Thousands of Walter Sisulu University students and staff will have to move to different campuses across the province in the new year as the university concludes phase 1 of its rationalisation and consolidation plan.
The university’s plan is to eliminate course duplication as it reduces its faculties from 12 to seven.
University registrar Dr Lulamile Ntonzima wrote to students and staff in November informing them of the restructuring, which will affect registration and campus orientation.
From last week, staff members have already undergone campus orientation on their new campuses with an influx of students expected to arrive on campuses in January.
During his virtual rationalisation and consolidation presentation, university operations director Sinethemba Mpambani said some Buffalo City campuses might no longer be used.
The Heritage site, which serves students studying marketing and journalism, and the College Street campus, which provides courses in engineering and management, will close.
Meanwhile, Butterworth’s Ibika campus, which has newly installed residences and a faculty building completed in September, is expected to receive 4,000 students and will redirect 3,348 students to other campuses.
“The student and staff movements are planned to be done without disruptions to learning and teaching,” Mpambani said.
“These movements will be in sync with the yearly academic programmes, and swift removals of furniture and other staff equipment will be done in December and January.
“There is adequate space for all movements in Ibika.
“However, hospitality, which will be moving to Ibika, will require additional laboratories and therefore move in 2025.
“In Buffalo City, we will see simplification and centralisation of programmes, and some sites will cease to exist.
“Heritage site will no longer be used for academic activities; College Street will also minimise activity.”
In Buffalo City, 3,600 incoming students are expected and more than 4,000 will be moved to other campuses.
The Mthatha campus is expected to receive the lowest number of student transfers, with 369 incoming and 1,756 moved.
“The Zamukulungisa campus in Mthatha will host about 3,392 students, which is far fewer than the space available,” Mpambani said.
“Zamukulungisa has had almost all its buildings for learning and teaching refurbished, and these are continuing.”
The Komani campus is expected to be the home of the institution’s education department, which will move from Butterworth.
Students enrolled in education bachelor degrees for levels 1, 2 and 3 and honours students are expected to move by January 2024.
Information technology students enrolled in diploma from levels 1 to 3 and advanced diploma students are set to move from Butterworth to Buffalo City.
Students enrolled in the economics and financial sciences faculty will move from Buffalo City, Butterworth and Komani to Mthatha.
Students who have failed a course or module in the current academic year, will be allowed to repeat it at a new consolidated campus in 2024.
The movements have received mixed reactions from students, with some believing the change will bring them closer to home.
Student Sanelisiwe Dlambewu said: “I will have to look for new friends.
“There are companies I know I can approach here in East London. Now, having to move to Mthatha will force me to look for other companies that I can approach for my training. It will be hard for me to understand the environment since I have never been in Mthatha before.
“There are companies I know I can approach here in East London.
“Now, having to move to Mthatha will force me to look for other companies that I can approach for my training.
“It will be hard for me to understand the environment since I have never been in Mthatha before.
“This could affect me academically if we are lectured by new lecturers because we are already used to our current lecturers.”
Student Namhla Mbali said: “Moving to Butterworth is a big challenge for me because as a local government finance student I looked into this.
“We mostly study spheres of government and the municipality is one of those spheres.
“I checked the municipality we are going to and found out it has very poor service delivery compared to BCM.”
Akhona Baartman, EFF Student Command convener in BCM and SRC member, said the institution had never really consulted them on the matter.
“We were meant to sit in here in BCM in Potsdam [campus] but it was postponed.
“I think they are trying to run away from the entire project collapsing.
“In Mthatha, they wanted to remove law but they faced resistance from the entire community, not just the students.”
Phase 2 of the rationalisation and consolidation framework is expected to take place in 2025 involving the movement of other faculties.
DispatchLIVE
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.