Statement on the 2016 process for first fee payment.
First Fee Payment
Only those students whose financial circumstances are such that they cannot afford to make a first payment before enrollment need not do so. All other students must pay a minimum of R 9 340 towards the their fees before they will be permitted to enrol.
If you cannot afford to make this first payment before enrolment, please access the self-service portal https://self-service.wits.ac.za and click on the words "2016 tuition fee” .
If you have been awarded an external bursary or scholarship please present proof of this to the Financial Aid and Scholarships Office and you will not be required to make a first payment.
The following students are also not required to make a first payment: - If you have been made a provisional offer for NSFAS funding for 2016; - If you have been given a Wits University Scholarship;-
By the end of each academic year tuition fees must be settled in full .
Students whose financial circumstances are such that they can settle their tuition fees in full by 31 March 2016 ,must do so.
Students whose financial circumstances are such that they cannot pay tuition fees in full by 31 March 2016 should notify the University that this is the case by completing and concluding an Acknowledgment of Debt (AOD) .This Acknowledgment of Debt must be transmitted to the University by no later than 31 March 2016.
Provided a student completes the Acknowledgment of Debt by the 31 March 2016 and fulfils his or her obligations as set out in the Acknowledgment of Debt he or she will not be charged interest on any amounts outstanding in respect of tuition fees.
Top honour for Wits International Relations academic
- Kemantha Govender
Wits' Dr David Hornsby will sit on the governing council of a premier organisation for scholars and practitioners of international studies.
Dr David Hornsby, Assistant Dean of Humanities, Teaching and Learning at Wits and a Senior Lecturer in International Relations has recently been elected to sit on the International Studies Association Governing Council as a member at large for 2017-18.
The International Studies Association (ISA) is the premier organisation for scholars and practitioners of international studies.
Hornsby, nominated by Professor JP Singh of George Mason University in Washington D.C. was selected as one of five candidates to stand for election of the over 6000 member organisation by the Governing Council’s Nominations Committee.
His selection and election is a recognition of his standing in the field. Hornsby is a recongised lecturer and researcher having been awarded the VC’s Teaching and Learning Award in 2013 and the Friedal Sellschop Research Award in 2014.
“I am deeply humbled and honoured to have been elected to the ISA Governing Council. This is a fantastic recognition of Wits University and the Department of International Relations standing globally. I look forward to working with colleagues from around the world and across the organisation.
“I hope to work with colleagues at the ISA to advance opportunities for African scholars and students within the organisation and discipline writ large” said Hornsby.
Hornsby’s research currently focuses on science diplomacy; Canadian and South African foreign policy and higher education pedagogy. Since arriving at Wits in 2009 he has published actively in these areas. His next book is coming out in March 2016 with Palgrave entitled “Universities, Citizen Scholars and the Future of Higher Education.” Hornsby has recently been elected President of the Academic Staff Association of Wits University and is an elected member of the University Senate.
ISA was founded in 1959 to promote research and education in international affairs. With well over six thousand members in North America and around the world, ISA is the most respected and widely known scholarly association in this field.
ISA cooperates with 57 international studies organisations in over 30 countries, is a member of the International Social Science Council, and enjoys nongovernmental consultative status with the United Nations.
University Seminar 2016
- LitNet
Freelance journalist Hans Pienaar interviewed Achille Mbembe on the new politics of the SA student.
“The problem with South Africa is that all predictions always seem to run counter to the brutal fact that South Africa always seems to escape any prediction. What happens is never what people predict will happen,” says Professor Achille Mbembe from the Wits Institutes for Social and Economic Research.
This interview is part of the University Seminar 2016 series – an ongoing conversation on education, access, transformation, language and the Constitution – published by the independent Internet journal, LitNet. This interview was originally commissioned by Business Day but has not been published in its complete form.
Wits, SRC to raise R10 million
- Wits University
The Wits Students’ Representative Council and the University are embarking on a campaign which aims to raise R10 million for the 'missing middle'.
