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PolSt - Political Studies (Research degrees) PubAd - Public Administration (Research degrees) IR - International Relations JT - Justice and Transformation POL - Politics PPA - Public Policy and Administration PPE - Politics, Philosophy, Economics

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Dr Catherine Duggan

Business in Africa, Political Economy, Institutional Development, Microfinance, Financial Markets and Financial Regulation in Africa

Catherine Duggan is Director (Dean) of the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business (GSB). 

Before joining the UCT GSB she was Vice Dean and Professor of Management and Political Economy at the African Leadership University School of Business (ALUSB) in Rwanda. At ALUSB she was the founding Vice Dean and the business school's first faculty member and helped to design the school's blended MBA curriculum. She also created and taught the popular Politics, Economics, and the Context of African Business (PECAB) course and led the school's executive education programs, including the school's collaboration with INSEAD on an Africa-focused executive education program. 

She was previously a professor at Harvard Business School (HBS) in the Business, Government, and the International Economy (BGIE) Unit, where she taught leadership and political economy in MBA and executive education programs for nearly a decade. At HBS she was the first woman in the school’s history to win the Faculty Award for Outstanding Teaching in the Required Curriculum two years in a row. She also received the Charles M. Williams Award for Excellence in Teaching and was named the Berol Corporation Fellow. 

Dr Duggan has been a Visiting Scholar at the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School (SBS), where she taught the Doing Business in Africa course in the MBA and EMBA as well as Africa sessions in several executive education programs. She has taught courses and sessions on leadership, political economy, and doing business in Africa at various business schools in the United States, Europe, and Africa. 

Dr Duggan's academic work is on the political economy of development in Africa, with a particular focus on institutional development and financial sector regulation. She has worked on the continent for more than twenty years and gained experience in nearly two dozen African countries. She is the author of a number of case studies on African firms and countries, including cases on South Africa, Nigeria, DRC, Zimbabwe, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and others. She regularly leads strategy and leadership workshops for corporations and has advised a number of governments and public sector agencies on the continent and beyond. 

She earned a Ph.D. in Political Science from Stanford University, where she was the G.J. Lieberman Fellow for the Social Sciences, and received a B.A. with honors in Political Science from Brown University.

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The Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) degree is available as a Bachelor of Commerce and a Bachelor of Social Science degree. It offers students the full range of the discipline's areas and approaches, with a range of carefully chosen related subjects.

This degree for the student wants to have a broad grasp of internationally applicable economic science and the political and moral contexts in which it is applied.

This programme places a unique focus on the special economic, political and ethical aspects of the private sector and public sector policy formation in the age of accelerating commercial and informational globalisation. This degree seeks to prepare 'citizens of the world' with skills applicable to a broad range of challenging careers.

Who would be interested in this programme?

This programme is designed to open a variety of career opportunities. Students interested in formulating economic policy, taking account of the implications of such policies for the political and ethical governance of the world, will find this the ideal degree programme in South Africa. A person interested in a career as an international trade diplomat or an international trade expert in the private sector should consider studying PPE through the Faculty of Commerce degree programme. All PPE graduates who obtain adequate grades, regardless of Faculty, will have the basic qualification for further study in Economics or Political Economy at UCT, elsewhere in South Africa, and worldwide.

What are the career opportunities?

Graduates will obtain an excellent first degree which, especially if capped with an Honours and/or Masters degree in PPE, Economics, or another related discipline, will be a sound basis from which to seek a career in senior policy-making in either the private or public sectors, particularly concerning policy challenges raised by globalisation. It is also an ideal beginning for a student who aspires to a career as an international trade diplomat or private/public sector trade policy analyst. Graduates intending to go on to further formal studies will also be qualified to train as professional economists.

What are the possibilities for further study at the postgraduate level?

