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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

International delegates rethink justice and righteousness at Theology conference
2015-09-07


Participants in the multidisciplinary conference hosted by the UFS Faculty of Theology, celebrated the 35th anniversary of the faculty with a festive dinner.

The Faculty of Theology at the University of the Free State (UFS) held a multidisciplinary conference from 24 to 26 August 2015, with the theme of ‘Re-thinking justice and righteousness in society’. A total of 26 papers were presented at the congress, with contributions from Theology, Economic and Management Sciences, the Humanities, and Law. Delegates from Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Belgium attended the conference, in addition to academics from the UFS.



Some of the keynote speakers at the international conference hosted by the UFS Faculty of Theology, ‘Re-thinking justice and righteousness in society’: Prof Fanie Snyman, Dean of the UFS Faculty of Theology, Rev Peter Awojobi, Rev Menard Musendekwa and Prof Ango Samuel.

“With this conference,” said Prof Fanie Snyman, Dean of the UFS Faculty of Theology, “we are positioning the faculty alongside other faculties whose insights and disciplines are important to Theology. A multidisciplinary forum also provides great possibilities for

cooperation across disciplines.”

The conference coincided with a visit to the UFS by students in the theological faculties at the Universities of Stellenbosch and Pretoria. These students attended some of the presentations, in addition to the other activities they were involved in.

The Faculty of Theology is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year, making it not only the youngest faculty at the UFS, but also the youngest theology faculty in South Africa. In this time, the faculty has established itself as a significant role player within the theological landscape, with important agreements having been reached with theological institutions in Europe, the USA, and Africa.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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