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21 April 2022 | Story Lunga Luthuli | Photo Supplied
Lizandré Mulder
Lizandré Mulder, University of the Free State LLB graduate, does not believe in having a role model, but in striving to be a better version of herself.

Moving from Jansenville – a town outside Uitenhage – to Bloemfontein for her LLB studies, things got off to a shaky start for Lizandré Mulder. New in a ‘big town’, the ‘country girl’ felt out of her element and not used to big-city life. Thanks to her lecturers, the journey to a legal qualification at the University of the Free State (UFS) ended with an average final-year mark of 80% for the Law graduate.

Back in Jansenville, Lizandré’s neighbour nicknamed her ‘klein prokureurtjie (little lawyer)’ as she was growing up, because she had a ‘habit of arguing’, which motivated her to choose law as a career. She says, “arguing with facts earlier, has turned into a passion”. “The competitive side of me always wants to win; I guess that makes me the perfect candidate for a future advocate,” she says.

Managing undergraduate studies, Lizandré – who is also an accomplished athlete – says all she did was study and train. “The only thing I struggled with was my sleeping schedule, as I was constantly tired from hard training, and I studied till the morning hours while I had to wake up again early for morning training.”

The track, field, and cross-country runner has received numerous national medals for the sport and will unfortunately miss the invitation to the annual Excellence Awards in the Faculty of Law, as she will be competing in this year’s South African Athletics Championships in Cape Town on 22 April 2022.

Graduating with the LLB degree, Lizandré plans to finish her master’s degree with a possible topic on the legality of human gene editing in South Africa for the purposes of disease treatment or the prevention thereof.

Lizandré does not believe in having a role model, but to “always try to better myself in every aspect of life. I always believed that true inspiration and motivation come from within”.

After completing her master’s degree, Lizandré will decide on her future career path. She says: “I am still deciding whether I want to remain in Bloemfontein or relocate to Potchefstroom, as the latter has a law firm specialising in medical negligence, a field I would like to specialise in. Besides this, the two cities also boast the best athletics coaches in DB Prinsloo, Head of KovsieSport, and Jean Verster in Potchefstroom has mentored South African award-winning runner, Caster Semenya.

“Somewhere in the future, I definitely also plan on doing my doctoral degree in Law,” says Lizandré.

News Archive

Winter Graduation spreads a glow of pride
2014-07-03

 

The 2014 Winter Graduation spread a glow of pride across our Bloemfontein Campus.

During the first session on Wednesday 2 July, the School of Open Learning conferred 612 diplomas and certificates.

Hazel Motsoeneng, District Director of Motheo in the Department of Education in the Free State, offered a powerful message to the graduates. “Teaching today is about reaching learners. The world of the future will not be changed because of the money you made, or the car you drove. The world of the future will be changed because you touched a child’s life.”

She reminded the graduates that “teaching is still a labour of love.”

Stafford Masie, the former general manager of Google South Africa, addressed 473 graduands on day two of the graduation ceremony.

“If you want to grow as an individual, realise that there are more people outside your immediate environment than inside that can help make you a better person. Take the opportunity and get exposed,” Masie said.

He added a few bits of advice:
• Be unique, don’t just follow others’ creations.
• The focus is no longer on me, me, me, but on we, we, we.
• You have the opportunity and the skills set. Don't just do things, do great things.
• True innovation happens when people are having fun.
• Work on stuff that really matters.

Prof Jonathan Jansen, Vice-Chancellor and Rector of the UFS, conveyed a special message to the graduates. “Getting a higher degree comes with high expectations of who you are and how you conduct yourself. A higher degree at Kovsies means that you are a better person, not only because you received a qualification, but also because of your human capacity to love and embrace.” 




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