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29 August 2019 | Story Valentino Ndaba
Michelle de Lange
Michelle de Lange was placed fourth in the world in the Chartered Global Management Accountant exams.
A letter from the Vice-President of Examinations at the Association for International Certified Professional Accountants, Stephen Flatman, reads: “The Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) Examination Board has determined the highest achievers at this level and I am pleased to inform you that you have obtained fourth position in the world for the May 2019 Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) Gateway Exam.” The letter was addressed to Michelle de Lange, lecturer at the University of the Free State’s (UFS) School of Accountancy.

This achievement in the tough Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) examination is a step in the right direction for De Lange who has been tasked with assisting in coordinating and presenting a new Financial Management qualification next year. “I want to be somewhere where I can make a difference, change a life, plant a dream in someone’s heart and help guide our future generations,” says De Lange. 

Taking local and global footsteps

Prof Frans Prinsloo, Director at the UFS School of Accountancy, has only praise for De Lange and says he looks forward to her influencing the climate and culture of academics. “It is noteworthy that we will be offering the BCom Honours in Financial Management in 2020 and all course content will be aligned to the CIMA Management Level outcomes in order to prepare students to write this exam next November. De Lange will be one of the lecturers on this programme,” Prof Prinsloo says. 

For the love of Accounting

“When I eventually qualified and started working as a financial manager of a large company in Bloemfontein, I realised just how much I loved the field of management accounting – blending leadership, cost and management accounting and strategic decision-making,” says De Lange. 
Although her passion for the field of accounting can be traced back to high school, it was the corporate world that re-ignited the strong spark. This passion has undoubtedly contributed to her international acclaim.

News Archive

UFS appoints top academic
2010-05-13

 
Prof. Kwandiwe Kondlo


The University of the Free State (UFS) has acquired the services of a well-known political analyst, Prof. Kwandiwe Kondlo, as a Senior Professor in the university’s Centre for Africa Studies (CAS).

Prof. Kondlo, who worked for the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) prior to this permanent appointment, is an accomplished researcher and a well-heeled scholar in issues of transitional democracies, governance and social justice.

“I joined this university particularly because of its difficult history and what I have observed to be a sincere orientation to transform,” he said.

“I think that under the leadership of Prof. Jonathan Jansen (Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the UFS) and his team we are going to see a very interesting rebirth of the University of the Free State. And some of us who believe in ideas of reconciliation in negotiated democracies as part of nation formation actually feel we should throw the best we have into the transformation process and support this great guy.”

“I see my appointment as part of the excellence aspect of the transformation journey because the UFS, even though it does good work in certain areas, is not highly rated in terms of academic excellence and publications. That is why I was glad to be appointed to make a humble contribution,” he said.

“I think it is going to be useful to the UFS to have more people of high academic standing because the idea to improve scholarship is very central and of course shifts the focus to scholarly discourse. Let scholarly excellence reclaim the centre of the debate as the leadership deal with legacy issues and genuine transformation.”

“Let us see academics from this institution stand up to articulate key issues that are relevant to state formations and transformation in the country. Let us debate our role as academics in supporting the consolidation of our young democracy”

Prof. Kondlo sees his key role within the CAS as improving research output.

“In other words, I see myself as leading the way in the generation of journal articles, books and also national and international seminars,” he explained.

He said a lot of work still needed to be done, though, to profile the CAS nationally and on the continent as it was still a new initiative and thus relatively unknown.

“We will need to be very innovative in terms of research initiatives and identification of research associates in order to profile the work of the Centre,” he said.

“I think the UFS will claim its seat in the greater African academic family by virtue of the quality of its products. We do not want to re-invent the wheel; we want to come up with products that are unique and in that way help this university to claim its rightful position within the greater African academic family.”

Prof. Kondlo has also worked for, amongst others, the Department of Land Affairs, the National Prosecuting Authority and the South African Chamber of Commerce, as well as being involved with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Media Release
Issued by: Mangaliso Radebe
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2828
Cell: 078 460 3320
E-mail: radebemt@ufs.ac.za  
13 May 2010
 

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