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M U T

S P I R I T

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S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 0

“The dynamics of higher

education have changed such

that it has become essential to

think more deeply about student

governance and leadership

development, and the place of a

student at a University.”

Student Development Officer graduates with a PhD

He has come full circle! Dr Mthokozisi Emmanuel

Ntuli, Student Development Officer in the Department

of Student Affairs, recently graduated with a PhD in

Higher Education. This is the fulfilment of a dream

whose implementation began at MUT in 1992 when

Dr Ntuli enrolled for National Diploma in Personnel

Management at the tender age of 18. Now he boasts

of a PhD in a very specialised area: student activism,

university governance and leadership development.

His title was “Implications of student activism on

university governance: a multi-case study in South

Africa”. Dr Ntuli did his studies at the University of

KwaZulu-Natal.

“I chose this title as it was most appropriate for

my area of work. For me student governance and

leadership development is not just a job that one

needs to do from 8am to 4pm. It is a profession that

needs to be taken seriously. We all need to have a

deeper understating of what it is like to be a student

nowadays, and the kind of challenges that students

face, given the historical account of higher education

in South Africa. The dynamics of higher education

have changed such that it has become essential to

think more deeply about student governance and

leadership development, and the place of a student at

a University,” said Dr Ntuli.

Dr Ntuli is also an alumnus of the Durban University of

Technology and the University of Durham, UK, where

he did his Master’s degree. In 2018 he was awarded an

ErasmusMundus scholarship to study at the University

of Tampere, Finland, on a doctoral students’ exchange

programme. While at the University of Tampere, Dr

Ntuli attended a doctoral course which was taught by

professors from the US, UK, Europe, South America,

Africa, Australia and China. This provided Dr Ntuli with

new insight on University governance and leadership

development, and on student activism, governance

and leadership development. Dr Ntuli would like to

empower others with the skills and knowledge that

he has acquired and would like to utilise his newly-

acquired insights and perspectives to help develop

the institution.

“This is a very specialised area. I would like to see

the number of people that enrol to study this area

growing. This will have a direct positive influence upon

the management of the higher education sector as

the role of the students and student leadership is fast

becoming more and more prominent,” said Dr Ntuli.

He added that his immediate goal was to entrench a

love for and understanding of student issues in the

higher education sector. “I will do this by engaging

with colleagues in the sector through writing papers,

and sharing information in various ways,” he said.

Dr Ntuli has already published papers on student

leadership and governance.

Dr Ntuli has been working at the University for 24 years.

He worked for seven years in Information Technology

& Networks (IT&N) as a technician focusing on access

control system management; three years as Bursaries,

Loans and Awards Officer; three years as Senior

Officer: Bursaries, Loans, Awards and Scholarships;

and 11 years as Student Development Officer. His love

for interacting with all student-related matters drew

him towards the Department of Student Affairs, which

he joined in 2009.

Dr Mthokozisi Emmanuel Ntuli