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Triple triumph: UFS celebrates three new PhDs in EMS Faculty

09 April 2025 | Story Tshepo Tsotetsi | Photo Supplied

EMS PhDs — Dr Shaun Watson, Prof Philippe Burger, Dr Marese Lombard, and Dr Ambrosé Du Plessis.

As the University of the Free State (UFS) continues to celebrate the achievements of its graduates during the April 2025 graduation ceremonies, three academic staff members from the UFS Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences (EMS) are among those marking a significant milestone with the successful completion of their doctoral degrees.

Prof Philippe Burger, Dean of the EMS Faculty, reflected on the significance of the moment and applauded the trio of new EMS PhD graduates: Dr Shaun Watson, Dr Marese Lombard, and Dr Ambrosé Ray du Plessis.

“For the EMS Faculty to have three staff members obtain a PhD on one day is very special,” Prof Burger said. “These colleagues have grown their standing in the scholarly community and are now, with a PhD in the bag, ready to take on the academic world and the world at large. The EMS Faculty places a high premium on our staff holding a PhD, so we strongly encourage those who are not in possession of a PhD to pursue one.”

Prof Burger added that their achievements not only reflect personal dedication and professional growth but also contribute to the University of the Free State’s Vision 130 goal: to have 75% of academic staff holding doctoral degrees by 2034.

The EMS academics who graduated during the April 2025 ceremonies are:

Dr Shaun Watson: Understanding markets through restatements

Dr Shaun Watson, a senior lecturer in the UFS School of Accountancy since 2006, earned his PhD in Management Accounting with a thesis titled ‘Market Efficiency and Share Price Reaction Following the Retrospective Restatement of Financial Statements of JSE-Listed Companies’. His study analysed how financial restatements affect market behaviour, providing key insights for policymakers and investors navigating emerging markets.

“For me, it was both a personal challenge and a professional goal,” Dr Watson said. “I’d often wondered if I had what it takes to complete a PhD and, as an academic, I saw it as the pinnacle of our field. My wife was the one who told me to ‘Nike – just do it!’ Her belief in me, along with the quiet support of my family, gave me the push I needed to start, and the strength to keep going.”

To those still considering the journey, Watson offered this advice: “Do it for yourself – because if you don’t, you will never finish. It is a demanding journey that requires sacrifice and perseverance, but the reward of discovering something meaningful is worth every moment.”

Dr Marese Lombard: Taxation as a tool for sustainable agriculture

Also from the School of Accountancy, Dr Marese Lombard received her PhD in Taxation. Her research, ‘Taxation as a Method to Promote Sustainable Agriculture in South Africa’, is the first of its kind to offer empirical evidence on how tax provisions could be used to incentivise sustainability in local agriculture.

“I hope to see a conversation regarding policy changes as to how taxation can be used as a positive method to impact sustainability,” Dr Lombard said. “If taxation can be used to further assist our agricultural industry to become more sustainable, it can not only increase our competitive edge but also address the concern of food security.”

Reflecting on her personal growth, she said, “It has taught me that we are more resilient than we think. The challenge of taking on a PhD has made me more open to other ideas and approaches, and more comfortable with criticism – not just in academia, but in life.”

Dr Ambrosé Ray du Plessis: Rethinking the political-administrative divide

From the Department of Public Administration and Management, Dr Ambrosé Ray du Plessis earned his PhD in Public Administration and Management. His thesis, ‘The Political-Administrative Dichotomy in Coalition-Led Metropolitan Municipalities: A South African Perspective’, developed a fresh conceptual framework for understanding the tensions and complexities within coalition-led governance, using the City of Johannesburg as a case study.

“For me, academia is a calling, and I believe that a PhD is an essential stepping stone to be successful in academia,” Dr Du Plessis said. “Being the first in my family to do a PhD motivated me to work harder, as I wanted to inspire those who will come after me.”

