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A bright future beckons as UFS student joins Fulbright Programme

17 July 2023 | Story NONSINDISO QWABE | Photo Supplied

Buhle Hlatshwayo, a master’s student on the UFS Qwaqwa Campus, has been selected for the 2023 Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) programme. Despite initially doubting herself, she took a leap of faith and applied for the programme, which turned out to be a successful decision. The Fulbright Programme is a prestigious scholarship programme that provides opportunities for international educational exchanges. The programme’s overarching aim is to enhance intercultural relations across more than 160 countries.

Hlatshwayo will be teaching isiZulu at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, for an academic year. She leaves South Africa at the end of July.

Hlatshwayo is currently pursuing her Master of Arts with specialisation in English on the UFS Qwaqwa Campus, where she also completed her undergraduate and honours degrees in the same field. Her research focuses on East African Arab migration narratives to the Global North, with a focus on exploring the legacies of colonialism. She is also a learning facilitator in the same department.

A prestigious opportunity

A friend and colleague, Mxolisi Mabaso, encouraged her to apply, knowing her desire to explore opportunities abroad.

“I am still in awe of how this opportunity came about, especially because someone else saw potential in me while I didn’t believe in myself. My good friend pushed me to apply, because he knew I always wanted the opportunity to go abroad. I am thrilled and honoured to be part of this prestigious programme. I am looking forward to experiencing the US culture and ways of being.”

On her love for English, Hlatshwayo said she has always been fond of the subject but never considered it as a potential career path. After completing her undergraduate degree, Dr Kudzayi Ngara, a Senior Lecturer in the Department of English on the Qwaqwa Campus, encouraged her to pursue an honour’s degree in English, which ultimately shaped her academic journey.

Professional and personal growth awaits

While in the US, Hlatshwayo said she is looking forward to immersing herself in American culture and pursuing courses in American studies. She aims to learn more about diverse cultural backgrounds and share her South African heritage and cultural values with the international community. She said this exchange of experiences and ideas will broaden her horizons and contribute to her academic and professional development.

“The opportunities would not present themselves if you were not capable. If you know your goals, seize any opportunity that will enable you to get there. I was not granted this opportunity because I’m smarter than everyone else, but because of how I articulated my genuine motivations with future goals and how the Fulbright programme will help me achieve them,” she said.

News Archive

Splendid Summer Graduation concludes 2014 ceremonies

2014-12-11

Photo Gallery Afternoon session; Morning session
YouTube

On Thursday 11 December 2014, the university awarded a total of 392 qualifications during our Summer Graduation Ceremony in the Callie Human Centre on the Bloemfontein Campus. Of these, 225 were awarded to graduates from the Faculty of Health Sciences, while 134 master’s degrees and 33 PhDs were awarded in the other six faculties. Another 74 diplomas and 56 certificates were also awarded in the School for Open Learning.

Well-known radio personality, Redi Thlabi, and acclaimed cardiothoracic surgeon, Dr Susan Vosloo, encouraged and inspired the graduates during the two ceremonies on the day.

During the morning session, Thlabi imparted some of the valuable lessons she learned in her personal life as well as in her career. She encouraged graduates to change the script of our country for future generations, to be mindful of others and to find meaning in whatever you do.

“Those who have a platform, a voice and an education have the power to help others further on their journey,” Thlabi said. “I believe we are living in an exciting time – a time to leave a legacy behind, a time to make a mark in this world.”

Graduates from the Faculty of Health Sciences and the School for Open Learning were addressed by Dr Vosloo during the second ceremony.

Dr Vosloo often referred to the success of transformation at our university and added that few successes are achieved without adversity. She encouraged the afternoon’s graduates to become professionals with a high sense of dignity, accountability and transparency in their workplace.

“Remember that you and you alone are able to decide what your approach will be in anything in life from here on forward,” she said.

Dr Vosloo, a Kovsie alumnus, graduated in 1980. Shortly after this, she became the first female heart surgeon in South Africa. She is currently in independent private practice at Christiaan Barnard Memorial Hospital, having also worked from 1998 untill 2012 at the Vincent Pallotti Hospital in Cape Town.

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