Potchefstroom Campus News

Special moment for dean as daughter graduates in programme she championed

Twelve years ago, Prof. Liezl van Dyk, executive dean of the Faculty of Engineering, came to the North-West University (NWU) on a mission: to play a central role in developing industrial engineering as an impactful discipline at the university. Her daughter, Karla, was 10 years old at the time. Now, on 31 March this year, Prof. van Dyk experienced the fruits of her labour first-hand when Karla graduated as an industrial engineer.

“It is a full-circle moment that highlights the impact of academic leadership and the inspiration it offers to future generations of women in engineering… Read more

SADiLaR takes the lead in digitising establishing 11 national languages

Digitising South Africa’s 11 official languages could go a long way towards creating a truly multilingual society. Various projects are currently in progress at the South African Centre for Digital Language Resources (SADiLaR), located at the North-West University (NWU), to create digital resources for the country’s official languages.

NWU on the edge of enhanced understanding of the human brain

Despite some remarkable advances in the history of mankind, the functionality of the human brain remains a mystery. Wouldn’t the possibility to look into the human brain with high precision in a much easier way just be amazing? This has just been made possible at the North-West University’s (NWU’s) Centre for Health and Human Performance (…

COVID-19 poses a clear and present danger to SA economy

“Market trends and other economic data confirm that the coronavirus pandemic (Covid-19) now poses a clear and present danger to the South African economy. The ripple effects from the economic dislocation elsewhere and the immense volatility in financial markets have already reached South Africa.”

This is according to Prof Raymond…

Do you believe in a universal code of ethics or that context matters?

The North-West University’s (NWU’s) Faculty of Humanities in collaboration with the office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research and innovation recently hosted a public lecture titled: “An ethic of care: The soft voice in ethics”.

“This is the very first collaboration with the DVC: R&I this year, and we are looking forward…

Rare Diseases Day 2020: NWU’s CHM at the forefront of preventative healthcare

Did you know that in South Africa, there are approximately three million people living with a rare disease? This means that one in every 16 people are directly affected by a rare disease.

 The Centre of Human Metabolomics (CHM) at the North-West University (NWU) is well known for its expertise and many years of experience in…

Yes, we are in another recession: NWU economists say the red lights are on

South Africa is in a technical recession – what now? Two economists from the North-West University (NWU) discuss the implications of this for the economy.

They say urgent structural change and clear economic policy are now of the utmost importance.

Prof Danie Meyer and Roan Neethling, a doctoral student, say the country has…

Worse than expected GDP data highlights SA’s economic damage

“The worse than expected GDP data for the fourth quarter of 2019 confirms that not only did the South African economy experience a ‘technical recession’ in the second half of 2019, but that growth in 2019 as a whole was also only 0,2%.”

This is according to Prof Raymond Parsons, a well-known economist and academic from the North-…

RAG SRCS gives R2,2 million to community

It is a unique North-West University (NWU) tradition that you will find in few other places. This tradition encapsulates the spirit of the NWU’s students: a commitment to their community and the determination to ensure a better life for those the university serve.

It is the annual RAG Student RAG Community Service (SRCS) pay-out…

Huge hockey feather for NWU’s cap

The International Federation of Hockey (FIH) announced that the North-West University (NWU) will host the 2021 Junior Women’s Hockey World Cup in Potchefstroom.

Although no dates have been confirmed it is a massive coup for both the NWU and the city as the ninth iteration of the tournament – which started in 1989 – will draw players…

NWU alumna appointed as Amplats CEO

North-West University (NWU) alumna Natascha Viljoen is not only breaking boundaries, but is also flying the university flag high. She was recently appointed as the new chief executive officer for Anglo Platinum (Amplats).

Natascha, who will take up her new role on 16 April,  is the first woman to head the world's largest primary…