Balancing full-time lecturing and doctoral research required immense discipline: “I often had to work at night and over weekends to meet my deadlines… but the emotional and intellectual support from my PhD promoter, Prof Liezel Lues, was central to my success.”

Now, Dr Du Plessis hopes to deepen academic discourse on coalition politics: “My research addresses critical gaps and provides fresh insights into the political-administrative discourse as it can be applied to real-world coalition government problems in South Africa… I hope my work can leave a lasting impact – not only within academia but also in practical applications that benefit society.”

A testament to resilience and purpose

While their research topics differ vastly, all three describe their PhD journeys as transformative, both professionally and personally. From late nights and weekend writing sessions to intense supervision relationships, each story reflects a deeper commitment to scholarship – and to growing the UFS’s intellectual capital.

News Archive

“My time at the UFS was the golden gem of my career”

2016-07-04

Description: Zig Gibson Tags: Zig Gibson

Prof Alan St Clair Gibson
Photo: Oteng Mpete

“My time at the University of the Free State (UFS) was the golden gem of my career. I have worked at medical schools or biomedical research centres in the United Kingdom, United States and at some of the top medical schools in South Africa, but working at the UFS was one of the highlights of my career,” says Prof Alan St Clair Gibson, Head of the UFS School of Medicine.

After spending just over two years at the UFS, Prof St Clair Gibson resigned from the institution in June 2016 and will take up the position of Dean: Health and Human Performance Sciences at the Waikato University in New Zealand in mid-July, where he will assist to establish a new faculty for all the health-science disciplines. “It was a privilege to work at the UFS. I come from a strong research background and wanted to grow research at the university, which I achieved. I came to the UFS because of the Academic and Human Projects and am proud of what has been achieved at the School of Medicine during the time I was here,” he said.

Prof St Clair Gibson highlighted some of these achievements, including the development of a management infrastructure across the disciplines of the school. “The establishment of an executive management committee for the school, as well as research champions in departments, highlighted the importance of proper governance and strategic management. By developing data dashboards, my management team and I could develop an understanding of research income and productivity, how the school works, what the role of teaching and learning is, and how the school could benefit in terms of third-stream income from the many contracts obtained by its academic staff. As a result, contracts and the financial management model of the school have also been reconfigured to the benefit of the university so that the institution and school can benefit from it,” he said.

His strong belief in an open-door policy has made staff feel part of the environment and it has created an atmosphere of equality and inclusivity. He believes in staff development and has, for instance, established leadership and management courses for heads of departments. Another factor to be proud of is the increase in the number of young researchers who recently joined the school, such as Prof Ross Tucker, who is one of the foremost sport scientists in the country. “It is a fact that staff retire or resign in all schools and departments of any university. It is also true that these departures offer opportunities to bring new academic and professional staff into the UFS. In fact, for the first time virtually every department in the School of Medicine now has a full-time Head of Department and 46 new staff were appointed since January 2015,” said Prof St Clair Gibson.

“I am especially proud of contributing, together with the senior leadership of the UFS, to stabilise the relationship with the Free State Department of Health (DoH). With the assistance of these parties, as well as my executive management team, we could find a better way of working together to the benefit of the school and the province.’’

Transforming the student profile to be representative of the country’s demographics is another milestone Prof St Clair Gibson will remember. “The intake of black and white students is of such a nature that we now have a much more balanced ratio of black and white undergraduate students than before.”

“I wanted to stay longer to see the effect of all the changes I made at the school, but the deanship is an offer I cannot refuse. I would have liked to see a steadier increase in the number of permanent clinical staff and have worked hard with both the UFS management and the DoH to try and achieve that; but more work needs to be done.”

I have worked with a number of fantastic staff members at the school, who are determined to do good in a challenging environment. I am amazed at the energy of the university leadership and how the Human and Academic Projects are executed. My wish for the university is to maintain and grow its standards and for the School of Medicine to maintain its reputation as one of the best schools in the country. I will always be a proud alumnus of the UFS,” he said.

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