Universities South Africa
HELM News
HELM facilitates understanding of the three institutional types provided for in a new policy
“We do not need all of our institutions in higher education aspiring to become universities. We need a differentiated higher education system.” This...
WiL alumni gathering in 2025: sustaining the momentum
A significant gathering of the Higher Education Leadership and Management’s (HELM’s) Women in Leadership (WiL) alumni is set for early 2025, and is envisioned as...
Growing a movement: Women in Leadership (WiL)
The final session of the 2024 Women in Leadership (WiL) programme on 1 November 2024 began with a seemingly simple but profoundly symbolic activity: a...
Universities South Africa’s second Student Affairs and Student Success cohort begins their leadership programme
Wednesday, 14 August saw the Higher Education Leadership and Management (HELM) programme launching its second intake of the Student Affairs and Student Success (SASS) programme,...
What does student success mean, and how can universities contribute to it?
Student success at South African universities should not be reduced to a simplistic, one dimensional measure based on grades and academic accomplishments, according to research...
Supporting the well-being of Student Affairs and Support Staff in higher education
“Who cares for the caregiver?” was a question posed by Dr Thembi Kweyama, Dean of Students at Mangosuthu University of Technology (MUT), during one of the...
Inaugural SASS programme is an overwhelming success, with applications set to open during December for 2024
When Professor Sibusiso Chalufu (right) first heard about the launch, this year, of the inaugural HELM (Higher Education and Leadership Management) SASS (Student Affairs and Student...
Career advancement for SASS participants
They are the graduating class of 2023 – the 51 participants in the inaugural SASS (Student Affairs Student Success) programme which was conceptualised by a...
A SASS peer learning group examines the effect of NSFAS funding on student experience of higher education
The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) has been in the headlines recently with its former CEO fired over “breach of trust”, on-going reports of...
Reflect and learn as a leader and change agent at your own institution
The sound of the late Tina Turner’s What’s love got to do with it enveloped the conference room. As the last few individuals took up...
Global university leaders exchange leadership attributes, challenges and opportunities
How can universities be a driving force for change in broader society and what role should their leaders play in our ever developing world? These...
Leadership in higher education is often about reaching out and listening to people
Professor Jonathan Jansen says one important lesson he has learnt from his leadership experience at all levels in higher education – is that you have...
Academic advising is a critical determinant of student success
Academic advising plays a critical role in improving the success rate of students, and in advancing social justice. This was the message from...
The valuable lessons learnt during South Africa’s Academic Advising journey
Students want to be empowered to drive their success towards achieving their own academic and career goals. This is where academic advising is critical. ...
Towards improving the mental health of students at South African universities
Findings of one of the largest student mental health surveys ever undertaken in the world – which was initiated by Universities South Africa (USAf) and...
“You are not alone,” academic leaders learned at last week’s HELM event in Pretoria
They had come from all four cardinal points of South Africa: the north, south, east and west -- and also the centre. Each individual brought with...
USAf Programme Updates
A. Higher Education Leadership Programme The Board heard that HELM got off to a good start in 2018, thanks to funding secured from the Department of...