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UFS Matriculant of the Year competition: A pathway to academic excellence

21 October 2024 | Story Litha Banjatwa | Photo Supplied

Matriculant of the year 2024 — This year’s winner, Jayden Leech (centre), deputy head boy and hockey captain at Grey College.

For more than four decades, the University of the Free State (UFS) has used its annual Matriculant of the Year competition to attract the country’s top matriculants. This prestigious award recognises and celebrates the exceptional achievements of South African high school students who excel in academics, sports, culture, and leadership.

This year’s winner, Jayden Leech, deputy head boy and hockey captain at Grey College, stands out not only for his academic average of 90% but also for his sporting achievements. He has represented South Africa in karate and has been a member of the Free State Hockey and Waterpolo teams for the past three years. Jayden has been selected to pursue a medical degree.

The competition is closely aligned with the UFS’s Vision 130, which envisions a future where academic excellence, innovation, and societal impact are prioritised. “By recognising academic success, creativity, resilience, and leadership potential, the university aims to attract the brightest minds to join its community. This competition serves as a platform to identify and nurture future leaders who will help address South Africa's pressing challenges,” says Nomonde Mbadi, Director of Student Recruitment Services.

This year, the competition attracted 60 applicants, with a strong representation of women - 43 women and 17 men. The Free State province led with 28 entries, followed by North West, KwaZulu-Natal, and Gauteng. Popular fields of study among applicants included Medicine (MBChB), Accounting, Engineering, and Law. While the overall academic average of all entries was an impressive 81%, the top 14 finalists achieved an outstanding average of 85%.

Through a series of interviews and group activities, candidates were assessed on their critical thinking, communication skills, and ability to collaborate effectively. The Matriculant of the Year is ultimately selected for their overall balance, leadership potential, and capacity to serve as an ambassador for the UFS.

The Matriculant of the Year competition reflects the UFS’s commitment to fostering a diverse, inclusive, and equitable learning environment, aligned with the university’s values of social justice and sustainability. “By aligning this competition with Vision 130, we reaffirm the UFS’s dedication to transforming lives, creating opportunities, and shaping the next generation of leaders who will drive societal and economic progress,’’ adds Mbadi.

News Archive

Statement from Prof Jonathan Jansen regarding a misquote about Madiba

2013-04-10

08 April 2013

Comments made by learners who attended the Leadership Summit (pdf)

Prof Jonathan Jansen: Presentation about Great Leaders (pdf)

The news article that first appeared in Volksblad of Monday 8 April 2013 claiming that I wanted Madiba to die, refers.

This is a complete misrepresentation of what I said. My argument was that Madiba had done so much for South Africa, that he had served South Africa well, and that sometimes you just wish that people would leave him alone so that he can pass his final days quietly.

Like all South Africans, I want Madiba to live as long as possible, but without the constant glare and speculation of the media and others. He needs to be left alone to rest and die in peace. That was the content and context of what I said.

To misrepresent a lengthy statement on a talk which was entirely devoted to extolling Madiba’s leadership — alongside that of Luthuli, Ghandi and Martin Luther King Jr (this was the main photograph on the screen) — is mischievous. The seven characteristics of leadership of Mandela, and the other three, were what the one hour and ten minute talk was about — something completely ignored in the misrepresentation.

It is true that I depicted the crises from Marikana to the Catholic Church as crises of leadership and not primarily military or religious blunders.

It is also true that I argued that the official representation of the hospital visits as ‘routine checkups’ was inaccurate for aged people, since at the age of 94 no hospital visit is ‘routine.’ That is what I said.

- Prof Jonathan Jansen, Vice-Chancellor and Rector, University of the Free State

Media Release
08 April 2013
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Director: Strategic Communication
Tel: +27(0)51 401 2584
Cell: +27(0)83 645 2454
E-mail: news@ufs.ac.za

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