Graduates will be eligible to apply for the MPhil PPE programme or postgraduate PPE programmes abroad. Depending on a student's choice of subjects, they may also be eligible for postgraduate study in Economics, Political Science or Philosophy. The PPE degree carries full international recognition because of its carefully designed content, which makes it complementary to similar programmes abroad. For students who wish to formulate policy, rather than merely carry out policies made by others, no programme currently available in South Africa competes with UCT's PPE degree.

Important Notes:

• Courses will not be double-counted, and pre-requisites must be met.
• Students who wish to study towards an honours degree in economics must complete ECO3021S.

For more information on the courses, please refer to the  Commerce Undergraduate Handbook . 

For information on applying to UCT, admission requirements, National Benchmark Tests, and key dates, please consult  UCT’s Undergraduate Prospectus . 

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STA6001W: PhD in Statistical Sciences

The topic of the PhD degree is decided in conjunction with a supervisor. Although every effort will be made to link potential students with a supervisor in the field of the submitted research proposal, it remains the responsibility of the applicant to secure a commitment from a suitable supervisor. The research fields of our staff vary in the areas of Astrostatistics, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Ecological statistics, Econometrics and Financial modelling, Multivariate statistics, Decision modelling, Problem structuring and project management, Stochastic processes, Spatial statistics and Statistical Education. For more information on the specific specialisations of staff members, see the Academic staff page

Entrance requirements

A relevant Masters programme demonstrating research ability. Please note that the Department reserve the right to accept you for Masters rather than PhD registration. At the end of one year, your progress will be assessed by the departmental postgraduate committee. Your registration may then be upgraded to a PhD, remain as is for a MSc, or terminated, depending on progress or lack thereof.

Application procedure

Application to the department is facilitated by sending an e-mail containing the following to Ms Celene Jansen-Fielies ( [email protected] )

• Completed expression of interest form
• Full academic transcripts of all courses not completed at UCT
• A two-page research proposal

Students are welcome to initiate the application process at any time during the academic year, although registration usually takes place in February or July.

Once the department has indicated provisional acceptance into the PhD programme, official application is to the Science Faculty by completing the online application form w ww.students.uct.ac.za

You need to ensure sufficient funds to cover your fees and living expenses. A limited number of university bursaries and other bursaries are available.

You need to apply separately for such funding ( http://www.uct.ac.za/apply/funding/postgraduate/applications ). A limited number of tutoring positions are available in the department. The salary would depend on your duties and typically provides not more than R1500 per month for eight or nine months of the year. Note that an offer/acceptance into a postgraduate programme does not automatically ensure or entitle you to a tutorship. The department does not offer any financial assistance to students and it is imperative that students ensure coverage of their own financial needs before they arrive at UCT.

Language requirements

The official language of the university is English. Students may be required to undertake an English proficiency test.

For more information on postgraduate studies (application procedure, funding and rules) of UCT please consult: http://www.uct.ac.za/apply/applications/postgraduates

Note that the department’s approval of your application is a requirement of registration, but the Faculty may have additional requirements.

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Through its School for Advanced Legal Studies , UCT's Faculty of Law offers postgraduates an unparalleled choice of options in full- and part-time postgraduate studies. We have put together a short video t o give you a quick overview of our postgraduate Law programmes. 

Our Faculty has a long-standing reputation for academic excellence and an innovative and critical approach to the law, attracting students from countries across the globe. Besides working with top academics, our students also have access to world-class teaching and research facilities, including an extensive law library.

Postgraduate Studies at the Faculty of Law fall into two main categories:

Postgraduate Diplomas , Masters degree programmes ( LLM  or MPhil ) by coursework & dissertation, and Professional Masters  degrees 

Research degrees which include LLM and MPhil by dissertation; and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) by dissertation

For information on funding your postgraduate studies please visit the UCT  Postgraduate Funding web pages  and the Faculty's scholarship funding page.

PLEASE NOTE: 

For the three-year graduate LLB degree, applicants must select the Faculty of Law when applying.  For the purposes of administration and registrations, this graduate LLB programme is listed as an undergraduate degree.   Applicants can only be admitted to this stream if they are a graduate of UCT or of another university or institution recognised by UCT.

