EdTech
EdTech platform highlights best and worst of SA universities
StuDocu, the higher education EdTech platform created for knowledge sharing, which now has over 100,000 users in South Africa, launched its second annual StuDocu World University Ranking. As the fastest growing market in terms of users, South Africa has been included in the ranking for the first time, which sees a survey of 100,000 students and recent graduates from 1,800 universities across 30 countries. The ranking is the only survey of its kind, as it highlights current student experiences and opinions.
A total of 24 South African universities were ranked by current students and recent grads, based on 16 categories that directly impact students and how they experience life on campus. The StuDocu World University Ranking 2021 brings to the fore what current students can expect from their universities when they return to campus full-time and gave them the chance to grade their institutions on – amongst others – the quality of their remote operations during the pandemic.
On the topic of remote learning, the majority of students surveyed ranked their universities very highly. Students were asked whether their universities offer sufficient facilities to follow classes online and whether their teachers and professors are easily contactable. In response, University of Johannesburg and North-West University came out on top, both notching up a remote learning ranking of 9.0. In contrast, University of Zululand received the lowest score of 6.7.
In addition to understanding remote performance, the rankings also allow prospective students the opportunity to understand what each university offers. Unlike other lists, the StuDocu World University Ranking focuses not just on academic reputation, but also on-campus life, such as quality of food, safety, housing options, sports culture and even the dating scene.
“We are very excited to have been able to include South Africa in our StuDocu World University Ranking this year,” said Marnix Broer, CEO and co-founder of StuDocu. “Across the board, South African students ranked their universities highly, which is great to see, especially in regard to remote learning. When compared with the other countries surveyed, South Africa’s remote learning ratings compare very favourably and are very much in-line with the European and American universities in the report.”
Broer added that the StuDocu World University Ranking 2021 is one of the only rankings that highlight the student experience from the inside, with rankings that showcase current student sentiment.
By highlighting unique categories not found in other surveys, Broer and his team, who recently raised over R700 million to accelerate their global student note-sharing network, aim to provide a holistic view of the overall educational experience at each of the world’s universities, empowering students to choose the best experience to fit their individual needs.
Based on the likelihood of students recommending their university to family and friends, the Net Promoter Score and rank were determined. The top universities in South Africa for the StuDocu World University Ranking 2021 are:
- University of Pretoria
- University of Johannesburg
- University of Cape Town
- North-West University
- Durban University of Technology
- University of Western Cape
- University of Witwatersrand
- Nelson Mandela University
- Stellenbosch University
- Cape Peninsula University of Technology
To view the full rankings, visit https://studocu.com/en-za/world-university-ranking/2021.
