University of Cape Town
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| University of Cape Town | |
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| Motto: | Spes Bona Good Hope |
| Established: | 1 October 1829 |
| Type: | Public |
| Endowment: | R1.15 billion[1] |
| Chancellor: | Graça Machel |
| Vice-Chancellor: | Prof Njabulo S Ndebele |
| Staff: | 2,510 |
| Students: | 21,713 |
| Undergraduates: | 15,539 |
| Postgraduates: | 6,174 |
| Location: | Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa |
| Campus: | 4 suburban and 2 urban campuses |
| Colours: | Dark blue, light blue and white |
| Nickname: | Ikeys |
| Mascot: | Tiger |
| Affiliations: | AAU, ACU, CHEC, HESA, IAU |
| Website: | www.uct.ac.za |
The University of Cape Town (UCT), is a public university located on the Rhodes Estate on the slopes of Devil's Peak, in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa. The University of Cape Town is the highest ranking African university in both the THES - QS World University Rankings and the Academic Ranking of World Universities by the Shanghai Jiao Tong University. It is the only African university to make it into the top 200 of the THES-QS ranking.
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[edit] Campus
The main teaching campus, known as the Upper Campus, is located on the slopes of Devil's Peak. This campus contains in a relatively compact site the faculties of Science, Engineering, Commerce, and most of the faculty of Humanities, as well as the residences Smuts Hall and Fuller Hall. Upper Campus is centered on Jameson Hall, the location for graduation and other ceremonial events, as well as many examinations. The original buildings and layout of Upper Campus were designed by JM Solomon and built between 1928 and 1930. Since that time, many more buildings have been added as the university has grown.
Contiguous with Upper Campus, but separated from it by university sports fields and the M3 freeway, are the Middle and Lower Campuses. These campuses, which are distributed through the suburbs of Rondebosch, Rosebank and Mowbray, contain the Law faculty, the South African College of Music, most of the student residences, most of the university administrative offices, and many sporting facilities. The Upper, Middle and Lower Campuses together are often referred to as the "main campus" or the "Rondebosch Campus".
The Faculty of Health Sciences is located on the Medical School campus at the Groote Schuur Hospital. The Fine Arts and Drama departments are located on the Hiddingh Campus in central Cape Town. The UCT Graduate School of Business is located on the Breakwater Campus at the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront.
[edit] Organisation
The organisation of the University is defined in the Statute of the University of Cape Town (gazetted in 2002) in accordance with the Higher Education Act of 1997. Before 2002 the organisation was defined in other laws in essentially the same format.
The titular head of the University is the Chancellor; this is a ceremonial position without executive power. The primary role of the Chancellor is to confer degrees on behalf of the University, and to represent the University to the rest of the world. The current Chancellor is Ms Graça Machel, elected for a 10-year period in September 1999.
The executive head of the University is the Vice-Chancellor (or VC). The VC has the overall responsibility for the policy and administration of the University. The current VC is Professor Njabulo Ndebele, appointed by the University Council in July 2000. It was confirmed on October 12th, that Dr Max Price will replace Professor Ndebele when his term ends in 2008.
The VC is assisted in his task by a number of Deputy Vice-Chancellors (DVCs). There are currently four DVCs, each with specific portfolios:
- Prof. Thandabantu Nhlapo: Student Affairs
- Prof. Cheryl de la Rey: Research & Innovation
- Prof. Martin Hall: Planning & Development
- Prof. Martin West: Institutional Management
The Registrar is responsible for the academic administration of the University, as well as legal matters, and is secretary to the University Council and Senate. The current Registrar is Mr Hugh Amoore, appointed in 1987.
UCT is divided into six faculties, each led by a Dean. The faculties and deans are as follows:
- Faculty of Commerce: Prof. Melvin Ayogu
- Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment: Prof. Cyril O'Connor
- Faculty of Health Sciences: Prof. Marian Jacobs
- Faculty of Humanities: Prof. Paula Ensor
- Faculty of Law: Prof. Hugh Corder
- Faculty of Science: Prof. Kathy Driver
The Centre for Higher Education Development, an academic unit alongside the faculties, rates as a faculty and is led by a dean, Associate Prof. Nan Yeld.