Students enter this stream after completing a bachelor's degree without a law major. Applicants must obtain an average of at least 65% in a standard undergraduate degree to be admitted to this LLB . The applicant's results on a first sitting are used in calculating the average. As such, the results of supplementary examinations are not included but the results of deferred examinations are included.

Students with an average of less than 65% will not normally be admitted, but the Faculty may at its discretion admit students whom it believes nevertheless show the potential to succeed in their LLB studies.In exercising its discretion, the Faculty will consider the applicant's academic performance in the non-law subjects, taking account of the university's policy of redress and diversity. An applicant admitted on this basis may be offered a place on the 4-year programme.

For information on applying to UCT to do the 3-year graduate LLB, please find information at Applying to UCT Law , and also consult the Choose Law booklet .

Postgraduate Orientation and Registration 2023

All the information you need about Orientation and Registration for postgraduate programmes is available on the School for Advanced Legal Studies website. 

ALL POSTGRADUATE REGISTRATION QUERIES must be emailed to [email protected]  -  those sending queries to any other email address will experience a delay in getting a response.

To access a student advisor to assist with academic queries during your registration process, have a look at the information on the Student Advisors page.

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Dr Andrew Marquad

Designation: Senior Researcher: Energy Research Centre Expertise: energy analysis, energy modeling, energy policy, climate change mitigation, climate change policy, energy and climate change governance

Andrew’s current research focuses on energy-related climate change mitigation, as well as South African energy policy and governance, and draws on a wide range of skills, including energy analysis and modelling and policy analysis. He also teaches energy studies at a post-graduate level. Andrew’s 2006 PhD dissertation was on ‘The origins and development of South African energy policy’. His most recent reports, generally co-authored with other memebrs of the programme, have included an ‘Analysis of the economic implications of a carbon tax’; ‘Analysis of possible quantified emission reduction commitments by individual Annex I Parties’; and ‘Economics of climate change: Context and concepts related to mitigation’.

Qualifications

BA (African Politics; UCT); MA (political science; Rhodes); PhD (energy studies; UCT)

Email:  [email protected]

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CompSci student awarded PhD scholarship

The Department of Computer Science is delighted to announce that Nicholas Leisegang has been awarded a Faculty of Science PhD scholarship.

Originally from KwaZulu-Natal, Nicholas moved to Cape Town 2018 to start his academic career, however he did not initially pursue computer science, but instead took mathematics for both his Bachelors and Masters degrees. "While studying logic in a pure maths setting, I became increasingly interested in the uses of logic in computer science, and when I heard about Prof. Meyer’s research unit I was immediately fascinated by the types of logics and their AI applications which he works on. I also thought that the postgrad students and academics who I engaged with in the department before signing up seemed like really nice people to work with," said Nicholas.

With an interest in various different types of formal logics that occur within the context of Artificial Intelligence, Nicholas is fascinated by Defeasible Reasoning, Standpoint Logics, and Description logics, and their applications in explainable AI and large database systems. Working under the supervision of Professor Tommie Meyer, co-director of the Artificial Intelligence Research Unit (AIRU), Nicholas hopes to work with other international academics, in particular Prof Sebastian Rudolph at the computational logic research unit at the Technical University of Dresden.

For students starting out, Nicholas advises  being actively engaged with your work and with other students/researchers around you. "I’ve found this is the thing that’s kept me most motivated and helped me discover fields of study that I am passionate about."

The  Artificial Intelligence Research Unit (AIRU) aims to provide research and thought leadership to academia, industry, government and civil society, so that they can leverage AI to improve people’s lives. AIRU is based in the Department of Computer Science in the Faculty of Science at the University of Cape Town, and is led by Prof Tommie Meyer and Prof Deshen Moodley. 

