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22 November 2024 | Story Lunga Luthuli | Photo Supplied
International Audit Week 2024
UFS students at Coventry University’s International Audit Week, marking a historic first for South African and Global South universities participating in this prestigious global accountancy gathering.

In a significant first for any university in South Africa and the Global South, five students from the University of the Free State (UFS) participated in Coventry University’s prestigious International Audit Week (IAW). This global gathering of top accountancy students from various countries took place from 28 to 30 October 2024 in England.

The UFS School of Accountancy earned the invitation through a Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) project initiated earlier this year. Prof Frans Prinsloo, Vice-Dean for Learning, Teaching, Innovation, and Digitalisation in the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, said, “Our participation signifies a major step in our internationalisation strategy. We were the first university from the Global South to attend, showcasing our students’ exceptional skills and fostering global collaboration.”

Trailblazing students

The selected students – Charlene Black, Twisiso Mathonsi, Heike de Nysschen, Charlize Oosthuizen, and Boitumelo Radebe – are among the top performers in the Postgraduate Programmes in Chartered Accountancy (PGCA). These future chartered accountants were chosen based on their stellar mid-year results, as final marks were unavailable before the trip.

Black expressed her excitement, stating, “Being selected to represent UFS at such a prestigious event was a tremendous privilege. It reinforced my decision to pursue the CA(SA) qualification and inspired me to make impactful contributions to the profession.”

Mathonsi, equally thrilled, reflected on the significance of the experience, saying, “Attending IAW was a dream come true. It validated my hard work and gave me a unique opportunity to engage with global perspectives on auditing.”

International insights and learnings

The week’s highlights included interactive sessions and industry tours. Black found the visit to Morgan Motors particularly inspiring, noting, “Witnessing their manufacturing process and reliance on paper-based job cards was fascinating. It was a reminder of the diverse practices within industries globally.”

Mathonsi recalled the collaborative activities, particularly a group project at Shakespeare’s birthplace. “It was both fun and insightful, emphasising teamwork across cultural and linguistic differences,” he said.

The students were exposed to cutting-edge developments in auditing, including the integration of artificial intelligence. These insights deepened their understanding of global industry trends and standards, such as the IFRS Foundation Standards and International Standards of Auditing, and highlighted differences in professional qualifications and practices between South Africa and the UK.

Sponsorship and support

This historic participation was made possible by the generosity of sponsors, who contributed over R250,000. The Raubex Group led with R150,000, followed by Rain Chartered Accountants (R50,000), Core Bloemfontein (R20,000 and K-Way jackets), the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (R20,000), and Interstate Bus Lines (R10,000).

Prof Prinsloo emphasised the importance of such collaborations: “Our visionary sponsors recognised the immense benefits of this initiative for our students. Their support underscores the value they place on nurturing future leaders.”

Global impact and future plans

The experience not only elevated the students’ aspirations but also boosted the UFS’s international reputation. “Our students’ technical competence often surpassed that of their peers, cementing UFS as a global player in accountancy education,” Prof Prinsloo noted.

Looking ahead, the School of Accountancy plans to expand its international partnerships and aims to host the International Audit Week in Bloemfontein by 2026. For Mathonsi, the advice to future students is clear: “Work hard even when no one is watching; dedication always pays off.”

The UFS delegation’s success at IAW exemplifies the university’s commitment to excellence, global engagement, and producing graduates poised to make a difference on international and local platforms.

News Archive

UFS the only university in South Africa with a P-rated history researcher
2016-12-13

Description: Dr Daniel Spence  Tags: Dr Daniel Spence  

Dr Daniel Spence has been earmarked by the NRF
to become a future international leader in his field
of expertise.
Photo: Supplied

The University of the Free State (UFS) is the only university in South Africa with a P-rated History researcher. Dr Daniel Spence, a postdoctoral Research Fellow at the International Studies Group (IGS), and a member of the Vice-Chancellor’s Prestige Scholar’s Programme at the UFS, was last week awarded a National Research Foundation P-rating by the National Research Foundation (NRF). Dr Spence is the first South African historian to achieve this honour.

Leader of the pack
P-ratings are given to young researchers, usually under the age of 35, who have the potential to become leaders in their field. Researchers in this group are recognised by all, or the overwhelming majority of, reviewers as having demonstrated the potential to become future international leaders.

The rating is awarded on the basis of exceptional research performance and output from their doctoral and early postdoctoral research careers.

Other researchers from the UFS who obtained P-ratings in the past, are Prof Lodewyk Kock (1986), Prof Zakkie Pretorius (1989), and Prof Robert Schall (1991).

Extraordinary achievement lauded  
“It is an extraordinary achievement. There are fewer P-ratings, than there are A-ratings,” said Prof Neil Roos, associate professor at the ISG. Prof Roos said the P-rating was seldom awarded to researchers within the field of Humanities.

As a member of the ISG, Dr Spence’s research has flourished under the guidance of Prof Ian Phimister. Much of the success of this group is due to the way it operates as an incubator for high-level research, with scholars collaborating with each other.

In addition to Dr Spence’s magnificent P-rating, the ISG currently has three C1-rated researchers (established researchers with a sustained recent record of productivity in their field) and two Y1-rated researchers (researchers 40 years old or younger, who are recognised by all reviewers as having the potential to establish themselves as future leaders in their fields).

“From the time Dr Spence wrote his doctoral thesis on the colonial history of the Royal Navy, he has expanded his field of expertise so that he can address imperial and global histories of race,” said Prof Roos.

Demonstrated research excellence

Dr Spence secured a postdoctoral Research Fellowship at the UFS to develop an African case study to augment his Asian and Caribbean research thesis into a monograph. In March 2013, Dr Spence won a three-year NRF Postdoctoral Innovation Scholarship, and learned Kiswahili ahead of archival research in Kenya and Tanzania from April to May of that year. He has conducted archival and oral research in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Australia, Kenya, Zanzibar, the Cayman Islands, Trinidad, and the UK.

Internationally renowned
Dr Spence is the author of two monographies, the Colonial Naval culture and British imperialism, 1922-67 and A History of the Royal Navy: Empire and Imperialism. He has been invited to present papers and chair panels at over 20 international conferences, workshops and seminars.

The NRF rating system is a benchmarking system through which individuals who exemplify the highest standards of research, as well as those demonstrating strong potential as researchers, are identified by an extensive network of South African and international peer reviewers.

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