TUT celebrates outstanding performance at 2025/2026 Academic Excellence Awards

In the evening of 28 October 2026, the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) celebrated what the Vice-Chancellor and Principal Prof Tinyiko Maluleke called “the purest and most impactful form of excellence, namely, academic excellence”.

Vice-Chancellor and Principal Prof Tinyiko Maluleke Highlighting the university’s commitment to academic excellence and its ambition to move from good to great, the Academic Excellence Awards ceremony was held under the theme “Celebrating the entrepreneurial dance between science and policy”. The event brought together university leadership, academics, researchers, innovators and other stakeholders to honour achievements that strengthen TUT’s contribution to knowledge creation, skills development and innovation.

Among the evening’s distinguished winners was Tanja van der Merwe of the Faculty of Management Sciences, who received the Institutional Lecturer of the Year Award, recognising her contribution to teaching excellence.

The faculty-level Lecturer of the Year Awards recognised outstanding educators across TUT’s academic divisions. The winners were Nina Newman from the Faculty of Arts and Design; Mittah Mogale from the Faculty of Economics and Finance; Dr Witske Meyer from the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment; Sholain Govender-Bateman from the Faculty of Humanities; Dr Fortunate Elisa Ntuli from the Faculty of Information and Communication Technology; Tanja van der Merwe from the Faculty of Management Sciences; Dr JH Linde from the Faculty of Science; and Dr Bryan Robinson from the Tshwane School for Business and Society.

The Higher Education Development and Support Awards also acknowledged professionals whose work contributes to the student experience and academic success. Dr Annelise Wissing received the Curriculum Development Practitioner of the Year award; Dr Thersy Mangena was named Instructional Designer of the Year; Manoko Mogoroga won Student Development Practitioner of the Year; and Tsabuki Makou received the Employability Practitioner of the Year Award.

Research and innovation formed another central pillar of the celebration. In the institutional Research, Innovation and Engagement Awards, P Mhlanga from the Faculty of Science was named Master’s Student of the Year, while MH Mashiachidi from the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment received the Doctoral Student of the Year award.

Prof Alvaro Viljoen, Prof Tinyiko Malulele and Prof Topside Mathonsi. Dr Nicholus Malatji, also from the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, was recognised as Emerging Researcher of the Year. Prof Zeleke Worku of the Tshwane School for Business and Society received the Research Capacity Builder of the Year award, while Prof Tshifhiwa Nenzhelele from the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment was named External Research Income Earner of the Year.

The Creative Industries and Cultural Discourses of the Global South Unit in the Faculty of Arts and Design won Research Niche Area of the Year, while Mpho Kotlolo from the Faculty of Science received the Innovator of the Year award. These achievements underscored the breadth of research and innovation taking place across the university.

The institutional special recognition awards further highlighted TUT’s growing research profile. The TUT-CSIR Cannabis and Hemp Research Hub in the Faculty of Science won Newsmaker of the Year – for the second consecutive year

Tanja van der Merwe was named Institutional Lecturer of the Year. Special recognition was also extended to Prof Alvaro Viljoen from the Faculty of Science for his contribution to research capacity development and transformation, following his South African Medical Research Council Scientific Merit Award. Dr Christiaan Oosthuizen and Prof Barend van Wyk from the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment were recognised in connection with the TUT Solar Car Project Team’s achievement in receiving the 2025 International Council of Academies of Engineering and Technological Sciences Communication Prize.

Prof Viljoen and Prof Topside Mathonsi were jointly recognised for Service Beyond the Call of Duty, acknowledging their exceptional contributions to research, postgraduate supervision and the University’s academic standing.

The TUT-CSIR Cannabis and Hemp Research Hub won Newsmaker of the Year. The awards also celebrated researchers who achieved new, upgraded and renewed National Research Foundation ratings, as well as staff members who obtained doctoral qualifications and graduates who completed Master’s degrees.

Collectively, the achievements celebrated at the awards reflect TUT’s commitment to nurturing talent, strengthening research excellence and translating knowledge into meaningful impact. By recognising excellence across teaching, research and innovation, the University continues to advance its ambition of moving from good to great.

Mpho Kotlolo from the Faculty of Science received the Innovator of the Year Award.