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06 March 2019 | Story Ruan Bruwer | Photo Varsity Sports
Tharina van der Walt
Tharina van der Walt, a first-year student, won the hammer-throw item at the first Varsity Athletics meeting in Stellenbosch on Friday – the only gold medal for the Kovsies.

Hammer thrower Tharina van der Walt was the bright spark for the University of the Free State (UFS) at the first Varsity Athletics meeting in Stellenbosch on Friday.

Van der Walt, who recently turned 19 and is one of three first-year students in the UFS team of 25 athletes, bagged the only gold medal for the Free State students. She won the hammer throw with a distance of 53,12 m.

The UFS ended in fourth place behind NWU (first), UJ (second), and Tuks (third).

Six athletes achieved second places. Both Sokwakana Mogwasi (100 m) and Ts’epang Sello (800 m) came within a whisker of claiming victory.  Mogwasi lost the 100 m by 00:04 seconds, but in the process improved her personal best from 11,89 to 11,58. Sello (2:08,47) was in the lead for most of the 800 m but was eventually defeated by Niene Muller of Tuks by less than half a second.

Mogwasi was also second in the 200 m with a fast 24,92. Other silver medals were obtained by Yolandi Stander in the discus (52,70 m), Peter Makgato in the long jump (7,66 m), and Marné Mentz in a very fast 1500 m race. Mentz (04:26,63) chopped more than five seconds off her previous best time of 4:32,00. Her time was the third fastest ever in the 1 500 m at Varsity Athletics.

There were three third places: Sefako Mokhosoa (15,47 – triple jump), Petrus Jacobs (14,55 – 110 m hurdles), and the women’s 4x100 m relay team (Mogwasi, Elsabé du Plessis, Joviale Mbisha, and Micháela Wright).

Four athletes just missed out on podium positions, achieving fourth places.

The second Varsity athletics meeting will take place in Potchefstroom on 15 March 2019.

News Archive

Business School in top ranks of survey
2012-02-15

 
UFS Business School
Photo: Liezl Muller

The UFS Business School was ranked amongst the top business schools in South Africa in a survey by Finweek and MBAConnect.net. MBAConnect.net is the biggest social network for MBA graduates in South Africa. 

More than 10 000 MBA graduates and students were invited to take part in the survey and 1 575 of them completed it. More than half of the respondents are in senior or executive positions.
 
Prof. Helena van Zyl, the Director of the UFS Business School, says any business school has a moral obligation towards its alumni to ensure that the quality of the qualification that they obtained is maintained, that network opportunities are created for graduates, and that job opportunities are communicated, etc. Investment in and involvement with the alumni are non-negotiable as they form the backbone of a business school.
 
The UFS Business School’s results are listed below. The respondents rated the school as the school with the highest:
  • percentage of respondents saying they had definitely made the right choice in doing an MBA: second with 92% (average 86%)
  • score in leadership effectiveness: third with 8.9 (average 8.7)
  • decision-making effectiveness: shares first place with 9.4 (average 9.1)
  • credibility in business: second with 8.9 (average 8.6)
  • impact of an MBA in changing industries: third with 8.3 (average 7.9)
  • score for influence of an MBA in starting your own business: second with 8.5 (average 6.9)
  • percentage of respondents saying an MBA was definitely worth the price paid: shares first place with 80% (average 72%)
  • score for changing the outlook of students: shares first place with 9.3 (average 8.9)
  • score for improving people’s views of their own potential: shares first place with 9.5 (average 9.1)
  • score for helping people become better leaders in their personal lives: shares third place with 8.3 (average 7.8).
The UFS Business School shared first place with its alumni averaging the shortest payback period amongst those who thought the MBA was worth it. Its score was 1.1 years (average 1.8 years)
 
The report says across all schools, at least 73% of students report a negative impact on their stress levels. In the worst case, this goes up to 94%. The impact on the UFS’s students was the lowest at 18%. The average was 81%. At least a quarter of students in all schools report a negative impact on their health, and it goes up to 47% in the worst case. The UFS got 0 (nil) in the category for serious impact.
 
Alumni of the UFS Business School were very satisfied with the school. These results are as follows:
  • Helps keep business knowledge up to date: third (6.5)
  • Provides networking opportunities: first (7.3)
  • Informs about business events: second (8.9)
  • Communicates regularly: first (9.2)
  • Helps access MBA-level jobs: second (6.2)
  • Helps build personal brand: first (5.2)
  • Helps start or grow business: first (5.2)
 

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