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UFS celebrates excellence through its research hubs
The university considers its research chairs and the possibility of future chairs as an integral and strategic initiative to increase its national and international standing through excellent academic and research leadership.
The University of the Free State (UFS) is proud of its research leaders. As of 2018 the UFS has 156 NRF-rated researchers and five Sarchi Research Chairs. These chairs are designed to attract and retain excellence in research and innovation at South African public universities.

Getting the better of vector borne and zoonotic viruses

Prof Felicity Burt leads the Vector Borne and Zoonotic Virus Research Group in the Department of Medical Microbiology and Virology at the UFS. She was awarded a Research Chair to, among others, investigate medically significant vector-borne and zoonotic viruses currently circulating - mainly viruses transmitted by mosquitos and ticks, and viruses transmitted from animals to humans. 

“Years ago, no one knew what Ebola was. One outbreak later, backed by many media reports, and it is almost a household name. The same goes for the recent Zika virus outbreak in South America,” she explains the public’s interest and fears. To prevent the spread of vector-borne viruses to new areas, surveillance and awareness is important. Here in Bloemfontein, Prof Burt and her team are establishing surveillance programmes.

Why research on fungal infections?

“Many diseases no longer pose a threat to humans and life expectancy is prolonged. However, this has also caused an increase in various opportunistic infections, and most of all, fungal infections,” says Prof Carlien Pohl-Albertyn, who is heading the Research Chair for Pathogenic Yeasts in the Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology. And the rise in resistance to antifungal treatments requires research into pathobiology, including new drug and treatment options. 

Activities of the Research Chair in Pathogenic Yeasts builds on existing research strengths and will contribute towards understanding pathobiology of medically significant pathogenic yeasts belonging to the genera Candida and Cryptococcus. 

Understanding higher education for more equality and justice

Prof Melanie Walker, from the Centre for Research on Higher Education and Development (CRHED) does research on higher education, inequalities and social justice, and how, or if, universities foster the human capabilities and aspirations of students. Does higher education make a difference to the lives of students, their families and communities? 

Prof Walker says the Research Chair on Higher Education and Human Development looks at issues of access, participation and transitions into work, as well as gender, race and social class. They use both quantitative and qualitative methods and includes a strand of participatory research projects with students. Ultimately, the research must contribute to debates, policy and practices in higher education, and a scholarly knowledge base.

Reduced emissions make for a better world

Prof Hendrik Swart chairs the research project that looks into low-energy lighting, using phosphor materials for light emitting diodes (LEDs). The Research Chair on Solid State Luminescent and Advanced Materials is situated at the Department of Physics. 

The research mainly focuses on better light emission of phosphor powers in LEDs.  According to Prof Swart, the long-term benefit of the research will result in more environmentally friendly devices which use less energy, are brighter and give a wider viewing field. Over the next five years they will develop and produce devices that emit better light using the substances already developed. “We need to make small devices to see if they are better than those we already have,” he says. 

Solutions to food insecurity
 
The Department of Plant Sciences’s research project dives into disease resistance and quality in field crops. Heading this Research Chair is Prof Maryke Labuschagne who focuses on crop quality breeding and disease resistance in field crops. 

Her, and her students’ research focuses on the genetic improvement of food security crops in Africa, including such staples as maize and cassava. “These crops are genetically improved for yield, drought tolerance, disease, and insect resistance, as well nutritional value,” she says. Her disease resistance research will focus on crop protein quantity and quality as well as iron, zinc, and beta-carotene biofortification of staple crops such as wheat, maize and cassava. The disease resistance-breeding project will be a continuation of the internationally acclaimed wheat rust research. 

The university considers the research chairs and the possibility of future chairs as an integral and strategic initiative to increase its national and international standing through excellent academic and research leadership. 

Microbiology from University of the Free State on Vimeo.