Department of Political Science

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Global Democracy Conference 2024

Time: Mon May 20, 2024, All Day

Location: Multiple Locations on Campus

The Global Democracy Conference (GDC), organized by the Kellogg Institute for International Studies , is an integral component of the broader University of Notre Dame Global Democracy Initiative designed to connect academic research and non-academic audiences. It will be an annual forum that projects the University as a leader and convener on questions of democracy, while simultaneously facilitating positive, tangible impact on global democratic practices.

With the theme "Understanding Today, Shaping Tomorrow," the inaugural GDC will see the Kellogg Institute convene leading defenders of global democracy at the University of Notre Dame for a series of profound, actionable conversations about the state of democracy around the world. Animated by our understanding of the multidimensional, complex nature of democratic erosion, this conference will i) identify emerging challenges to democracies and possible solutions; ii) highlight the research being undertaken by Notre Dame in order to have meaningful impact in the world of policy; and iii) convene global actors that will help lay the foundation for partnerships with institutions and leaders who might utilize our research in protecting local democratic structures.

The GDC includes two types of sessions: panels, in which participants make formal, 12-minute presentations, and roundtables, which follow a conversational format led by a moderator. Sessions are organized in three thematic blocs:

• New Ideas. Panels primarily formed by academics. They present original research on democracy to a broader audience, emphasizing the substantive relevance of their findings and mapping ongoing debates in the field. A practitioner may discuss how this line of research is relevant to practice.
• The State of the World. Roundtables formed by academics and practitioners. They assess the state of democracy in particular countries or regions, with a particular interest in the near future.
• The Path Forward. Sessions focused on practical lessons to protect and promote democratic governance. Those sessions may take the form of panels or roundtables and may include practitioners or academics. Of particular interest are sessions focusing on particular sectors, such as industries (e.g., technology, finance) or professional fields (e.g., international law) discussing their ability to strengthen democracy.

Our inaugural event is in part generously underwritten by Bert Piedra , a 1978 graduate of the University of Notre Dame and member of the Kellogg Institute Advisory Board.

For more information, visit kellogg.nd.edu .

Originally published at forum2023.nd.edu .

What we know: Donald Trump attends Barron Trump graduate high school in West Palm Beach

Since moving to palm beach after his father left the white house, barron has attended oxbridge academy, a school for grades 6-12 in west palm beach where annual tuition is a reported $41,500..

The most anticipated high school graduation since the end of the pandemic took place at Oxbridge Academy Friday morning.

Among the 116 seniors who received their diplomas in the exclusive, private prep school's graduating Class of 2024 was 18-year-old Barron Trump , the son of Donald and Melania Trump. The former first couple attended the ceremony.

On Tuesday, Oxbridge officials reminded the media and the public that the ceremony at the 54-acre campus was private and by invitation only. The school acknowledged "the heightened interest in this year’s event," presumably because of the participation of the Trumps' only child together, and the erstwhile uncertainty over the attendance of the former president and presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee.

Oxbridge Academy graduation: Prep school asks media, onlookers to stay away from ceremony for Barron Trump, other seniors

Here is what we know:

What do we know about the teenager?

About Barron Trump? Not a lot. The youth turned 18 on March 20, and as a minor throughout his father's public life in television, business and politics, he has been kept out of the spotlight and the media headlines.

At 6'7", he is the tallest of the Trump siblings, and rises above his father, who is 6'4". He has been living at Mar-a-Lago with his parents.

Since moving to Palm Beach after his father left the White House, Barron has attended Oxbridge Academy, a college-preparatory school for grades 6-12 in West Palm Beach where annual tuition is a reported $41,500.

What has Donald Trump said about Barron?

Donald Trump has occasionally spoken about his son, mentioning in a pre-Super Bowl interview more than four years ago that Barron liked soccer. He also noted his youngest son is a computer whiz of sorts.

Trump said last week that Barron is “very popular” in school. In a separate interview, he said Barron occasionally offers him political advice.

