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28 March 2018 Photo Supplied
Building programmes receive accreditation
The vision for the UFS Department of Quantity Surveying and Construction Management is to be the preferred choice for built environment students and the preferred provider of built environment graduates.
In 2017 the South African Council for the Project and Construction Management Professions (SACPCMP) visited the Department of Quantity Surveying and Construction Management at the University of the Free State (UFS), to re-accredit programmes offered by the department.

In January 2018 the department received the news that the SACPCMP granted full accreditation for the next five years (January 2018 to December 2022) for the programmes BSc Construction Management; BSc Hons Construction Management; and Master’s in Land and Property Development Management (Project Management specialisation).

The South African Council for Property Valuation Profession (SACPVP) also granted conditional accreditation for the Master’s in Land and Property Development Management (MLPM) (valuation specialisation) programme.

The value of accreditation
According to Prof Kahilu Kajimo-Shakantu, Head of the Department of Quantity Surveying and Construction Management, it means the department is recognised as a certified place of learning offering a certified programme mix recognised by the SACPCMP as meeting its standards. It further means that the department, via its programmes, is able to produce graduates who are “fit for purpose”, technically competent, and have developed and can demonstrate a range of skills.

She added: “Having accredited programmes makes our programmes attractive, with wider employment opportunities. It certifies that our graduates from the Construction Management programme are qualified and competent. They have achieved a minimum level of competence to embark on the journey to practise professionally.”

Achieving and maintaining programme accreditation from the respective national and international professional bodies is the ultimate goal for the department. “This hallmark of quality reflects the university’s aspiration towards excellence,” Prof Kajimo-Shakantu said.

On offer at the department
The department offers BSc in Construction Management and BSc Hons in Construction Management and BSc Quantity Surveying and BSc Hons Quantity Surveying respectively.  These programmes are offered both on residential (full time) as well as via compact mode of delivery (block sessions) for those already working in the construction industry but who wish to obtain or further their educational qualifications. 

At master’s level, the department offers a structured Master of Land and Property Development Management Programme (MLPM) with specialisation in either Valuation or Project Management. Other programmes on offer are the following   master’s and doctoral programmes, namely; MSc Construction Management, MSc Property Science and MSc Quantity Surveying and PhD Construction Management, PhD Property Science and PhD Quantity Surveying respectively.

“My vision for the Department of Quantity Surveying and Construction Management is to be the preferred choice for built environment students and the preferred provider of built environment graduates,” said Prof Kajimo-Shakantu.

“Construction Management programmes, like the other programmes we offer, lead to exciting, challenging and rewarding careers in the construction industry and beyond. Our graduates are also highly sought-after by built environment employers nationally and internationally,” she concluded.

News Archive

Two scientists part of team that discovers the source of the highest energy cosmic rays at the centre of the Milky Way
2016-03-22

Description: Giant molecular clouds Tags: Giant molecular clouds

Artist's impression of the giant molecular clouds surrounding the Galactic Centre, bombarded by very high energy protons accelerated in the vicinity of the central black hole and subsequently shining in gamma rays.
Artist's impression: © Dr Mark A. Garlick/ H.E.S.S. Collaboration

Spotlight photo:
Dr Brian van Soelen and Prof Pieter Meintjes of the UFS Department of Physics.
Photo: Charl Devenish

H.E.S.S. (High Energy Stereoscopic System) scientists publically revealed their latest galactic discovery in the international science journal, Nature, on 16 March 2016. These scientists were able to pinpoint the most powerful source of cosmic radiation – which, up to now, remained a mystery.

Part of this team of scientists are Prof Pieter Meintjes and Dr Brian van Soelen, both in the University of the Free State (UFS) Department of Physics. Dr Van Soelen explains that they have discovered a proton PeVatron – a source that can accelerate protons up to energies of ~1 PeV (10^15 eV) – at the centre of the Milky Way. The supermassive black hole called Sagittarius A has been identified as the most plausible source of this unprecedented acceleration of protons.

The protons are accelerated to Very High Energy (VHE) gamma rays. The energy of these protons are 100 times larger than those achieved by the Large Hadron Collider at CERN (the European Organization for Nuclear Research).

According to Dr Van Soelen, the fact that this research has been published in Nature demonstrates the importance and pioneering nature of the research conducted by H.E.S.S. The H.E.S.S. observatory – operational in Namibia – is a collaboration between 42 scientific institutions in 12 countries.

In 2006, H.E.S.S. was awarded the Descartes Prize of the European Commission – the highest recognition for collaborative research – and in 2010 the prestigious Rossi Prize of the American Astronomical Society. The extent of the observatory’s significance places it among the ranks of the Hubble Space Telescope and the telescopes of the European Southern Observatory in Chile.

“The next generation VHE gamma-ray telescope,” Dr Van Soelen says, “will be the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA), which is currently in the design and development stage.” Both Dr Van Soelen and Prof Meintjes are part of this project as well.

H.E.S.S. has issued a complete statement about the paper published in Nature.

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