Report on transformation at SA universities: it is about more than numbers

Abstract

Over the last two decades, repeated incidents of racism and sexism on campuses and the nationwide #FeesMustFall student protests highlighted the ongoing need for transformation in South Africa's universities. Antoinette Oosthuizen spoke to Thierry Luescher about an HSRC research report on the state of transformation in South Africa's public universities. ince the advent of democracy, black students have gained increased access to higher education, but this has happened in a context of significant academic, social and financial challenges. Black students in historically white universities have had to struggle against entrenched institutional cultures of whiteness; students from disadvantaged communities have faced huge financial challenges including recurring problems with the national financial aid system; and female staff and students have been faced with patriarchal attitudes and behaviours. The massification of higher education has also come at great personal costs, with high dropout rates for students.