University of South Africa (Unisa)

The University of South Africa (Unisa), the only higher education institution to carry the name of the country, is the people's university in every sense of the word. Throughout its history, spanning 15 decades, Unisa has responded to the development 15 decades, Unisa has responded to the developments brought about by changing times, the needs of a developing country and society at large, and an ever-evolving higher education environment. This was achieved through ongoing and dynamic transitioning. Unisa's journey has been one of continuous growth and transformation, aimed at shaping tomorrow through education. Unisa's roots (and indeed that of higher education in South Africa) date back to 1873 when the University of the Cape of Good Hope was founded, initially functioning as an examining body for higher education. In 1916, the university changed its name to the University of South Africa and in 1918 it relocated to Pretoria. In 1946, it became one of the first public universities in the world to teach exclusively by means of distance education. Today, Unisa is widely recognised as a leading comprehensive, open, distance and e-Learning (CODeL) university. The university has more than 370 000 students and is the largest university in South Africa and on the African continent, and one of the world's mega-universities. With offices across South Africa and students from 109 countries, Unisa has an extensive geographical footprint and global reach. At Unisa, our vision, mission and values unite our diverse culture while guiding us in our decision making and strategic planning. Vision The Unisa community is inspired by its vision to become the African university shaping futures in the service of humanity. Our vision defines everything that we do. It describes our wish to serve every country on the African continent and the broader global community while transcending language and cultural barriers. We are 100% committed to the communities and individuals we serve. Mission We are clear on our mission to be a comprehensive, open, distance and e-Learning (CODeL) institution that produces excellent scholarship and research, provides quality tuition and fosters active community engagement. We are guided by the principles of life-long learning, student-centredness, innovation and creativity. Through our efforts we contribute to the knowledge and information society, advance development, nurture a critical citizenry and ensure global sustainability. Values Ethical and collective responsibility: Ethics reflect the intrinsic and extrinsic values, principles, norms and standards to which Unisa is committed and are undergirded by respect, integrity, accountability and excellence. Our ethics guide all institutional conduct, actions, decisions and stakeholder relations, supporting equity and fairness. Against this backdrop, our decisionmaking will be participatory in the interests of the effective and efficient functioning of the university – all employees are equally responsible for decisions taken and implementation is underpinned by commitment and loyalty to and solidarity with Unisa. Integrity: Integrity refers to conduct guided by honesty, equity, respect, transparency and responsibility in all that we do. Integrity must be evident at an individual level and it should be infused in the character of the institution through the behaviours of the individuals who constitute and engage with the university. Innovation and excellence: At Unisa, innovation and excellence characterise the actions, attitudes and culture required to create new ideas, processes, systems, structures or artefacts which, when implemented, lead to a sustainable and high-performing institution. They are the underlying principles that we, as change agents, use to make a difference in the way we work with the limited resources available to achieve our specific goals despite contextual and policy constraints. Innovation requires everyone to adopt a problem-solving approach that fosters intellectual ingenuity and novel solutions rather than simply problem identification. Responsive student-centredness: Responsive student-centeredness reflects our commitment to recognising, cultivating and promoting the interests and views of students – especially their lived experiences and prior learning – in order to achieve academic access and success in a comprehensive, open, distance and e-Learning context. Dignity in diversity: At Unisa, we will strive to promote humanness, anti-racism and self-worth in the context of cultural and intellectual differences for the attainment of equality, and will not tolerate unfair discrimination based on race, gender, sex, pregnancy, marital status, ethnic or social origin, colour, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, conscience, belief, culture, language, birth, HIV status or any other arbitrary grounds. This value speaks to Unisa's soul and identity. Accountability: In order to promote a high-performance culture and work ethic, we accept individual accountability for our decisions, our actions and mistakes as individuals – irrespective of whether we are leaders, employees or students. We are clear about our expectations from each other and we ensure that our expectations are credible and reasonable. We hold one another accountable for what we have agreed upon within a Unisa consequence management regime. ...view more