News Archive

MBA Programme - Question And Answer Sheet - 27 May 2004
2004-05-27

1. WHAT MUST THE UNIVERSITY OF THE FREE STATE (UFS) DO TO GET FULL ACCREDITATION FOR THE MBA PROGRAMMES?

According to the Council on Higher Education’s (CHE) evaluation, the three MBA programmes of the UFS clearly and significantly contribute to students’ knowledge and skills, are relevant for the workplace, are appropriately resourced and have an appropriate internal and external programme environment. These programmes are the MBA General, the MBA in Health Care Management and the MBA in Entrepreneurship.

What the Council on Higher Education did find, was a few technical and administrative issues that need to be addressed.

This is why the three MBA programmes of the UFS received conditional accreditation – which in itself is a major achievement for the UFS’s School of Management, which was only four years old at the time of the evaluation.

The following breakdown gives one a sense of the mostly administrative nature of the conditions that have to be met before full accreditation is granted by the CHE:

a. A formal forum of stakeholders: The UFS is required to establish a more structured, inclusive process of review of its MBA programmes. This is an administrative formality already in process.

b. A work allocation model: According to the CHE this is required to regulate the workload of the teaching staff, particularly as student numbers grow, rather than via standard management processes as currently done.

c. Contractual agreements with part-time staff: The UFS is required to enter into formal agreements with part-time and contractual staff as all agreements are currently done on an informal and claim-basis. This is an administrative formality already in process.

d. A formal curriculum committee: According to the CHE, the School of Management had realised the need for a structure – other than the current Faculty Board - where all MBA lecturers can deliberate on the MBA programmes, and serve as a channel for faculty input, consultation and decision-making.

e. A system of external moderators: This need was already identified by the UFS and the system is to be implemented as early as July 2004.

f. A compulsory research component: The UFS is required to introduce a research component which will include the development of research skills for the business environment. The UFS management identified this need and has approved such a component - it is to take effect from January 2005. This is an insufficient element lacking in virtually all MBA programmes in South Africa.

g. Support programmes for learners having problems with numeracy: The UFS identified this as a need for academic support among some learners and has already developed such a programme which will be implemented from January 2005.

The majority of these conditions have been satisfied already and few remaining steps will take effect soon. It is for this reason that the UFS is confident that its three MBA programmes will soon receive full accreditation.

2. WHAT ACCREDITATION DOES THE UFS HAVE FOR ITS MBA PROGRAMME?

The UFS’s School of Management received conditional accreditation for its three MBA programmes.

Two levels of accreditation are awarded to tertiary institutions for their MBA programmes, namely full accreditation and conditional accreditation. When a programme does not comply with the minimum requirements regarding a small number of criteria, conditional accreditation is given. This can be rectified during the short or medium term.

3. IS THERE ANYTHING WRONG WITH THE ACADEMIC CORE OF THE UFS’s MBA PROGRAMMES?

No. The UFS is proud of its three MBA programmes’ reputation in the market and the positive feedback it receives from graduandi and their employers.

The MBA programmes of the UFS meet most of the minimum requirements of the evaluation process.

In particular, the key element of ‘teaching and learning’, which relates to the curriculum and content of the MBA programmes, is beyond question. In other words, the core of what is being taught in our MBA programmes is sound.

4. IS THE UFS’s MBA A WORTHWHILE QUALIFICATION?

Yes. Earlier this year, the School of Management – young as it is - was rated by employers as the best smaller business school in South Africa. This was based on a survey conducted by the Professional Management Review and reported in the Sunday Times Business Times, of 25 January 2004.

The UFS is committed to maintaining these high standards of quality, not only through compliance with the requirements of the CHE, but also through implementing its own quality assurance measures.

Another way in which we benchmark the quality of our MBA programmes is through the partnerships we have formed with institutions such as the DePaul University in Chicago and Kansas State University, both in the US, as well as the Robert Schuman University in France.

For this reason the UFS appreciates and supports the work of the CHE and welcomes its specific findings regarding the three MBA programmes.

It is understandable that the MBA review has caused some nervousness – not least among current MBA students throughout the country.

However, one principle that the UFS management is committed to is this: preparing all our students for a world of challenge and change. Without any doubt the MBA programme of the UFS is a solid preparation.

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