem

About MegChem

MegChem is a South African consulting engineering and project management company. Its head office is in Secunda, Mpumalanga, and it also works from offices in Sasolburg and Centurion. The company employs about 500 people. Most of its clients come from the petrochemical, oil and gas, mining and power generation sectors.

The firm brings many engineering disciplines under one roof. These include process, mechanical, piping, electrical, control and instrumentation, metallurgical and welding engineering. MegChem also offers project management, procurement, quality management and safety services. In addition, it holds a Level 2 B-BBEE rating and ISO certifications for quality, environmental and safety management. The company reports 126 active projects and 35 awards and recognitions.

How MegChem supports students

Skills development is an important part of MegChem's work. The company runs learnerships and also lists bursaries among its training programmes. Its best-known offering is a one-year learnership in Computer Aided Drawing Office Practice at NQF level 4. Learners train at the Secunda head office, so they gain real workplace exposure instead of classroom theory alone. Secunda is a well-known petrochemical hub, which makes it a useful place to learn technical drawing for industrial plants.

This learnership suits young people who want to become draughtspersons. In earlier intakes, MegChem asked for applicants aged 19 to 25 who had completed Matric or N3. Candidates also needed at least 50% for Mathematics and 50% for Engineering Graphics and Design. Mathematical Literacy was not accepted. Physical Science was treated as an advantage. Furthermore, preference went to candidates from previously disadvantaged backgrounds, and everyone had to be able to attend in Secunda for the full year.

What to know before applying

For the 2024 intake, applicants emailed a completed application form, a certified ID copy, their Matric or N3 certificate and proof of residence. That intake closed on 31 October 2023, and the learnership started in January. As a result, young people who want a place should start gathering certified documents well before the end of the year.

It also helps to know the difference between the two types of support. A learnership means you learn on the job while working towards a qualification. A bursary, on the other hand, usually pays for full-time study at an institution. Details such as MegChem bursary fields, amounts and any work-back conditions are not fixed in public sources, so they may change from year to year. Therefore, always read the most recent advert before you send anything. Check the age limit, the subject requirements, the closing date and the correct email address. You can also visit the official MegChem website to see which programmes are open at the moment.