Despite his peers in academia warning him against accepting one of the most daunting vice-chancellor jobs in the country, professor Tinyiko Maluleke is relishing his new role as the head of Tshwane University of Technology (TUT).
In a wide-ranging interview with Sunday World, Maluleke said there was skepticism among his peers about him leaving his role at the University of Pretoria (UP), one of the country’s premier higher education institutions, for one of the most notoriously volatile institutions in the country.
His response to the skeptics was simple. His job as principal and vice-chancellor gives him a frontline role in transforming perceptions about universities of technology and showcasing their powerful role in creating graduates who make knowledge work.
“Universities of technology have a bad reputation in South Africa. They are looked down upon. At the heart of these institutions and that of TUT is the production of future-ready graduates,” he said. “TUT produces graduates who find work and who create work.”
Maluleke, a researcher rated by the National Research Foundation, has more than 20 years of experience in executive management roles at Unisa, the University of Johannesburg, and UP.
He joined TUT from UP where he served as an adviser to the vice-chancellor and senior research fellow at its Centre for the Advancement of Scholarship.
Maluleke, who has a Ph.D. in theology from Unisa, is marking three months at the helm of TUT.
“What this university is doing in skilling the economy needs to be calculated. We will be amazed to find the results,” he said.
At just 18 years old, what TUT lacks in years of experience like some local universities, it makes up for in headline-hogging inventions and students’ achievements, plus an alumni that consist of world-famous personalities.
Sadly, after graduating, past students are only too happy to forget about TUT, and that is why Maluleke is on a drive to activate TUT’s alumni, which includes multi-award-winning jazz artist Gloria Bosman and singer Keabetswe “KB” Motsilanyane and instil a sense of pride in the institution.
“At the heart of TUT is the production of future-ready graduates. TUT staff, from the cleaner to the security guard, secretaries, and messengers must see themselves as contributing to this noble ambition of producing future-ready graduates.”
Maluleke says he had a soft landing at TUT, attributing this to the support of management, staff, and students.
He says TUT is also blessed with “one of the most stable councils in the higher education sector”. It is a large varsity with 65 000 students and a geographical footprint in five provinces, with offices in Cape Town and Durban.
“We are an interprovincial contact learning institution. Our Soshanguve campus [north of Pretoria] is bigger than Rhodes University,” he said, adding the campus is the technology hub of the institution, pointing out the aptness of the location, given that most of the students come from disadvantaged backgrounds and rely on the National Student Financial Aid Scheme for funding.
Maluleke’s focus is on expediting and streamlining the work of the institution in line with the 2025 strategy. He also gets excited about conversations around the organisation’s review to make operations more efficient.
The Soweto-born father of three plays the guitar to relax is fond of his dogs Samson and Delilah and loves hogging the spotlight during travels to West Africa with his good command of the French language. He also speaks all 11 official languages of South Africa.
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