Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Previous Archive
17 July 2023 | Story NONSINDISO QWABE | Photo Supplied
Buhle Hlatshwayo
Buhle Hlatshwayo has been selected for the 2023 Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) Programme.

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

What did they learn at Stanford University?
2015-11-04

    

Members of the cohort with the
Vice-Chancellor and Rector of the UFS,
Prof Jonathan Jansen

Every year, since 2012, six second-year Kovsies are selected to take part in the elite Stanford Sophomore College Programme at the prestigious Stanford University in the United States. The University of the Free State and Oxford University are the only non-Stanford members of this exclusive course.

From 31 August to 15 September 2015, Farzaana Adam, Cornel Vermaak, Precious Mokwala, Tristan Van Der Spuy, Anje Venter, and Naushad Mayat undertook a three-week long academic exploration of multidisciplinary topics. These students attended seminars aligned with their respective fields of study from which they accumulated a wealth of knowledge.

This year’s cohort reflects on what they learned at Stanford University:

The significance of analyzing technology

One of the key points gathered by Farzaana Adam from the seminar, ‘Great Ideas in Computer Science’, was the necessity not to approach technology at face value. “Computer science goes beyond the technological products and social networks. By analysing the concepts underlying these technologies, many discoveries which have benefitted many fields of study have been made possible.”

Critical thinking in Arts and Science


“By combining different fields of study, one can obtain a greater perspective on the relevant fields,” said Cornel Vermaak, about what he garnered from a seminar titled ‘An Exploration of Art Materials: An intersection between the Arts and Science’. “This greater perspective enables one to evaluate problems critically,” he added.

Visual media substitutes oral narratives

“We were also taught different ways in which to interpret images, and how images influence society. Photography is a way to tell a story without actually having to say anything,” reflected Precious Mokwala, on ‘Photography: truth or fiction’

A lesson in business economics


Tristan Van Der Spuy received pointers pertaining to the stock exchange market    in ‘A Random Walk Down Wall Street’. “We looked at stock markets, and what influenced the stock prices of multiple companies, taking note of what should be looked at when investing in a company.”

Race relations and representation

‘The New Millenium Mix: Crossings between Race and Culture’ exposed Anje Venter to a global perspective on identity. “We explored the new generation of people that have mixed races and cultures, and how they are depicted in media and art.  We analysed the discrepancies and stereotypes of these depictions through film, novel, and short story studies, as well as through field trips to museums and art exhibitions.”

Overcoming the HIV/AIDS endemic


Naushad Mayat realised that “more teamwork and transparency between governments, chemists, social workers, and clinicians will be required for us to stem the flow [of HIV/AIDS],” in view of what he learned in a seminar on ‘HIV/AIDS: A Response to the AIDS Epidemic in the Bay Area’. “It is a daunting task. For the current generation of youth to tackle this epidemic now, we must stand together and be counted,” he added.



We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept