Greetings from the USB

It really feels as if the year has already run beneath our feet!

Here at USB we already welcomed most of our students in the various programmes. We are glad to say that we again attracted top candidates and were able to meet our planned enrolment targets amidst tough economic conditions. There is a marked increase in the number of international and exchange students. This enhances the diversity in our class-rooms and is confirmation of USB’s growing international reputation.

We are very pleased for the successful experiment to invite alumni to enrol for the MBA electives in November last year. This is in line with the growing international consensus that we do not have ”alumni” but rather “life-long learning partners”. USB and USB-ED open doors of learning on-line and at locations across Africa. And alumni in turn become teachers and facilitators on our programmes.

We are up for EQUIS re-accreditation in September this year. This is the last of the three triple- crown quality assurances in this round. We aim for a full term re-accreditation and work very hard to deliver our self-assessment report in July.

This year brings the exciting upgrade of our facilities to the tune of R114m here at Bellville Park Campus to a conclusion. After September we will have a modern staff and student cafeteria and custom-built classrooms with top-notch technical facilities.

On the research front, we are happy with the high level of research outputs, the number of doctoral graduates and – especially – with the excellent through-put with MBA treatises. Gone are the days that a significant proportion of our students had to delay their graduation.

As I write this, South Africa is in the midst of a trust crisis. Never before has the motto of responsible business leadership been more apt than now. We are also preparing for national elections in May with the full hope that our country returns to some normality and good, job-intensive growth.

Receive USB’s best wishes for the year. Watch out for alumni events in your region. And visit us whenever possible!

Piet Naude