Serious shortage of students at the University of Free State
The University of Free State’s (UFS) faculty of education is seemingly experiencing a critical shortage of first year students.
According to a memo issued under the name of the Dean of Faculty of Education in the Bloemfontein main campus, Professor Loyiso Jita, this is the first time this has happened.
In the undated memo making rounds on social media, the dean implores staff to encourage potential students to register.
“The faculty is experiencing a serious shortfall of students to meet our 2023 targets. This is the first time where the faculty is likely not to meet the set university targets for first years (and seniors) who are registered for 2023,” the memo reads.
Plea to faculty staff
In the memo, Jita pleads with UFS Faculty staff to recruit any student they knew, whether they were denied admission or did not apply but were ready to pay and start attending classes to come in on “Wednesday and Thursday only on a first come first serve basis”
The memo states that students with an Admission Point Score (APS) of 30 and above could also be accommodated in the mainstream programme. The institution is looking for about 100 spaces in its Qwaqwa campus and another 100 in Bloemfontein.
“Please encourage students that may not have applied or may have been denied based on grade 11 results to walk into EXR ready tomorrow and Thursday. Let us do this together for our faculty!” Jita pleads in the memo.
UFS aware of message
UFS’s communication and marketing director Lacea Loader said the institution’s management is aware of the message which circulated on social media this past week.
“The university is unable to register any prospective walk-in students in the Faculty of Education or any of its other six faculties,” she said.
Lacea did not elaborate on the faculty’s inability to register any prospective walk-in students, only that the university’s registration process for undergraduate students closed on 17 February 2023.
Broader picture
With the developments at UFS, the publication reached out to several universities for information on the number of applications and admissions for first-year students.
However, only North West University (NWU) Director of Corporate Communication Louis Jacobs replied to queries.
He said the institution received close to 200 000 applications for 2023 from prospective first-year students and could only accommodate 12 726 contact and distance first-year students.
Responding on how online applications and registrations have assisted in curbing the chaos associated with the registration of first-year students, Jacobs said this was not the first time that registrations were mainly online.
“Assistance was however provided to students who experienced difficulties. Together with this, no walk-in students were allowed, thus also eliminating the issue of large numbers of people on the campuses,” he said.
North West University extends registration
Jacobs said registration has been extended until next week as some students were still experiencing problems, mainly as a result of funding, and were therefor provisionally registered.
“Our academic programme commenced on 20 Feb and those students who are only provisionally registered are having access to it via our online learning platform, eFundi. Based on the reason supplied, no indication of final numbers in any of the programmes can be supplied at this stage,” he added.
Whilst other institutions were yet to respond (article will be updated once these institutions have responded), the Cape Peninsula University of Technology point-blank refused to provide the requested information. It wouldn’t give a reason for this refusal.
“[We] are unable to supply you with this information,” the university’s spokesperson Suzelle Koch replied.
