Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items

#YouthMonth: Celebrating youth empowerment (Katleho Lechoo)

27 June 2023 Photo Kaleidoscope Studios

The University of the Free State (UFS) is celebrating Youth Month by showcasing the positive influence of the institution on career development. As part of this initiative, we are sharing the stories of UFS alumni who are now working at the university.

Katleho Lechoo, Football Administrator at Kovsie Sport, shares his UFS journey:

Q: Year of graduation from the UFS:

A: 2019, 2020.

Q: Qualification obtained from the UFS:

A: Bachelor of Political Sciences and a Postgraduate Diploma in Theology.

Q: Date of joining the UFS as a staff member:

A: 2021.

Q: Initial job title and current job title:

A: Then: Student Reach Assistant, International Office. Now: Football Administrator, Kovsie Sport.

Q: How did the UFS prepare you for the professional world?

A: The UFS offers great support and networking systems, allowing you to gel in the world of employment and ups and downs without any fear. It further allows you to tap into a space of intellectuals and experts in different fields, who are more than ready and willing to step in and guide you throughout the process. This can only be enabled if you are willing to engage throughout the time spent.

Q: What are your thoughts on transitioning from a UFS alumnus to a staff member?

A: The transition, like any other workplace or environment, has its challenges and bearing. Plus, you get an idea of what the university is like. Unlike being a student – there is little pressure compared to the pressure you would get as a staff member. So, the best thing to do is to prepare yourself. Accept that environments change, and you are here to work to the best of your ability and deliver results as expected.

Q: Any additional comments about your experience?

A: I was recently elected as the youngest Institutional Forum member at the University of the Free State. A position I look at and remind myself that, apart from my ordinary position at the university, I also have an opportunity to contribute and influence the space positively and otherwise to its benefit. I wake up knowing that I have yet another day to do good unto others as I would expect from them. And to sum up my experience thus far? As Roy T Bennett simply puts it: “Be thankful for everything that happens in your life; it’s all an experience.”

News Archive

An article, co-authored by Kovsies’ own Miss World, Rolene Strauss, was published recently in a medical journal

2015-02-23

Rolene Strauss

The article, which deals with research on the incidence of multiple losses by children, was published in South African Family Practice.

The study was part of the third-year research project for medical students in our Faculty of Health Sciences. Rolene worked with fellow students, Leischen Branders, Mirandie Claassen, Darienne Saaiman, and Andrea van Staden. Prof Gina Joubert from the UFS’s Department of Biostatistics and Prof Hanneke Brits were the module and study leaders.

In this study, a number of cases involving Bloemfontein children experiencing loss, as well as their reaction to it, were examined.

They divided the incidents into categories in order to address the broad definition of ‘losses’.

Approximately 69% of the children in the study have experienced three or more instances of loss in their lives. About 29% of the children have experienced loss in the category Personal Loss (assault, chronic and terminal illness, amputation, malnutrition, disability, abortion, and miscarriage). The greatest number of losses occurred in the category Interpersonal Loss (87%). This group of children has had to deal with the death of one or more parents/caregivers, drug and alcohol abuse, domestic violence, divorce, homelessness, and instability. In the category, Environmental Loss, xenophobia, unsafe living conditions, inadequate support, poverty, and unemployment were looked at. A total of 82% of the children in the group have experienced losses.

Prof Hanneke Brits, study leader of the group, says the extent of multiple losses by children is a topic that hasn’t been investigated widely.

“The study shows that children should receive special attention in order to help them process the trauma. Supportive care and inter-professional services play a major role in this regard.”

Back

Economic and Management Sciences

Education

Health Sciences

The Humanities

Law

Natural and Agricultural Sciences

Theology and Religion

Open Distance Learning

Business School

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