With a R2 million cheque from Nedbank, the Wits Students’ Representative Council has officially launched the #Access campaign which aims to raise R10 million to assist fellow students.
SRC President Nompendulo Mkhatshwa says that the campaign is aimed at covering the debt of students who form part of the ‘missing middle’.
“The ‘missing middle’ are students referred to as being ‘too poor to be rich and too rich to be poor’, she said during her address to hundreds of parents and students attending the Wits Welcome Day for new students.
The 'missing middle' are students who do not meet the criteria for National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) funding because they are just above the NSFAS threshold but are still unable to afford university fees. Some come from households where the combined income is as little as R120 000 per annum. Contrary to popular belief, the missing middle are not part of the well-heeled middle class she said.
Wits University has joined hands with the student body on this ambitious endeavour. An estimated 8 000 students have outstanding debt. The bulk of these students are the “missing middle”.
The #Access campaign has received a major boost from one of the largest banks in South Africa. Anton de Wet: Managing Executive, Client Engagement at Nedbank says the donation is in line with the bank’s commitment to tertiary education across South Africa.
“We have been working with Wits to find a sustainable funding solution for higher education in South Africa. We are committed to continue this work with Wits and other stakeholders. We wish the SRC every success in their efforts with the #Access campaign and are delighted to donate the first R2million towards reaching this goal.”
Class of 2015 Grade 10 learners receive prizes for material science posters.
The DST-NRF Centre for Excellence in Strong Materials held its annual prize-giving ceremony on 26 January 2016 at the Wits Club, Braamfontein for the class of 2015 Grade 10 learners.
Every year the Centre of Excellence invites Grade 10 learners from Gauteng schools to participate in the Materials Science Poster Competition based on strong materials. The competition, which is in its ninth year running, is an outreach programme of the Centre of Excellence formulated to attract more learners to the field of material sciences, develop their knowledge of properties and learn about the applications of strong materials.
There were 88 entrants in the 2015 competition. The entrants were required to produce an A3 poster on the properties and applications of a strong material. Strong materials are materials that retain their distinctive and applied properties under extreme conditions and have established or potential commercial applications. The scholars explored with materials such as graphene, gold, titanium, aerogel amongst others.
Professor Lesley Cornish, the Director of the DST-NRF Centre of Excellence in Strong Materials who welcomed the scholars, assured them of their importance for the institution.
“Our future is you, and you are tremendously important to us. Our students are also important to us but the scholars are the future pipelines. Where are our future students going to come from? They are going to come from the schools. It would be lovely to get some of the scholars to come and register in one of our courses.”
Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research and Postgraduate Affairs, Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, who also attended the event, hailed the scholars for their exceptional posters.
“You clearly have showed interest by applying yourself. You have worked very hard in understanding material sciences. I think you have done remarkably well. You have outdone yourselves. It shows that you have an inclination for this journey-the journey of doing research. It is going to be a giant leap for humanity if you continue with this research.”
The first prize, worth R15 000 for the school was awarded to The Kings School West Rand for their poster, Tungstene 101. The second prize, worth R10 000 went to 2014 winners, King's School RobinHill. The 2015 competition was tight a one, seeing Parktown Girls High and Randpark High School sharing the third prize which was worth R5 000.
Teachers and scholars from the winning teams also received gift vouchers at the ceremony.Vivienne Jansen Van Rensburg, Science teacher from the winning school, said she hopes the prize money would be used towards the science club which she started last year.
For twins Dehyenee and Deeyendrie Govender from Parktown High School for Girls, their extra mural activities in dramatic arts helped them to be creative when they were designing the poster. Their poster Graphene is the New Queen was one four posters which won under the category: Good Scientific Comprehension.
Dehyenee said her interest in science and technology was influenced by her Grade 10 science teacher, who “teachers with her heart and soul”.