Although the UCT Graduate School of Business is considered to be part of the Faculty of Commerce, it is run independently and has it's own Dean and Director, Prof. Frank M Horwitz
[edit] Students and staff
As of 2005, 21,713 students were enrolled, of which 6,174 (28%) were postgraduate students. 10,751 (49.5%) were male and 10,980 (50.5%) were female. 3,795 students (18%) were described as "Black", 2,758 (13%) were described as "Coloured", 1,440 (7%) were described as "Asian", and 9,185 (42%) were described as "White". (The remainder were described as "Other" or were foreign students.)[2] In the December 2005 graduation ceremonies 4,354 degrees and diplomas were awarded, including 72 PhDs.[3]
As of 2004 the university had 2,510 permanent members of staff.[4]
[edit] Sports, clubs, and traditions
UCT has 36 different sports clubs, including team sports, individual sports, extreme sports and martial arts. [5] The university's sports teams, and in particular the rugby union team, are known as the "Ikey Tigers" or the "Ikeys". The "Ikey" nickname originated in the 1910s originated as an anti-semitic epithet applied to UCT students by the students of Stellenbosch University, because of the supposed large number of Jewish students at UCT.[6] Stellenbosch is UCT's traditional rugby opponent; an annual "Intervarsity" match is played between the two universities.
There are more than 80 student societies at UCT; these fall generally into five categories:[7]
- Political societies, including branches of the youth wings of national political parties.
- Academic societies for those interested in a particular field of study or studying a particular topic.
- Religious societies, some of which are associated with religious denominations or local places of worship.
- National/cultural societies for students from particular countries or particular ethnic backgrounds.
- Special interest societies for those interested in various different activities or issues.
[edit] History
The roots of UCT lie in the establishment of the South African College, a boys' school, in 1829. In 1874 the tertiary education part split off into the University and the younger students into the South African College Schools.
UCT moved to the Groote Schuur Estate campus in 1928. During the apartheid era, roughly 1960-1990, UCT consistently opposed apartheid, and was a bastion of liberalism and racial integration. 1987 particularly saw frequent clashes between protesting students and police. The official student newspaper, Varsity, frequently had its journalists and editors come under scrutiny from the ruling apartheid National Party government.
The UCT crest was designed in 1859 by Charles Davidson Bell, Surveyor-General of the Cape Colony at the time. Bell was an accomplished artist who also designed medals and the triangular Cape stamp.
[edit] Affiliations
UCT is a member of the Association of African Universities, the Association of Commonwealth Universities, the Cape Higher Education Consortium, Higher Education South Africa, and the International Association of Universities.
[edit] Notable alumni
- Nobel Laureates:
- Max Theiler, virologist awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1951 for developing a vaccine against yellow fever.
- Professor Allan McLeod Cormack (Medicine, 1979)
- Sir Aaron Klug (Chemistry, 1982)
- Professor Emeritus J. M. Coetzee (Literature, 2003)
- Neil Aggett, was a South African trade union leader and labour activist who died in custody after 70 days detention without trial.
- Professor Christiaan Barnard, who performed the first heart transplant at Groote Schuur Hospital.
- Roelof Botha, the grandson of Pik Botha who began his career as an actuary and became a venture capitalist.
- Breyten Breytenbach, author who studied fine arts at UCT.
- David Cooper, was a noted theorist and leader in the anti-psychiatry movement.
- Hilary Deacon, is Professor of Archaeology at the University of Stellenbosch specialising in the ‘emergence of modern humans’ and African archaeology.
- Emanuel Derman, noted Goldman Sachs financial engineer and author of My Life As A Quant
- Jonathan M. Dorfan, director of the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center.
- Roger Ebert, film critic, graduated with an English degree as part of a Rotary International program.
- Vincent Ebrahim, known for his part on The Kumars at No. 42, studied drama.
- George Ellis, cosmologist. Collaborator with Stephen Hawking and winner of the 2004 Templeton Prize
- Cromwell Everson, the classical music composer and composer of the first Afrikaans opera.
- Athol Fugard, a South African playwright.
- Richard E. Grant, now an actor, is a graduate of the UCT Drama school.
- Jan Hendrik Hofmeyr, obtained an M.A. at the age of 17.
- Hendrik Hofmeyr, composer and music theorist, winner of the 1997 Queen Elisabeth of Belgium Composition Prize
- Edward Neville Isdell, current CEO of the Coca-Cola Company
- David Lewis-Williams, is Professor emeritus of Cognitive Archaeology at the University of the Witwatersrand specialising in Upper-Palaeolithic and Bushmen rock art.
- Gwen Lister, South African born Namibian journalist, anti-apartheid activist and founder of The Namibian
- Nicolaas Petrus van Wyk Louw, was an Afrikaans-language poet, playwright and scholar.
- Galt MacDermot, composer of the musical Hair
- Zolani Mahola, lead singer of the South African band Freshlyground
- Nick Mallett, played for and later coached the Springboks, South Africa's national rugby union team.
