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17 February 2022 | Story Lacea Loader | Photo Sonia Small (Kaleidoscope Studios)
Dr Engela van Staden
Dr Engela van Staden, Vice Rector: Academic
The University of the Free State (UFS) has finalised the first part of the Council on Higher Education (CHE) Institutional Audit (IA), submitting its Institutional Self-Evaluation Report (SER) and Portfolio of Evidence (PoE) to the higher education quality assurance body. 

According to Dr Engela van Staden, Vice-Rector: Academic, the second part of the institutional audit will involve the participation of relevant stakeholders in a site visit to the institution. During the visit, scheduled between 9 and 13 May 2022, an external panel of experts will systematically assess the submitted SER and requisite documents by asking inquisitive questions to interviewees who will be participating in this process.  

“The focus will be on the quality of programme offerings with a view to improving student success in all spheres of the student walk – from registration to graduation. To this end, the university’s Integrated Quality Management Framework (IQMF) will be assessed in order to provide evidence that quality assurance is ingrained in the core functions of the UFS, i.e., student success; quality of teaching and research; and engaged scholarship.”

Dr Van Staden says by re-introducing the SER, the university will embark on a stakeholder engagement plan, engaging with staff in faculties, service units, directorates, centres, departments, or schools, to keep them informed and prepared for a productive contribution to the Institutional Audit process. 

- The CHE is an independent statutory body established in terms of the provisions of the Higher Education Act No. 101 of 1997, as amended. It advises the Minister responsible for Higher Education and Training and is the national authority for quality assurance and promotion in higher education.

News Archive

Recognition from the United Nations and MACE
2013-11-22

 
The University of the Free State received Excellence and Merit awards for its communication and marketing projects.
From the left is Leatitia Pienaar, editor of Bult magazine, Lacea Loader, Director Strategic Communication, Leonie Bolleurs, editor of Dumela and Ilze Bakkes, UFS Marketer: Publications and Broadcast.
Photo: Sonia Small

The University of the Free State (UFS) was this week recognised by the United Nations (UN), as well as the national association for Marketing, Advancement and Communication in Education (MACE), for its communication and marketing publications and campaigns.

The UFS was named by representatives of the UN to receive a special United Nations Award for a leadership communication campaign called ‘Talk to me’. The award, which forms part of the Golden Awards of the International Public Relations Association (IPRA), is made annually to the campaign that best supports human development in line with the UN objectives.

The UFS also received seven awards from MACE during the Higher and Further Education Excellence Awards. The ‘Talk to me’ campaign was awarded an Excellence Award in the category integrated campaigns and projects; a television campaign on DSTV received an Excellence Award in the broadcasting category. The campaign also received an award as the overall winner in this category. The magazine Bult received a special Excellence Award in the category external publications (as the publication with the highest marks in the history of this award ceremony); the staff newsletter Dumela and a set of student recruitment publications each received a Merit Award in the categories internal newsletters and special publications respectively; and the Open Day campaign received a Merit Award in the category integrated campaigns and projects.

The Excellence Awards form part of the 2013 national MACE congress, which was hosted by the UFS on the Bloemfontein Campus from 18-20 November 2013 and attended by 139 delegates from 25 higher and further education institutions.

“I am extremely proud of the achievements of what is emerging as a truly world-class communications department at the UFS recognised increasingly for achievements nationally and abroad,” says Prof Jonathan Jansen, Vice-Chancellor and Rector of the UFS.

‘Talk to me’, which was implemented in 2010, is a leadership communication campaign that creates a way for staff and students to engage with Prof Jansen. With the campaign, he regularly spends time physically sitting on the university’s three campuses in a predetermined area giving staff and students the opportunity to talk and interact with him. The success of the campaign stems from the fact that it gives him the opportunity to pick up on issues or concerns of the campus community.

“The ‘Talk to me’ campaign is one of the key campaigns of the university’s Human Project, as it projects the scholarship of service and transformation leadership. It is an exceptional honour to be recognised by the UN and to receive this award,” says Lacea Loader, Director: Strategic Communication at the UFS.

“The MACE Higher and Further Education Excellence Awards provide an excellent platform to showcase the many projects and campaigns of the sector, and to receive this kind of recognition from our peers is a tremendous honour for the UFS,” says Loader.


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