Latest News Archive

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

#YouthMonth: UFS makes strides in youth career development

30 June 2023 | Story Valentino Ndaba | Photo Supplied

CareerHub: connecting UFS students to dream jobs

In response to the alarming rate of unemployment facing South Africa's young population, the government has launched various youth development and empowerment projects as part of the Presidential Youth Employment Intervention, aiming to encourage greater youth participation in the economy.

To combat the high rate of graduate unemployment, the University of the Free State (UFS) Career Services in the Division of Student Affairs plans to launch the CareerHub on 3 July 2023. CareerHub is an innovative job portal aimed at revolutionising the job search process and connecting employers with highly qualified UFS candidates. The platform boasts a wide range of opportunities, collaborates with reputable companies, offers advanced search filters, and enables employers to create detailed company profiles to attract top talent. Job seekers can personalise their search criteria and set preferences to streamline their job search.

UFS Youth Month campaign

Highlighting the positive impact of the UFS in youth career development, the institution's Department of Communication and Marketing launched a campaign in June 2023 aimed at showcasing the success stories of alumni who have studied at the university and are now employed by the institution.

One such success story is Katleho Lechoo, who joined the UFS as an undergraduate student and is now a football administrator in KovsieSport. Lechoo's journey exemplifies his commitment to excellence, having served as the President of the Institutional Student Representative Council during his time as a student. Reflecting on his experiences, Lechoo expressed gratitude for the opportunities to contribute positively and to make a difference in the UFS community.

“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 for 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’,” said Lechoo.

Annelize Kruger shared Lechoo’s sentiments. Kruger graduated in 2020 with a Master of Science in Occupational Therapy and now serves as a lecturer in the Department of Occupational Therapy. She credits the UFS for providing her with a solid foundation to excel in her profession and to contribute to the training of future occupational therapists.

Maximising impact through the SDG lens

The introduction of CareerHub aligns with the UFS' Vision 130 strategy, which aims to maximise societal impact and contribute to the development of the Free State and South Africa. The platform addresses a pressing local issue – youth unemployment – by leveraging the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a framework for assessing societal impact.

SDG Goal eight, focusing on Decent Work and Economic Growth, highlights the importance of providing young people with opportunities for decent jobs. This involves investing in quality education and training, matching skills with market demands, ensuring social protection and basic services, and promoting equal opportunities for productive employment, irrespective of gender, income level, or socio-economic background.

WATCH: UFS ends Youth Month on a high note with a performance from the 1992 film Sarafina!

News Archive

Doll parent project exposes learners to real-life issues of responsible reproductive health

2016-11-01

Description: Doll parent project Tags: Doll parent project

Princess Gaboilelwe Motshabi,
Princess Gabo Foundation, Maki Lesia,
School of Nursing, Zenzele Mdletshe,
Internationalisation office, Masters of
Education students from Rutgers University
and study leader.

With the alarming rate of teenage pregnancies in secondary schools, a concerned teacher approached University of the Free State (UFS) School of Nursing in 2013, and in 2015, the Reproductive Health Education Project (RRHEP) was established in collaboration with fourth-year Midwifery students, the Princess Gabo Foundation and the UFS Community Engagement Directorate.

Empowering learners to make responsible reproductive health choices was the primary objective, which got final-year nursing students involved in the Doll-Parenting Project as part of their Service Learning Module. To simulate parenting, boys and girls in Grade Eight were given dolls to take care of as their “baby” for a given period of time. After an information session with parents and guardians, the project took off at Moroka High School in Thaba Nchu and Lekhulong High School in Mangaung. The Princess Gabo Foundation, an NGO operating in the Thaba Nchu community, which supports maternal health programmes, provided the dolls, kangaroo wraps, and diaries in which learners recorded their daily experiences of caring for a baby.

Teen parenting – a challenging experience

Learners were required to calculate how much it would cost to care for a baby, the cost of buying nappies, formula milk (if not breast feeding), doctor’s visits, and medicine. The project was supported by teachers in various subject classes, and learners were encouraged to express themselves through writing of poems or essays about how it feels to be a teen parent.

Dr Delene Botha, lecturer at the School of Nursing, said there was a need to establish a sustainable research project that would attract funding. By adding some of the missing components and drawing on other disciplines such as Sociology and Psychiatry, the project was expected to be extended to meet the needs of other stakeholders including teachers, parents and the community at large.

With cellphones and data provided by the Community Engagement office, the “parenting practice” involved receiving SMS messages from nursing students during odd times of the day to remind them about the needs of the baby; such as wet nappies, the “baby” not feeling well and to be soothed.

Sensitising learners yields success

In evaluating their performance, appointed “police learners” became the eyes and ears of the community to observe and report on how “parents” treated their “babies”. Statements from participants and feedback showed Incidences of negligence and the feeling of embarrassment from being a teen parent. The report indicated that learners felt that having a baby while still at school was not a good idea. The project concluded with a debate on the subject.

As part of the programme, a group of postgraduate Education students from Rutgers University in the US, visited Chief Moroka High School and received first-hand information from their interaction with the learners from which they created digital stories of their Community Engagement experience and took these back with them.

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