- Steve Meyer, is a South African professional rugby union player who recently tore a ligament.
- Dullah Omar, a South African anti-Apartheid activist, lawyer, and a minister in the South *Justice Kate O'Regan, of the Constitutional Court of South Africa African cabinet from 1994 until his death.
- Silvano Payne, founder of Satnews Publishing.
- Mamphela Ramphele, a Managing Director of the World Bank and formerly the Vice-Chancellor of UCT.
- Juctice Albie Sachs, of the Constitutional Court of South Africa.
- Salim Ahmed Salim, Tanzanian diplomat and former Secretary General of the OAU.
- Isaac Schapera, was Professor of Anthropology at the London School of Economics and regarded as one of the world's leading experts in the anthropology of South African tribesmen.
- Jonathan Shapiro, a South African political cartoonist known by the nom de plume Zapiro.
- Robert Carl-Heinz Shell, is a renowned South African author and professor of African Studies.
- Mark Shuttleworth, billionaire entrepreneur, founder of Canonical Ltd, sponsor of the Ubuntu Linux distribution and the second space tourist.
- Sydney Harold Skaife, was an eminent South African entomologist and naturalist.
- Andries Treurnicht, was the founder and the leader of the Conservative Party in South Africa.
- Richard Turner, a visionary academic who was assassinated in 1978.
- Donald Woods, a South African journalist and anti-apartheid activist.
- Richard van der Riet Woolley, was a British astronomer who became Astronomer Royal.
- Percy Yutar, lawyer and prosecutor at Rivonia Trial.
[edit] Notable staff
- Cosmologist George Ellis, collaborator with Stephen Hawking and winner of the 2004 Templeton Prize, is Distinguished Professor of Complex Systems in the Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics
- Author Andre Brink is a professor in the English Language and Literature Department.
- Author Breyten Breytenbach is from January 2000 a visiting professor in the Graduate School of Humanities.
- Professor David H.M.Brooks (1950-1996), Inspirational UCT Philosopher, author of 'On living in an Unjust Society', and 'The Unity of the Mind'
- The staff of UCT contains 27 A-rated scientists (rated by the National Research Foundation), meaning that they are world leaders in their fields of research.
- Helen Zille, current mayor of Cape Town, was formerly Director of Public Relations for the university.
- Chemist William Sage Rapson was a professor in the Chemistry Department.
[edit] Notable research
- The Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics is an international centre for research in the fields of cosmology and topology.
- The Department of Physics is home to the UCT-CERN research centre, which is partially responsible for the software design of the High Level Trigger component of the ALICE experiment at the Large Hadron Collider, as well as other activities related to ALICE.
- The Department of Electrical Engineering is involved in the development of technology for the Karoo Array Telescope (KAT). KAT is a precursor to the Square Kilometer Array, a proposed International project to build the world's largest radio telescope by 2020. Research groups in RF design and digital design contribute to the RF front-end and digital back-end of the KAT project.
[edit] References
- ^ Amoore, Hugh. "Council Notes", Monday Paper, UCT, 2008-03-03, p. 4. Retrieved on 2008-03-07. "The value of the permanent endowment as at 30 September 2007 was R1.15 billion."
- ^ (2006) Authorities & Information of Record (PDF), Cape Town: University of Cape Town, 31. Student Handbook 2. Retrieved on 2006-04-16.
- ^ Statistics: Graduation 2005. University of Cape Town. Retrieved on 2006-04-16.
- ^ (March 2006) Executive Summary: Audit Report on the University of Cape Town. Pretoria: Council on Higher Education Higher Education Quality Committee, 10. Retrieved on 2006-04-16.
- ^ Current Sports Clubs at UCT. Retrieved on 2007-06-08.
- ^ Swanson, Felicity (2007). "‘Die SACS kom terug’: intervarsity rugby, masculinity and white identity at the University of Cape Town, 1960s-1970s", in Field, Sean, et al.: Imagining the City: Memories and Cultures in Cape Town (PDF), Cape Town: HSRC Press, 210. ISBN 0-7969-2179-2. Retrieved on 2007-06-08.
- ^ Student Affairs: Societies. University of Cape Town. Retrieved on 2007-06-08.
- Statute of the University of Cape Town, Government Notice No. 1199, 20 September 2002.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
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South African universities |  |
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| Traditional universities Cape Town | Fort Hare | Free State | KwaZulu-Natal | Limpopo | North-West Pretoria | Rhodes | Stellenbosch | Western Cape | Witwatersrand
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