During a radio interview with the Kayal and Company show on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT in Philadelphia, Donald Trump said Barron advises him from time to time.

“It’s sort of funny. He’ll tell me sometimes, ‘Dad, this is what you have to do,’” Trump said on the show this month.

Where will Barron go to college?

That's another shrouded topic.

Donald Trump in the past has said he believed Barron would follow in his footsteps by attending the University of Pennsylvania. There has also been speculation that the young man might choose New York University in Manhattan, where he spent much of his childhood — and lived until his father was sworn in as the 45th president in early 2017.

But according to what Trump has told Newsweek, it looks like Barron is mulling other options now.

“Right now, he’s doing a great job,” Trump told the weekly news magazine. “He has great marks. He’s going to be going to college soon. And we’re looking at some colleges that are different than they were two months ago.”

Politics 2024: Barron Trump "declined" delegate invite to GOP convention, Melania Trump said in statement

Is Barron Trump into politics?

For three days last week, the answer appeared to be yes.

On May 8, NBC News reported that Barron Trump had been selected as a member of the Florida delegation to this summer's Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. As a delegate, he would join his half brothers Donald Jr. and Eric, and half sister Tiffany in casting votes to officially nominate their father as the GOP's presidential nominee for a third straight time.

But then, on the evening of May 10, Melania Trump issued a statement that saying that while Barron was honored to have been chosen, he was declining the opportunity due to prior commitments. She did not elaborate as to what those commitments might be.

If he follows a century of first family history, Barron Trump will not be a political player. Other children of presidents, such as Amy Carter and Chelsea Clinton , who spent part of their childhood living in the White House have not pursued political careers.

The exception was the daughter of President John F. Kennedy, Caroline, who served as U.S. ambassador to Australia and Japan.

George W. Bush, the 43rd president, followed his father's footsteps to the White House, but he did not grow up in the presidential mansion. Ditto for his brother, Jeb, who served two terms as governor of Florida and unsuccessfully sought the presidency in 2016.

Will Donald Trump attend his son's graduation?

Yes, he was there.

Last month, Donald Trump fumed "that I can't go to my son's graduation" because of his ongoing New York business fraud trial. However, the judge presiding over the case dealing with the bookkeeping of an alleged hush money payment to a porn star subsequently canceled court on today, allowing Trump to attend the graduation.

Later today, the former president will jet off to Minnesota to speak at a GOP event there this evening.

Note: This is a breaking news story. Please. return for updates.

Antonio Fins is a politics and business editor at  The Palm Beach Post , part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at  [email protected] .  Help support our journalism. Subscribe today .

Department of Political Science College of Social Science

Pls phd students win diversity fellowships.

May 20, 2024 - Karessa Weir

Three PLS PhD students have been named as 2024-2025 American Political Science Association Diversity Fellowship Program recipients during the spring 2024 application cycle. These fellows are currently in the first or second year of PhD programs in Political Science.     The APSA Diversity Fellowship Program (DFP), formerly the Minority Fellowship Program, was established in 1969 as a fellowship competition to diversify the political science profession. The DFP provides support to students applying to, or in the early stages of, a PhD program in political science. 

Since its inception, the DFP has designated more than 600 fellows and contributed to the successful completion of doctoral political science programs for more than 100 individuals.  

Rising Star Award recipient Dr Sabelo Hadebe on forging a career out of immunology

Dr Sabelo Hadebe, a senior lecturer in the immunology division in the Faculty of Health Sciences, was one of 15 global recipients of the Rising Star Award from the International Union of Immunological Society in December 2023. The award recognises outstanding early-career professionals who have made significant contributions to the field of immunology and their communities.  

Hadebe was born and raised in a village outside Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal. His parents, like many of their contemporaries, had only obtained a high school education. Hadebe may have been predisposed in this direction but, through his exposure to paragons of science and his strong spirit of curiosity about them, chose to take responsibility for his destiny by investigating immunology as a career prospect. The rising star has certainly reaped the rewards of his determination, having attained global distinction as an immunologist at only age 38.  

