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UFS promotes student development through industry visits

07 July 2023 | Story Kekeletso Takang

UFS Industry VisitsUFS Industry Visits - promoting student development — Students from the University of the Free State (UFS) recently had the opportunity to visit four Bloemfontein companies as part of their learning experience in the School of Accountancy.

The University of the Free State (UFS) is committed to producing employable graduates. Being student-centred, the UFS is continuously seeking opportunities to promote the learning experience by taking a holistic approach where teaching and learning extend beyond the four walls of a lecture hall. It is to this end that the UFS School of Accountancy recently took hands with local businesses to expose students to the real world of work through industry visits.

Aimed at providing students with insights into the real world, the industry visits are the initial point of contact between students and the working industry. The approximately 280 students in the Bachelor of Accounting (final-years), Bachelor of Commerce Honours in Accounting, and Postgraduate Diploma in General Accountancy were exposed to the real world so they could see first-hand what professional accountants do, how the business world works, and how their different modules integrate.

Four of Bloemfontein’s largest companies agreed to host a group of 70 students each. Students were given the opportunity to sign up for the company they found most interesting. The companies – Raubex Infra, SA Truck Bodies, Interstate Bus Lines, which sponsored transport to and from all the companies, and Sun Windmill Casino – function in the construction, manufacturing, transportation, and entertainment sectors, respectively. Students were not only treated to talks by the directors and senior staff of all the companies who took time to address them and share insightful information about their operations, but also to tours and treats.

“The updated SAICA competency framework, which guides most of our teaching at the School of Accountancy, requires us to enhance our focus on professional values, attitudes, and acumens (PVAAs). The industrial visits specifically address business acumen, but the added benefit is that it inspires and excites students, as it exposes them to where they may be in future," says Ané Church, Lecturer in the School of Accountancy.

The industry visits were not only fun and tours, but students were also tasked with writing a reflective essay after the visit, setting out what they learnt, found interesting, and would recommend to the respective companies. This, in turn, addressed students’ writing skills and uses reflection as a means of learning.

News Archive

Kovsie community pledge to advance equality and eradicate racism

2015-04-15

Photo: Johan Roux

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Speech by JC van der Merwe

On Monday 13 April 2015, the University of the Free State drew a line in history. Staff and students united in a singular vision: equality.

Since March 2015, the Institute for Reconciliation and Social Justice, together with the SRC, has launched the No-to-Racism/Yes-to-Equality Campaign across all three campuses with tremendous success. This campaign has now reached a high point at which the Kovsie community pledge their commitment to entrenching a culture of equality at the university. The first pledge ceremony took place on 13 April 2015 at the Bloemfontein Campus. Kovsies thronged to place their inked thumbprints on pledge posters in an inspirational show of solidarity.

“The key to transformation,” Prof Jonathan Jansen, Vice-Chancellor and Rector of the UFS, said, “is putting yourself in the shoes of the other person.” When you look past yourself and acknowledge others’ experiences, the world starts to look different. A pledge, Prof Jansen continued, is a solemn promise – not only to stop bad behaviour, but to go forward resolutely with good behaviour. “You do not change a campus, you do not change a country, without being courageous,” Prof Jansen said.

The message from Mosa Leteane, President of the Student Representative Council (SRC), echoed the same belief. “Today,” Leteane said, “the UFS takes a bold and courageous step toward equality.” This new generation, which includes young people from all races, has started a new revolution. A generation that says no to discrimination and yes to equality. “We cannot afford to be ignorant or indifferent,” Leteane urged.

The remaining two campuses will also have an opportunity to publically pledge their support on the following days:
Qwaqwa Campus: Wednesday 15 April 2015
South Campus: Friday 17 April 2015

To enable the university to go beyond dialogues and consultation towards active decision-making, a University Assembly will be held on Tuesday 28 April 2015. The assembly will serve as a space for critical engagement among all university stakeholders to focus on issues such as symbols, policies, practices, and curriculum. Staff and students are encouraged to submit matters for discussion to JC van der Merwe (vdmjc@ufs.ac.za) before 22 April 2015.

The No-to-Racism/Yes-to-Equality Campaign is aligned with the declaration made by the UFS Council in November 2014, in which it states that “the Council of the University of the Free State believes very strongly in the human dignity, equality, and freedom of all people.”

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