In Memory of Chelsea Brown (1997 – 2021)
(This article was originally posted on BizCommunity as a Youth Month feature – 30 JUN 2020, by Sindy Peters)
Chelsea Brown is a student representative at the South African Institute of Valuers (SAIV) Northern Branch executive. A University of Johannesburg alumna, Brown has found her passion in property, especially after recognising the many opportunities the field holds for SA’s youth.
Closing the chapter on this year’s #YouthMonth, Brown shares a bit about her journey in her chosen career, her achievements thus far, and how some of the challenges young people face in her industry could be overcome.
I was born and raised in Johannesburg, where I still reside. I am currently 22 years old and I matriculated back in 2015. I then went on to complete my Bcom finance degree at the University of Johannesburg (UJ). I am currently doing my honours in property valuations and management at UJ, as well as working as a candidate valuer at DDP.
I am most proud of being part of the first Women’s Property Network (WPN) committee at UJ. I am extremely proud that we were able to start the UJ chapter last year to help draw an interest to the property industry and the various career paths one could follow. This was extremely important to me because many students do not necessarily consider property valuations as a degree or even a career path. And, as previously mentioned, it is important that we, as the youth, truly consider what we study, considering how saturated the job market is in South Africa and our high youth unemployment rates.
I am also extremely proud of being a student representative for the South African Institute of Valuers on the Northern Branch executive. It’s inspiring working with such passionate individuals who have made it a personal mission to provide the youth opportunities in the property valuations field as they are successfully doing through their mentorship programme.
I started off studying Bcom Accounting at UJ, thinking I would one day become a CA. By the end of my first year, I realised that was not where my passions lay. I then switched to the Bcom Finance degree in my second year which allowed me to take Property Valuations and Management as my elective. This allowed me to completely drop accounting by my third year. Although my journey may have started with me running away from accounting, I realised property was actually something I had an interest in, especially after realising the various opportunities it hosts for the youth of today. In today’s economic climate, I think it’s important that we consider what we study wisely.
I would say do not underestimate the value of working for a smaller firm or even gaining experience through volunteering. You would be surprised how much you could learn. Especially from a small dedicated team who is invested in you.
Youth Month has encouraged many of the youth to highlight racism and racial injustices in our private institutions. We have seen this through hashtags such as #WakeupStAnnes #WearetiredStMartins and #TimesupStMarys. And I think it’s important that we are once again having these conversations. As many BIPOC have sacrificed a lot to get their children into these spaces. And it’s about time that they’re treated with respect and dignity.
Given the Covid-19 crisis, the first thing on my to-do list would be disassociating from the Red Ants. It goes against human rights and human dignity to be evicting citizens and tearing down shacks during this pandemic, whether lawful or not. As we have seen throughout history, being on the right side of the law does not mean being on the right side of humanity.