Rebecca Crowie (RC): What got you interested in immunology? Sabelo Hadebe (SH): I only discovered immunology when I got to university. As you can imagine, in South African villages the only career paths we knew about were being a doctor, a nurse (although frowned upon for a heterosexual male), a policeman or a teacher. I commenced my BSc in life sciences at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) in 2005. The previous year, UKZN was formed through a merger between the University of Natal and the University of Durban-Westville, and Professor Malegapuru Makgoba was elected the first vice-chancellor of the merged university. I researched a bit into him only to discover that he was an immunologist and had done medicine and a PhD in immunogenetics at Oxford University. I asked my lecturer in first-year biology — Dr Finley — what I needed to do as a major if I wanted to be an immunologist. At the time, a master’s and a PhD in immunology were only offered at UCT and overseas. Ten years later, I graduated with a PhD in immunobiology in the United Kingdom and did my first postdoctoral fellowship through the National Institute for Medical Research at Mill Hill Laboratory, London, before I joined UCT as a research fellow.  

RC: You took home the Rising Star Award in December 2023, a triumphant way to close a year. What skill or ability served you well in achieving this? SH: The people who received this award were all high-flyers and all came from superb institutes across the world. I was therefore extremely pleased to be recognised alongside them. Generally, the criteria are an excellent publication record and good science. Most of the rising stars have been published in leading journals in their respective fields. I think scientific rigour is important. Don’t chase numbers or trends — produce science that you are happy with. Also, scientific discovery is not a sprint; it is a marathon, so take your time to hone your craft. Always choose collaboration over competition. Never be afraid to say you don’t know. Discovery begins when one doesn’t know and wishes to know.  

RC: Are there any inspiring mentors you’d like to credit? SH: I have been very lucky to have worked with bright immunologists in various institutes who all shaped my career in different ways. I do give credit to Professor Alain Boulangé, a researcher in molecular parasitology who gave me my first lab experience as a third-year student in parasitology (the study of parasites and their hosts). I appreciated the scientific rigour I received at Mill Hill Laboratory, where no idea was impossible. Siamon Gordon, a British-South African pathologist, is still one of the sharpest immunologists South Africa has produced. He is very generous with his time and ideas.  

RC: Allergies are increasing at breakneck speed. A growing number of people are developing allergies to nuts, for instance, which is confounding as nuts are fruits. What explains the modern-day proliferation of allergies? SH: This is quite a complex topic. Currently, there are several theories on why we developed allergic diseases. We have the hygiene hypothesis (“we are too clean for our own good”, coined by David Strachan in the late 1980s) and the barrier defect hypothesis (“industrialisation and detergents have worn off our first line of defence.”) The questions scientists are really focused on are, “Why did Type 2 immunity [an arm of the immune system designed to deal with parasitic infections] evolve when it would be detrimental to the host, as seen in allergic diseases? Was it intended to be detrimental, or was it seized by the dust, the pollen or the nut to cause a random allergic reaction?” The answer probably lies between these theories.  

RC: What energises you in your profession? SH: I enjoy discovery science, and immunology provides me with that. The immune system is so complex and so intricately controlled. I think we only know a fraction of what the immune system can do, despite numerous Nobel prizes given to immunologists in recent times. I think the possibility of what we can learn about our immune system in a healthy state can tell us a lot about other processes like ageing, health and human adaptation to the environment.  

RC: Beyond UCT, what causes do you support? SH: I currently am involved in two non-governmental organisations and one nonprofit organisation, which are all around education. One of them looks at how we improve literacy and numeracy in people as young as 7. We often don’t think about how we learn maths and it’s a skill that can be taught at a young age. I also teach much older people how to develop a good and sound master’s or PhD proposal. You are very likely to find me in any organisation that seeks to address transformation and structural changes in the higher education sector.

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