Speaking at the Universitas 21 Leadership Top in Glasgow, Mpedi stated that while enrolment throughout South Africa’s public universities has nearly doubled given that the end of apartheid, organizations are still turning away large numbers of qualified applicants and facing financial and facilities restrictions.
Public university enrolment has actually grown from around half a million trainees in 1994 to almost a million by 2011, and that development has continued because, he explained.
Nevertheless, capacity has not kept pace. For the present scholastic year, Mpedi stated, the University of Johannesburg got around 450,000 applicants, creating roughly 850,000 private applications, for just 11,200 first‑year locations.
“Many of you may say it’s a great place to be, but it’s difficult also to turn away people who fulfill your minimum requirements,” he said.Mpedi highlighted facilities and capacity restrictions in the higher education system, combined with trainee lodging scarcities and moneying difficulties, consisting of an estimated 16.5 billion rand in built up trainee debt throughout public universities.South Africa’s National Student Financial Aid Scheme is intended as a
safeguard, but” not everybody is covered,”stated Mpedi. A large group of trainees fall into what he described as the” missing middle “– trainees who fall outdoors financial aid thresholds yet stay unable to afford higher education. Mpedi said his university is seeking to digital arrangement as a method to
extend chances.”In 2025, the University of Johannesburg launched what we call UJ Digital,”he described–” an extensive online knowing platform designed to extend finding out chances beyond the limits of schools”. In 2015, UJ Digital enrolled around 20,000 people, with more than 130 offerings varying from
short knowing programs upwards, and more being added each year. While some see online as a”cheap “choice, Mpedi argued that– done appropriately– digital education is “something to think about “both for quality and for equity.”The digital divide is a huge difficulty that we are having,” he acknowledged, but stated the university makes sure that online students are not treated as second‑class students. His aim is a”digital twin of the brick‑and‑mortar school”which includes access to support and counselling. Mpedi positioned the university’s method clearly in regards to social effect.”We do not want to be the
best university on the planet. We state we wish to be the best university for the world,”he stated. “One of the styles of our tactical plan is that whatever that we’re doing as a university must have a favorable effect on the society. ” We do not wish to be the very best university
in the world. We state we wish to be the very best university for the world … everything that we’re doing as a university must have a favorable influence on the society Letlhokwa Mpedi, vice‑chancellor and principal, University of Johannesburg A lot of Johannesburg’s trainees are the first
in their households to go to university, and Mpedi said viewing them graduate stays a source of optimism.”When they graduate, they don’t just change their own
lives, they change the lives of their families, the communities they come from,”he told the top.” That gives me hope.”The University of Johannesburg is the just South African university and the only African member of the U21 network with Mpedi keeping in mind that “UJ’s participation guaranteed that African viewpoints form part of worldwide conversations on the future of higher education”. “We remain focused on enhancing global collaborations and making sure that cooperation translates into real impact for society, both in South Africa and internationally, “he included.”It was a benefit to take part in a Leaders
‘Summit that was so thoughtfully preceded by the U21 Yearly Network Fulfilling, which set a strong collaborative tone for these important conversations.”