UCT’s first-timers show how it is done
• University strives to be centre of excellence and commits to contributing to the diversification of the accounting profession, writes Penny Haw
With the highest number of successful first-time candidates (263) to sit the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (Saica) January 2018 Initial Test of Competence (ITC) exam of all residential universities, the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) College of Accounting is celebrating.
The pass rate for first-time UCT candidates disaggregated is as follows: African candidates 94%, Coloured candidates 97%, Indian candidates 95%, and white candidates 96%. UCT’s Robert Anderson (fourth) and Byron Miller (seventh) were among the top 10 candidates; both achieved honours.
Moreover, the pass rate of UCT’s Thuthuka Bursary Fund students was 95%. This cohort includes six students from the University of Zululand who completed their Postgraduate Diploma in Accounting at UCT in 2017 as part of the College of Accounting’s capacity building partnership with the KwaZuluNatal institution. All six passed.
But, says the head of UCT’s College of Accounting, Associate Professor Goolam Modack, it’s not just that the results in the ITC are good; it’s also that they were achieved under difficult circumstances. “Students who sat the January 2018 ITC exam were in their pre-final year in 2015 when the protests began at UCT (with #FeesMustFall). Subsequent disruptions over the next two years meant exams were interrupted or delayed, teaching time was lost and schedules had to be reconfigured,” he says.
“And yet, with all the messiness and changes, the university ended the academic years and the class did well in the ITC. I am most proud of the students and academic and administrative staff, and their resilience. To be at the recent graduation ceremonies and celebrate with students and their families was a joyful time.”
Among the changes experienced at UCT in recent years is the demographic of its student body in terms of race, gender and culture. Accordingly, says Modack, the College of Accounting has identified three primary transformation imperatives: the need to transform staff demography; an ongoing drive to identify student challenges, and provide relevant and effective resources and support; and a continued commitment to help build capacity for the accounting profession.
“One of the main thrusts of our transformation imperative is to change our staff demographic,” he says. “We have a better understanding of who we are teaching, but we also need to take into account who teaches. Then just as we want students to succeed, we need to ensure staff are best placed to succeed too. This means putting structures in place to support teaching, research and mentoring programmes for lecturers, tutors and academic trainees.”
The fact that many students do not have English as their first language creates an additional hurdle. In 2014, the college collaborated with the Finance and Accounting Services Sector Education and Training Authority (Fasset) and online educator GetSmarter to introduce an online teaching platform, Learn Accounting (www.learnaccounting.uct.ac.za). It offers free, multilingual videobased learning on key financial and accounting concepts.
“Because it is online, it not only addresses multilingualism, but also straddles the discussion about where learning happens and the role of technology in learning,” says Modack. “It gives students the flexibility to learn when and where it suits them and encourages them to take ownership of their learning.”
The third transformation imperative speaks to a broader objective and is centred on building capacity for the accounting sector. Although, with Saica accreditation having been achieved at the University of Zululand and Walter Sisulu University, UCT’s formal partnerships with the historically disadvantaged universities have come to an end, the college will, he says, continue to provide support as is required and relevant.
But challenges remain. Among them are efforts to ensure students who gain access to UCT are provided with the right kind of support they need to succeed. “Our vision is to be a centre of excellence in professional accounting education and we are committed to contributing to the transformation of the accounting profession by creating and fostering an inclusive learning environment. We’ll continue looking for ways of supporting all students to succeed, despite the challenges they face,” says Modack.
ONE OF THE MAIN THRUSTS OF OUR TRANSFORMATION IMPERATIVE IS TO CHANGE OUR STAFF DEMOGRAPHIC