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12 May 2021 | Story Ilze Bakkes

The COVID-19 outbreak in South Africa and the subsequent national lockdown severely impacted the usual physical open day mass-marketing tactic. At the same time, it provided an opportunity for the Department of Student Recruitment Services (SRS) to be super creative and agile in promoting the UFS offerings to the target audiences. 

Once a year, the UFS invites prospective learners and parents to visit our campuses for a taste of campus life. But for many interested students, especially those living remotely or abroad, a site visit is not always practical. Furthermore, the 2021 open days on the Bloemfontein and Qwaqwa Campuses were again cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2020 Virtual Open Day proved that breaking from the traditional recruitment tactics and moving into the virtual domain was not only bold and innovative, but also offered more engagement and communication opportunities with prospective students. Building on the insights and success of COVID-19 response engagements, the Department of Student Recruitment Services has once again developed an immersive virtual experience for prospective students. 

Ilze Bakkes, Chief Officer: Integrated Marketing and Innovation from the Department of Student Recruitment Services, says: “We listened to the needs and wants of our prospective students and staff. Therefore, the 2021 Virtual Expo will have undergraduate, postgraduate, and international student recruitment foci, offering more and relevant information in a visual, multi-layered, and digital way.” Information is presented through videos, photos, downloadable PDF brochures, and links to marketing material and the online application platform. 

A challenge during the physical open day is the lack of time to engage with faculties or that not all the information could be obtained. The Virtual Expo is live now click here and can be visited until 30 September 2021, when applications to study undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in 2022 close. The Virtual Expo offers a professional, easy-to-navigate and hassle-free digital experience of the academic, social, and cultural life at the UFS on all three campuses – in the convenience of the visitor’s own space and time. Subtexts for videos enable differently abled visitors to enjoy the content, and data-sensitive visitors can download the PDF versions of videos. 

Applications to study in 2022 are already open. To apply, click here (link to online application). For important closing dates, download the UFS Undergraduate Prospectus

For information on the Virtual Expo, contact Ilze Bakkes at +27 51 401 9028 or bakkese@ufs.ac.za.

News Archive

UFS becomes Varsity Netball champions – again
2014-10-21



Photo: Catherine Kotze, SASPA
Kovsies has become the first team to successfully defend the Varstiy Netball title when they beat Tuks 49-42 in the 2014 final in Pretoria on Monday 20 October.

University of Pretoria (Tuks) might have been unbeaten for the entire 2014 tournament, but this did not hinder Kovsies in becoming the Varsity Netball champions for a second consecutive time.

From the outset, both these furiously focused teams fought hard and only after ample turnovers could Kovsies finally manage to open the score board.

The Mostert sisters, Karla and Tanya, won a couple of crucial balls, leaving the UFS dominating possession in the opening exchanges.

When Tuks eventually got to scoring, they could not stop the UFS from rushing to a 9-3 lead after the first ten minutes. The visitors had established a 13-5 advantage by the first break, keeping the Pretoria crowd quiet.

The home side came back shooting in the second quarter with great determination, fighting their way back into the game. Tuks ran hard, needing to work hard against Kovsies, who still managed to be in the lead with 22-16 at half-time.

Kovsies made good use of their power play early in the third quarter to stretch their lead further to 30-22. They made the most of their opportunities, going into the final quarter with a 39-31 upper hand.

Even though Tuks made a couple of changes during the final break, they could not avoid defeat in the end.

Kovsies’ Lauren-Lee Christians was also the player of the match, while the champion’s captain, Karla Mostert, was announced as the Player of the Tournament.

This hard-working defender made a number of crucial interventions alongside her sister Tanya in the final. Karla proved that she was the fans’ tournament favorite, claiming the most votes and winning a Samsung S4.

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