University of Cape Town

This report is for calendar year 2008. The first point about it is that the first six months were completed under the stewardship of the outgoing Council, chaired by my predecessor, Geoff Budlender, and the Vice-Chancellorship of the now-retired Njabulo Ndebele. The new Council (more than half of the members are new), a new Council Chair and Deputy Chair and a new Vice-Chancellor, took office on 1 July 2008. As this and the following reports will show we took over a strong institution, and it is appropriate to pay tribute to the work done by Geoff Budlender and his Council members, and to Njabulo Ndebele, and his executive team of Cheryl de la Rey (now at the CHE), Martin West (who has retired having held a Chair for over 30 years), Martin Hall (who becomes Vice-Chancellor of Salford later this year) and Thandabantu Nhlapo, whom we have been able to retain as a valued member of the new executive team under our new Vice-Chancellor, Max Price. 

At the end of 2007 we celebrated –ƒ Ten joyous graduation ceremonies at which we saw record numbers of qualifiers – and in particular record numbers of PhD qualifiers – take their degrees, the culmination of the teaching and learning work of the University;ƒ Being honoured by a distinguished group of men and women who accepted honorary doctorates – Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese leader and Nobel Laureate (accepted on her behalf by the irrepressible and much-loved Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu); Mark Dry, the scientist behind SASOL’s position as the leader in oil-from-coal technology; George Philander a recently returned UCT graduate of the 1950s with an extraordinary record of achievement in ocean and atmospherescience; Johan, Lord Steyn, a South African who has made an important contribution to English and international jurisprudence as a Law Lord; and Cape Town’s duo of David Kramer and the late Taliep Petersen;ƒ A very considerable record of research achievement, the highlights of which included: 26 competitive new research chairs awarded to UCT; an increase in the number of post docs working at UCT to 156; the increase in research income to R547,5 million (from R399,7 million in 2006); and the ratings received by UCT academics in the National Research Found (NRF) researcher evaluation process - there are now 279 rated academics at UCT of whom 30 had achieved Arating by the end of 2007 (an A rating is the NRF’s category for world leaders renowned for the quality of their research); andƒ A ranking (though we must be careful not to put too much store by ..

I began my previous report with some reflections on the report issued at the end of 2005 on the audit of quality assurance mechanisms by the Higher Education Quality Council (HEQC). It seems appropriate to reflect on how far we have gone towards responding to our self-review and the validation of that by the HEQC. First, as the subsequent reports will show, we have developed a comprehensive quality improvement plan. The first periodic review to ensure that this is effectively translated into action has been completed. Secondly, significant attention has been given to pass rates (the proportion of courses passed) and throughput rates (the proportion of those entering a programme who leave UCT with a qualification). Academic development interventions, which are crucial to both widening access and ensuring studentsuccess, have been strengthened. The analyses of cohorts of students allow us to track throughput rates, and faculties are giving particular attention to ways of reducing the number of students dropping out in good academic standing. Towards the end of 2006 we were able to approve an imaginative plan for Engineering which, with the aid of targeted funding from the Education Ministry, has put in place a multi-faceted programme aimed at increasing the output of engineering graduates both by increased enrolment (civil engineering enrolment reached record levels in 2007) and, equally importantly, by increasing throughput rates. The teaching and learning report provides further evidence of progress towards achieving our quality goals. The research report shows progress towards our goal of being a research-led institution. Among the many indicators of progress in research was UCT’s success in winning seven ..

The year under review began with the Council’s decision to submit a self-review report to the state’s Higher Education Quality Council (HEQC) as preparation for the Institutional Audit of UCT to be undertaken by the HEQC. The year ended with receipt of the HEQC’s report on the quality assurance mechanisms in place at UCT. It is thus appropriate to begin a review of the year with some reflections onthe HEQC audit, and appropriate, too, that the reports that follow this, from the Vice-Chancellor and others, pick up this theme. The HEQC report is now in the public domain. Its commendations reflect the university’s strengths: a good teaching record, an impressive (by South African standards) graduation rate, rigour in assessment practices, and a strong record in research. Perhaps the most important aspect of the recommendations that the HEQC has now made is that there were no surprises; the areas marked out for improvement were consistent with those that we had identified in our self-review report. This, however, is no reason for complacency. We now have to addressthose areas effectively. As this report is being prepared for publication, the Senate is finalising the self-improvement plan that we must submit to the HEQC. What, then, are the main areas for improvement? First, though our undergraduate and postgraduate throughput rates (the  proportions of entering classes who leave with a qualification) are the highest in South Africa, they are not good, and they remain racially skewed with rates for whites significantly better than for Africans. This is a major challenge for ..

