From the Chancellor
Well wishes for the upcoming examinations
23 October 2020 | From the Chancellor
Dear students
Over the last seven months you have challenged yourselves to adapt to virtual lectures and remote campus communities. Despite the interruptions to your academic year, I applaud your brave spirit in continuing to persevere.
At this stage it’s difficult to predict what the future of work will entail. But this also means that you have extraordinary influence to determine what the world will look like going forward. You are the generation that will shape the skills of the future, elevate the industries that hold value, and establish the culture that will enable shared prosperity and social justice for all.
We must be mindful that we are still in the midst of the pandemic as you navigate this examination period. It is imperative that you remain optimistic about what lies ahead, letting your courage – not fear – motivate you through this phase. Please preserve the resilience and purpose that has guided you thus far.
In my personal and professional journey, I have learnt that we do our best when we don’t give up, regardless of the anxieties we may feel when the end goal is in sight. In life, uncertainty may be one of the few things that are certain. By maintaining your peace during unsettling times, and embracing fearlessness to continue pursuing your dreams, you become an inspiration to many others.
I urge you to stay focused, and wish you all the best. Together with everyone in the UCT community, you are in our thoughts and prayers during this time.
Warm regards
Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe
UCT Chancellor
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Chancellor’s Installation and Inaugural Address
On Friday, 10 December 2021, the University of Cape Town installed its sixth Chancellor, Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe.
The Chair of Council of the University of Cape Town
Ms Babalwa Ngonyama
has the pleasure of inviting you to watch the installation and inaugural address of UCT’s Chancellor
Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe.
This event took place from 11:00 on Friday, 10 December 2021.
“The chancellor is the titular head of the university and presides at graduation ceremonies, confers degrees, and awards diplomas and certificates in the name of the university. The role of chancellor requires an individual of stature with exceptional personal qualities and integrity.”
– Chair of UCT Council
Previous UCT Chancellors
Today we are installing Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe as the sixth Chancellor of the University of Cape Town. We honour our previous Chancellors in this historical photo gallery:
Ceremony order of proceedings
The items collected together in this section of the feature page will help you to easily follow the order of proceedings during the ceremony.
It is tradition for a dedication to be read at the installation of a new Chancellor at UCT.
10 Dec 2021 - 1 min read
Duly elected
On 30 August 2019, Sipho M Pityana, then Chair of Council at UCT, was proud to announce that Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe had been duly elected as the new chancellor of the university, a position that she would take up from 1 January 2020. The new chancellor was elected by an electoral college consisting of holders of UCT qualifications, academic and PASS (professional, administrative support and service) staff, and students.
The chancellor is elected for a 10-year term and Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe’s term started on 1 January 2020. She has embraced the role, even as the COVID-19 pandemic emerged in early 2020 and gained momentum in the months that followed.
“As I took up the reins as Chancellor of the University of Cape Town (UCT) last year, I was inspired by the example the institution set during the pandemic and lockdown crisis. I saw the resolve of Vice-Chancellor Professor Mamokgethi Phakeng and her colleagues to continue to care for their students and each other while lockdown forced everyone to remain at home. I saw the students’ resolve to continue their degree programmes, even under conditions of hardship.”
– Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe, UCT Chancellor
from her welcome message in UCT’s Year in Review 2020 publication
In the news
