College of Business and Economics Annual Report 2017 12 Economic and Financial Sciences) led this portfolio up to the end of June 2017, in collaboration with the Faculty Academic Committee and various other legacy faculty committees on student support. From a student management system point of view, the CBE has moved over to a new academic structure on the MAMS, HEDA and ITS systems for the new cohort of students registering in January 2018. Central Academic Administration aligned the 2018 academic structure according to the merged college model, during the second semester of 2017. STUDENT EMPOWERMENT AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS Every year, aspiring Chartered Accountants have two opportunities to pass the first qualifying examination, the Initial Test of Competence (ITC) − one sitting in January, the other in June. The results of the SAICA June Initial Test of Competence exam were released on 18 August 2017. UJ first-time candidates achieved a firsttime pass rate of 69% in the June ITC, compared to the national average of 66%. The final result brings UJ to a total of 268 successful candidates, that is, a total of 95% of UJ candidates having passed this strenuous exam. In this age of high youth unemployment, universities have a critical role to play in enabling students’ entrepreneurial abilities. The School of Consumer Intelligence and Information Systems, through the Department of Marketing Management, takes pride in leading this endeavour. Collaborative effort by the 2017 Direct Selling Association and the School of Consumer Intelligence and Information Systems resulted in sales turnover of R3 million with 405 students benefitting from R750 000 in commission. The Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Programme is a professional credential, which hosts the CFA Institute Research Challenge − an annual global competition that provides university students with hands-on mentoring and intensive training in financial analysis. The CFA and the Financial Planning Institute teams of the JBS, and the Department of Finance and Investment Management won the South African legs of industryspecific challenges. Four BCom Hons Marketing students qualified as semifinalists in the 10th Global 2017 Google Online Marketing Challenge. Three- to six-member student teams from 100 countries compete by designing, implementing and evaluating the effectiveness of an AdWord campaign for a business or a non-profit organisation. Second-year Gastronomy students at the STH brought one of South Africa’s greatest exports, Michelin Star Chef Jan Hendrik van der Westhuizen, to the UJ School of Tourism and Hospitality. EMPLOYABILITY The employability of our students and their impact on their organisations are strategic imperatives. We have learnt that talented academics are the source of excellent programmes, which in turn improve market reputation that then draws quality students and ultimately boosts graduate throughput and employability. NEW SUBSIDISED PROGRAMMES Fourteen new programmes have been submitted and are at various stages of approval within SAQA, DHET and the CHE. SERVICE LEARNING Collaborative service learning was experienced by students who leveraged the benefits of the flipped classroom and blended learning. Students worked in multicultural teams and shared their experiences to find solutions to the problems experienced by co-operatives. WORK-INTEGRATED LEARNING Work-integrated learning (WIL) continued to be a strategic strength of diploma programmes, and included all undergraduates attending career preparedness workshops offered by the University counselling services (PsyCaD). NON-SUBSIDISED ACADEMIC PROGRAMME ENROLMENT A critical success factor in delivering non-subsidised academic programmes is productive three-party agreements. These typically involve UJ, a multinational or parastatal, and a global partner, for example, the partnership between the Department of Transport and Supply Chain Management, Transnet and the Glasgow Caledonian University in delivering a BSc in Railway Operations. Partnerships also led to consistent delivery of excellent learning products and services, as well as well-planned articulation into diploma and degree programmes. STUDENT SUCCESS AND EXPERIENCE Employer engagement is essential to ensure the academic relevance of college programmes. College initiatives are especially aimed at exposing our students to prospective employers or opportunities for selfemployment. Our sincere appreciation to the private and public sector organisations for their generous contribution of opportunities to enrich our students.
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