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Unombuzo? Tloho o tlo botsa adviser ya hao

23 July 2024 | Story Teboho Mositi | Photo Yonela Vimba

Academic Advising Office 2024 — Bongumusa Zwane, one of the academic advisers, giving advice to students.

The Academic Advising Office in the Centre for Teaching and Learning (CTL) on the University of the Free State (UFS) Qwaqwa Campus hosted an Academic Advising activation under the theme: Unombuzo? Tloho o tlo botsa adviser ya hao for undergraduate students on 12 July 2024 in preparation for the second semester.

The event was aimed at assisting students to reach their full potential and strive for academic success. It marked the starting point for students to prepare for the second semester of their academic year in stride.

Increase student use of academic advising services

CTL aims to advance evidence-based innovation that promotes excellence in learning and teaching for student access with success.

The objective of the activation was to increase the visibility of academic advising on the Qwaqwa Campus. The goal was also to increase students’ use of the various general academic advising services. The Advising Office noticed that not many students attended general advising sessions in the last semester, which inspired the activation as well as the introduction of the newly appointed transition advisers.

The Advising Office urges students to attend time management and study strategy sessions. The office also assists students in collaboration with the faculties, Student Counselling and Development, residences, the No Student Hungry office, Career Services, and other stakeholders at the university.

Success of the event

The event was a great success, as 120 students showed up and had the opportunity to speak face to face to the advisers. Alongside the advisers, a curriculum adviser from the Faculty of The Humanities, representatives from University Estates, the CTL office, and Transition Development and Success were in attendance.

The advising team was able to introduce advising to students, listen to their concerns, and provide short general advising opportunities. Students were treated to some goodies at the event and were given a chance to enter a competition through a survey, which will result in four lucky students winning exciting prizes. Students had a great time, taking pictures, videos, and dancing to the music at the venue.

If students missed this opportunity, there will be more opportunities to meet the team through advising pop-ups:

• 26 July 2024 – Dining Hall

• 2 August 2024 – UFS Taxi Rank

• 16 August – Outside Fulufhelo Residence

• 13 September – Notice boards near the Intsika Building

Where to find your advisers

• Intsika Building, Ground Floor, Offices: 0030, 0043, 0044

• Email address: AdvisingQQ@ufs.ac.za

The activation’s objectives were to

• increase the visibility of academic advising on campus;

• increase student use of academic advising services;

• make students aware of the services offered by Academic Advising; and

• share different ways with students to connect with the advising team and how to set up appointments with their advisers.

News Archive

Expansion to Physics building officially opened on Bloemfontein Campus

2016-05-06

The newly-opened addition to the Physics Building on the Bloemfontein Campus.
Photo: Charl Devenish

An extension to the Department of Physics at the University of the Free State (UFS) was officially opened on the Bloemfontein Campus on 20 April 2016.

“This started off about five years ago when we were talking about not having enough room for large classes. Prof Matie Hoffman suggested that we build a large lecture room on our parking space,” said Prof Hendrik Swart, Professor in the Department of Physics as he addressed guests at the official opening ceremony.

“A year later, we received a Sarchi Research Chair [South African Research Chairs Initiative] on Advanced and Luminescent Materials. We needed more office and laboratory space. The two ideas were combined and presented to the university’s senior management,” he added.

When the university was founded in 1904, Prof James Lyle was appointed to head up the Physics and Chemistry departments. Five years later, a single room was allocated for the Physics laboratory in the main building upon its completion. In 1947, the old Physics building was designed and constructed. Fast forward 69 years, the department has reached another milestone. Facilities accommodated by the expansion include a new telescope for astrophysics experiments, a basement for storing old equipment, as well as a sliding trap door which allows heavy goods to be elevated into the building from the ground floor. The telescope is one of the many unique features of the building given its capacity to expose graduate students to the basic techniques of radio astronomy, especially in light of the fact that the SKA (Square Kilometre Array) project which is in progress.

“Our department is extremely strong at this stage, and a bright future lies ahead,” said Prof Koos Terblans, the Head of Department. The opening also served to celebrate the 103 publications achieved by the department last year.

Dr Lis Lange, Vice-Rector: Academic is proud of the heights reached by the department to date. “The Department of Physics is undoubtedly one of the jewels in the crown of our university, and we are very proud of its developments. Universities are built on legacies, and they are also about change, which is what this department has been demonstrating.”

The expansions to the building with its top-class facilities, was constructed at a cost of R25 million – an infrastructure grant courtesy of the Department of Higher Education and Training.

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