This report concentrates on the Council, but it is right to begin with some assessment of UCT in its 175th year, and in the tenth year of the democratic South Africa. We have record numbers of students, and there is evidence that we appear to be the South African university of choice. Our throughput rates, our research ratings by almost all measures, and our standing in external evaluations put UCT at the top of South Africa’s universities. We have a strong record of engagement with the challenges facing our country. Our fi nancial position, though not as strong as we would wish, is robust. Half our students are black, and more than half are women. Our students come to us from a wide range of countries, and the demand for places from countries in the SADC region and elsewhere in Africa grows every year. We completed a major construction project (the new R 55 million building for Chemical Engineering) and are close to completing a second (the Institute for Infectious Diseases and Molecular Medicine). To top the list, 2004 saw alumnus and long-time staff member, JM Coetzee, receive the Nobel Prize for Literature, and cosmologist George Ellis win the Templeton Prize. These are achievements that any university must celebrate. Against those achievements: despite employment equity policies adopted in the 1980s, and considerable effort, we have a long way to go in reaching the targets we have set ourselves. Our student throughput rates must improve, and the throughput rates of our black students are significantly worse than those of white students. The state’s National ..

It is with pride in the University’s achievements, and with considerable pleasure, that I report on behalf of the Council. The primary functions of this University are teaching and research, and the primary business of the Council is to ensure that the conditions necessary for effective teaching and learning, and for high-quality research, are in place. We have therefore given particular attention in the past year to –• student success and throughput, and the teaching process;• research, including research relating to HIV/AIDS; and measures to stimulate research productivity;• measures for attracting and retaining staff; for changing the staff profile; and for providing assistance and support to members of the University community who are HIV positive or who have AIDS;• financial stability, in the short, medium, and longer term; and• governance. The Council has initiated processes for the evaluation, on an annual basis, of its own performance, including the performance of the Chair, and of the performance of the Vice-Chancellor. These procedures are still at a preliminary stage, and will need further development. However, they are a necessary corollary to the governance reforms that we have already introduced, and to the legislation that will result in a new Council on 1 July 2004. 

A review of the work of the Council in 2002 must reflect above all the continuing and high regard in which the University is held, the significant progress being made in teaching and learning, and the University's sustained and growing record in research. We are pleased to report that the University has met and exceeded many of our goals in these areas, and that we continue to be the university of choice for so many of our country's brightest students.The Senate's teaching and learning report and the report on. research, give evidence of this, and the work that is being done to address the challenges we face.The year saw several highlights in the work of the Council itself: First, the Statute of the University, which replaced the now-repealed University of Cape Town Private Act of 1999 was approved by the Minister and published on 20 September 2002. The Council subsequently adopted a set of institutional rules dealing with matters not provided for in the Statute. Secondly, a new Council took office for a three-year term on 1 July 2002. The Council confirmed its confidence in Mrs Burton and me by re-electing us to serve as its Deputy-Chair and Chair respectively. The Council meets monthly during the period February to December and does not have an executive committee. The Council - of 38 members - is a large body, and this demands active involvement by its members. The Higher Education Amendment Act, 2002 requires us to reduce our size (along with all other Councils of public higher education institutions) to 30 or fewer ..

The Council has a written statement on ethics, and has written policy and procedures on conflicts of interest, which require disclosure by all Council members, and by all senior staff who have decision making authority or who serve on decision-making committees and full reporting where conflict of interest situations arise.The University maintains systems of internal control over financial reporting and safeguarding of assets against unauthorised acquisition, use or disposition of such assets. Such systems are designed to provide reasonable assurance to the University and Council regarding the preparation of reliable published financial statements and the safeguarding of its assets. It includes a documented organisational structure and division of responsibilities, established policies and procedures, which are communicated throughout the University, and the careful selection,training and development of its people. Internal auditors monitor the operation of the internal control systems and report findings and recommendations to management. Corrective actions are taken to address control deficiencies and other opportunities for improving the systems when identified. Council, through its AuditCommittee, provides oversight of the financial reporting process.The University has undertaken an extensive review of its systems, procedure and controls under the Analysis of Integrated Management Systems (AIMS) initiative. The AIMS initiative was started in 1999 and culminated in June 2001 and its recommendations have either already been, or are in the process of being, implemented and/or integrated into the management systems of the relevant departments. Procedures are in place to ensure that the ‘continuous improvement’ of systems, service and internal controls envisaged in AIMS will be sustained into the future.