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16 January 2025 | Story Lacea Loader | Photo Supplied
Jurie Blignaut
Jurie Blignaut, top achiever in the 2024 matric exams for quintile four schools in SA and finalist of the UFS 2024 Matriculant of the Year competition.

The University of the Free State (UFS) is proud to announce that the top achiever in the 2024 matric exams for quintile four schools in the country, Jurie Blignaut, will be studying towards an MBChB at the UFS from 2025.

Blignaut, a pupil of the Rustenburg High School, was one of the 14 finalists in the 2024 UFS Matriculant of the Year competition.

“Congratulations to Jurie on this wonderful achievement. We look forward to welcoming him and our cohort of 2025 first-year students to our campuses,” says Prof Anthea Rhoda, acting Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the UFS. 

Boasting 11 distinctions and an average of 96,5%, Blignaut is not only an exceptional academic achiever but also participates in several cultural activities. He was the winner of the Kovsie Alumni Trust’s special award for personal cultural achievement in the final round of the competition. This head boy of his school is an excellent public speaker and musician. 

Blignaut’s highest achievement in public speaking was his national second place in last year’s ATKV public speaking competition in the section for Afrikaans home language. He plays the cello and has performed solo with the Pretoria Symphony Orchestra, was part of the school choir and band, and participated in the Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival. 

“On behalf of the university management, I would also like to congratulate Dr Mantlhake Maboya, MEC for Education in the Free State, and her executive team on the Free State being the top-achieving province in South Africa,” says Prof Rhoda. 

Other finalists in the 2024 UFS Matriculant of the Year competition who excelled during the matric exams include Susan Bender from Voortrekker High School – top achiever in the Free State province – and Chris Goosen from Grey College Secondary School, who is also one of the top achievers in the Free State. 

News Archive

Mosa Leteane introduces new era in student leadership
2014-10-02

The month of August belonged to South African women – in more ways than one. Not only did we celebrate Women’s Month, but our Student Representative Council (SRC) gained a female leader.

On 4 September 2014 Mosa Leteane became the first female SRC president at the UFS Bloemfontein Campus under the revised SRC constitution of 2011. Although her journey has been a hard and difficult one, it rewarded her with great insightful and invaluable experience.

Being elected to this seat is a milestone for female leadership as a whole at Kovsies. Having been the Prime of House NJ van der Merwe Residence, Marketing Officer of the premier Golden Key Society, Executive Committee member for the 2013/2014 SRC Legal and Constitutional Affairs – and being a legal student herself – Leteane brings a lot of experience to student governance.

Accountability is one of her core values– and that is exactly what she envisions to bring to the newly-elected SRC. Leteane also believes that having a moral sense is essential to the functioning of her SRC. Being a political science or legal student does not automatically imply high morals, Leteane adds. Rather, principles are fostered by the contribution that you want to make.

Something she is proud to have inherited from the previous SRC is the establishment of a blueprint for student governance and understanding team dynamics. These things define the success of any SRC.

With the amount of work lying ahead, Leteane says, she will draw strength from family and friends – and listen to some music.

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