Global students flock to SA universities for a rich cultural and academic experience

Source: News24, 05/08/2024

Stellenbosch University is one of the universities in the country favoured by international students. (Stellenbosch University/Facebook)
• A total of 20 942 students from Africa and abroad are studying at 15 of South Africa`s 26 universities.
• The University of Johannesburg has 4 148 international students, including 1 614 from Zimbabwe.
• Deputy Minister of Higher Education Dr Mimmy Gondwe said international students enjoy studying in SA because it`s home to some of the top-ranked universities in the world.
French student Kamay de Souza, 20, can confidently string together a simple sentence in Afrikaans after being taught the language for barely two weeks at Stellenbosch University (SU).
De Souza, who is planning to study isiXhosa next semester, is among 354 mostly `occasional` French students who are attending exchange and faculty-led programmes at SU.
Universities, including the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), said this week that their institutions were increasingly becoming popular study destinations for international students because of their academic and research excellence.
A random survey by News24 has found that a total of 20 942 students from Africa and abroad are studying at 15 of the 26 universities that provided figures.

Zimbabwean students make up the bulk of those from the continent, with 4 163 registered at six universities, including 1 614 at UJ, 849 at University of Pretoria (UP), 741 at SU, 582 at Wits and 355 at North-West University (NWU).
Seven other universities that participated in the survey indicated that most of their students from the continent were also from Zimbabwe.

Students from abroad, who were studying at the 15 universities that provided figures, hailed from Asia, US, India, Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, Pakistan, France and South Korea.

UJ had 119 students from Asia, 57 from Europe and 23 from the US; UP had 58 from Germany, 37 from US and 35 from the Netherlands; Wits had 37 from India, 23 from US and 16 from Pakistan; and NWU had 20 from India, 8 from South Korea and six from US.
UCT told News24 that it had 731 students from US, Germany and India.
Yun Young Ahn, 28, from South Korea, who completed her fine arts degree and master`s degree at UCT, said she learnt a lot about the local art scene `but also how the African art scene looks like globally`.
`UCT has been a great institution to study at as the resources are amazing, especially in the fine arts campus. I enjoyed my experience and I learnt so much and have grown so much.`

Lidya Babore, 21, from Ethiopia, who is enrolled for a BA in humanities at UJ, said she decided to study in South Africa because she wanted to do international law which is not offered in her home country.
`I am in love with UJ because it has allowed me to have opportunities that I never thought I would have. It has allowed me to come out of my shell because of the leadership positions they have given me.`
De Souza, who is a registered student at the Sciences Po University in Paris, said he chose to do his third-year studies in South Africa because English is widely spoken, and the cost of living is cheaper.
He is studying political science, history, international relations, anthropology and Afrikaans at SU.
`I was interested to learn Afrikaans so that I could learn a little bit more about the Afrikaans culture. I am very excited to be in South Africa where the people are much friendlier than in Europe.`
However, he said local wines were not as good as the French wines, adding: `I was glad to discover some new flavours.`
SU spokesperson Martin Viljoen said that students studying non-degree courses included those from the Skema Business School in Paris and student mobility partnerships with 31 German universities.
SU also catered for study abroad and faculty-led programmes from universities in the US, including Northwestern University in Chicago, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and the University of Georgia.
`Feedback from many of our international students is that they view Stellenbosch as a premier study destination based on the beautiful town and surroundings.`
He said French students study various modules in the faculty of economic and management sciences and that 75% took postgraduate modules.
`They [French students] are extremely positive about the experience.`
Most of the German postgraduate students at SU are enrolled for the Master of Laws programme.
He said applications from German students enrolled at universities in Germany who wanted to study at SU were `high and places for SU are limited and competitive`.
`Apart from academic quality [specific consideration from German students], the environment and the trust in the support that SU provides are among the reasons for them opting to study at Stellenbosch.`
UP spokesperson Rikus Delport said that over half of their international students come from various African countries, `reflecting our strong African identity and commitment to the continent`s rich diversity in people, cultures, biodiversity, and environments`.
Wits spokesperson Buhle Zuma said the university `enjoys many partnerships with institutions across Africa and is the co-founder of the African Research Universities Alliance`.
Zuma added:
The university is cosmopolitan and embraces different people, cultures, and recognises that diverse ideas are crucial in producing students and scholars that can make a meaningful contribution to the world and society, for good.
NWU spokesperson Louis Jacobs said international students were one of their priorities and that their target for 2025 is 1 693 foreign students. A total of 1 307 were enrolled this year.
`We are conducting direct student recruitment through embassies as well as schools in other countries. For our next intake, we have targeted 20 countries in Africa and abroad.`
Rhodes University said in a statement that 8% of its student body comprised international students.
`This year, the Eritrean government sponsored a group of students, which was a first. Historically, undergraduate international students predominantly study in the humanities faculty and postgraduates in the science faculty.`
Vaal University of Technology (VUT) spokesperson Dumile Mlambo said the university reserved 10% of its total enrolment space for international students.
Deputy Minister of Higher Education Dr Mimmy Gondwe said international students `love and relish` studying in South Africa because it has `a very rich and inspiring history`.
`Our diverse cultural offering also appeals to foreign students from Europe and North America. More importantly, I also believe international students enjoy studying in our country because we are home to some of the top-ranked universities in the world.`
She said Wits, UJ, UCT, SU and UP had, year in and year out, made it into the global rankings of the top universities in the world.
`Some of our institutions of higher learning are home to some of the world-renowned academics on the continent and the world and this also attracts foreign scholars.`