Latest News Archive

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

Talented UFS students attract potential employers to career fairs

16 March 2023 | Story Lunga Luthuli | Photo Sonia Small

UFS Career Fair — University of the Free State students listening attentively and taking tips to help them navigate growth in their chosen careers during the Career Fair held in the Callie Human Hall on the Bloemfontein Campus.

For the first time since 2020, we saw the return of in-person career fairs to the University of the Free State (UFS). The fair was presented in the Callie Human Hall on the Bloemfontein Campus for companies looking to recruit university talent and selling themselves to top institutional talent on offer.

During the career fair, Career Services invites companies to interact and share information with students without the added pressure of an actual application, interview, and recruitment process.

Belinda Janeke, Head: Career Services in the Division of Student Affairs, said: “Companies jump at the opportunity to sell themselves to top talent, and are always eager to share information with students and to answer burning questions about position requirements and prospects.”

Janeke said the first of four career fairs planned for the year emphasised local opportunities and talent. The Career Services Office encourages students to explore the excellent career opportunities available in South Africa and the Free State and promotes local talent to potential employers.

All the sessions presented at the UFS Career Fair are recorded for on-demand viewing on the UFS website. The career weeks are hybrid events, with the option to attend online or in person. Janeke said Career Services also visits the Qwaqwa Campus every semester for face-to-face engagements with students.

“Career fairs are common practice for educational institutions globally, and during the COVID-19 lockdown, such events were not possible. We are excited to be hosting a physical fair again, and this made us realise that students have a need to meet potential employers in a physical setting to ask questions that may not always be appropriate for discussion in an interview,” added Janeke.

Janeke said students can look forward to the SAGEA Virtual GradExpo in May, July, and August and the AgriCareerConnect, which usually generates a lot of interest among students. Janeke said, “This year’s AgriCareerConnect will focus on animal science, horticulture and crop sciences, and integrated disciplines.”

Other career week and career fair dates to look forward to include:

Faculty of Law: Career Week 22 March-24 March 2023 and Career Fair on 23 March 2023

Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences: Career Week 2 May-5 May 2023 and Career Fair on 4 May 2023

Faculty of Education: Career Fair on 24 July 2023

Faculty of the Humanities: Career Week 31 July-4 August and General Career Fair on 3 August 2023

Faculty of Theology and Religion: Career Fair on 16 August 2023

Pictured second and third from the right are Career Service’s Yolisa Xatasi, Administrative Assistant, and Nobesuthu Sonti, Senior Student Relations Officer, in a jovial mood with career ambassadors – a reminder of the value of face-to-face gatherings after the Career Fair has been hosted virtually for the past two years.
(Photo: Sonia Small)

News Archive

Renowned forensic scientist speaks at the UFS

2014-04-02

Forensic science is about the truth. At the presentation delivered by Dr David Klatzow, were, from the left: Tinus Viljoen, lecturer in Forensic Genetics, Dr Klatzow and Laura Heathfield, also a lecturer in Forensic Genetics.
Photo: Leonie Bolleurs

It is necessary for more research to be done in the field of forensic science in South Africa. This is according to Dr David Klatzow, well-known forensic scientist, during a lecture delivered at the University of the Free State (UFS) last week.

The university is offering, for the first time this year, a BSc degree in Forensic Science in the Department of Genetics. This three-year degree is, among others, directed at people working for the South African Police Service on crime scenes and on criminal cases in forensic laboratories. Students can also study up to PhD level, specialising in various forensic fields.

There is no accredited forensic laboratory in South Africa. “It is time to look differently at forensic science, and to deliver research papers on the subject. In light of the manner in which science is applied, we have to look differently at everything,” Dr Klatzow said.

Dr Klatzow praised the university for its chemistry-based course. “Chemistry is a strong basis for forensic science,” he said.

A paradigm shift in terms of forensic science is needed. Micro scratches on bullets, fingerprints, DNA, bite marks – all of these are forensic evidence that in the past led to people being wrongfully hanged. This evidence is not necessarily the alpha and omega of forensic science today. DNA, which seems to be the golden rule, can produce problems in itself. Because a person leaves DNA in his fingerprint, it is possible that DNA is transferred from one crime scene to another by forensic experts dusting for fingerprints. According to Dr Klatzow, this is only one of the problems that could be experienced with DNA evidence.

“No single set of forensic evidence is 100% effective or without problems. Rather approach the crime scene through a combination of evidence, by collecting fingerprints, DNA, etc. It is also very important to look at the context in which the events happened.

“A person sees what he expects to see. This causes huge problems in terms of forensic science. For example, if a criminal fits the profile of the perpetrator, it doesn’t follow that this specific criminal is the culprit. It isn’t what we don’t know that gives us trouble, it’s what we know that isn’t so,” Dr Klatzow said.

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