Two North-West University (NWU) football players were recognised for their performance in the 2025 Varsity Football tournament, taking home major individual honours and contributing significantly to the team’s competitive campaign.

Goalkeeper Ethan Mokwena won the Cashbuild Golden Glove award and the official Goalkeeper of the Tournament prize, which included a trophy and a monetary reward. Team captain Aphelele Sibisi was named FNB Player of the Tournament, receiving a R10 000 prize.

One of the most influential figures in South Africa’s higher education history, Prof John William Mokone Makhene, was the guest of honour at a high-profile colloquium hosted recently by the North-West University (NWU).

The colloquium, held at the Mmabatho Palms Hotel in Mahikeng on 3 October, had the theme “Academic leadership as a catalyst for transformative change”. It was an apt reminder that visionary leadership can shape entire generations.

By Mzwandile Ndlovu

In a tough job market, success in finding employment takes skills, strategy and professionalism. Final-year language students at the North-West University (NWU) honed their post-university preparations during a work-readiness workshop hosted by the School of Language Practice in collaboration with Career Services on the Mahikeng Campus.

By Gofaone Motsamai

The decolonisation of higher education curricula will not happen overnight. In the words of the North-West University’s (NWU’s) Prof Mpho Chaka, it is a “continuous multifaceted journey that involves questioning colonialism’s deep-rooted impacts on the way knowledge is produced and shared”.

Prof Chaka, deputy dean for teaching and learning in the Faculty of Humanities, was speaking at the faculty’s 2025 Teaching and Learning Colloquium, held at the Royal Marang Hotel in Rustenburg from 9 to 11 September.

Sound financial practices alone do not guarantee strong academic results, says a study by North-West University (NWU) postgraduate student Bongani Steven Dhlamini.

His research, titled “The Contribution of Effective Financial School Management to Quality Teaching and Learning in Secondary Schools”, examined how financial management influences education outcomes.

By Gofaone Motsamai and Phenyo Mokgothu

Innovation, collaboration and youthful energy took centre stage in Mpumalanga at the Sabi River Sun Resort, when North-West University (NWU) students and an academic participated in the first G20 National Department of Tourism Hackathon.

Nuclear science and capacity building are particular strengths of the North-West University (NWU), as was evident from its inclusion in South Africa’s official delegation at the 69th Regular Session of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference in Austria.

By Mzwandile Ndlovu

Many of us have felt a racing heartbeat and shaky breath before speaking in public, but this anxiety can be rechannelled into energy and confidence to take command of the podium.

When Motlhankane Lesego stood before an audience at Sol Plaatje University’s international conference to present a paper on Mosinete, a new genre of Setswana poetry, he left with more than notes. It sparked an idea that would become Haikaro, a new literary form.

“It was in the exchanges on intercultural creativity that I started thinking about blending forms beyond Africa,” says Motlhankane, a lecturer in the North-West University’s (NWU’s)School of Languages.