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Ups and downs, gains and losses, and an LLB degree later

19 April 2021 | Story NONSINDISO QWABE | Photo Supplied

Tshepang 2_web read more — LLB graduate Tshepang Mahlatsi

‘Be loyal to your calling and the universe will locate you.’ This slogan is the mantra that University of the Free State LLM student, Tshepang Mahlatsi, lives by. It is also this slogan that carried him through a tumultuous journey during the pursuit of his LLB degree, which he received during the Bloemfontein Campus graduation ceremony on 19 April.

Mahlatsi began his LLB degree in 2014, but he had to take a break from his academics in 2016 after being clinically diagnosed with depression. He obtained his qualification in 2020. Mahlatsi said 2016 was a year that started on a high note for him as a third-year Law student and newly elected prime for Tswelopele residence, but quickly took a downward dive when he found himself overwhelmed by leadership demands – coupled with the simultaneous loss of loved ones and constant academic pressure. It ultimately led to a breakdown, forcing him to put his studies on hold. "I am graduating with my LLB after life-changing events in my undergraduate years – from student politics, depression, and PTSD, to starting a mental-health organisation and using both CUADS and Kovsie Counselling support services to come back to ‘normalcy’.”

He said the year-long break from his studies left him feeling discouraged as he watched his peers and classmates progress and graduate. "It was the most difficult thing to do to remind myself that I wasn't stupid."

"This journey exposed a lot about myself; it exposed that with determination and resilience, you can achieve what you set out to achieve. I had to persevere not because I wanted to, but because my family has never seen a graduate. I was doing this for them; to give them something they've never had,” he said.

UFS support services can save lives

Mahlatsi would like more students to make use of the UFS support services and not crumble under mental-health problems. "I hope to inspire students to use their support services and not be ashamed – services such as CUADS and Student Counselling and Development. I hope to inspire student leaders and students to realise that you can be a well-rounded student and still have challenges, but eventually, success awaits us all."

News Archive

First university student from Elzabé Zietsman’s Doilie Foundation chooses Kovsies

2015-01-21

Naledi Dweba and Elzabé Zietsman
Photo: Johan Roux

Naledi Dweba, one of the young people mentored by the well-known singer, Elzabé Zietsman, will become a Kovsie this year.

Although the University of the Free State (UFS) wasn’t the only university to offer Dweba a scholarship, he decided on Kovsies without doubt or further consideration and enrolled for his BMus degree with us. His instrument is the clarinet and Dweba reckons the outstanding Danré Strydom – a lecturer at the UFS’s Odeion School of Music – is the reason why he decided on Kovsies.

“She is a remarkable music teacher,” says Dweba.

Dweba, who only started with music lessons at the age of 15, recently performed his Grade 8 exam. Last year he also obtained a music distinction in matric.

Dweba and Zietsman met four years ago and, as a result of her Doilie Foundation, he now has the opportunity to pursue his dreams as a music student. Zietsman started the foundation in 2012 in order to help talented children.

“I have so many talented young people under my care, but Naledi is the first one to attend university,” Zietsman said at the university’s 2015 first-year’s welcoming on the Bloemfontein Campus.

The Doilie Foundation currently provides for several artistic children – from musicians to ballerinas.

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