www.uct.ac.za: University of Cape Town

UCT aspires to become a premier academic meeting point between South Africa, the rest of Africa and the world. Taking advantage of expanding global networks and our distinct vantage point in Africa, we are committed, through innovative research and scholarship, to grapple with the key issues of our natural and social worlds. We aim to produce graduates whose qualifications are internationally recognised and locally applicable, underpinned by values of engaged citizenship and social justice. UCT will promote diversity and transformation within our institution and beyond, including growing the next generation of academics.

Foundation statement underpinning the mission statement

Our research-led identity is shaped by a commitment to:

• academic freedom as the prerequisite to fostering intellectual debate and free inquiry;
• ensuring that research informs all our activities including teaching, learning and service to the community;
• advancing and disseminating knowledge that addresses the key challenges facing society – South African, continental and global;
• protecting “curiosity driven research”;
• nurturing and valuing creativity in the sciences and arts including the performing and creative arts;
• stimulating international linkages of researchers and research groupings.

We strive to provide a superior quality educational experience for undergraduate and postgraduate students through:

• providing an intellectually and socially stimulating environment;
• inspired and dedicated teaching and learning;
• exposure to the excitement of creating new knowledge;
• stimulating the love of lifelong learning;
• the cultivation of competencies for global citizenship;
• supporting programmes that stimulate the social consciousness of students;
• offering access to courses outside the conventional curricula;
• attracting a culturally and internationally diverse community of scholars;
• guaranteeing internationally competitive qualifications;
• offering a rich array of social, cultural, sporting and leadership opportunities;
• providing an enabling physical and operational environment.

In advancing UCT as an Afropolitan university, we will:

• expand our expertise on Africa and offer it to the world;
• extend our networks on the continent, along with our global connections and partnerships;
• promote student and staff exchanges and collaborative research and postgraduate programmes;
• engage critically with Africa’s intellectuals and world views in teaching and research;
• contribute to strengthening higher education on our continent.

We strive to provide an environment for our diverse student and staff community that:

• promotes a more equitable and non-racial society;
• supports redress in regard to past injustices;
• is affirming and inclusive of all staff and students and promotes diversity in demographics, skills and backgrounds;
• offers individual development opportunities to all staff;
• is welcoming as a meeting space for scholars from Africa and around the world.