OUTsurance told to pull Cape Town ads over misleading pointsmen claims

South African universities are climbing the global rankings, with Cape Town hosting the world's higher education elite at the Times Higher Education World Academic Summit. The University of Cape Town (UCT) has risen from joint 164th last year to joint 147th, marking its best position in seven years and first time in the top 150 since 2020.

UCT is also Africa's top institution. Other South African universities, including the University of Pretoria, the University of the Witwatersrand, Stellenbosch University, and the University of Johannesburg, have also shown significant improvement, securing spots in the global top 500. South Africa is the only country in sub-Saharan Africa to rank in the top 200 and top 500, with eight of its universities in the top 1,000.

The country's footprint has expanded, recording 17 ranked universities, four more than last year. Mosebjadi Petje, a business development manager for Sub-Saharan Africa at Times Higher Education, noted that South Africa is performing well within Africa and is expanding its global footprint. She emphasized the importance of job-to-faculty ratio, institutional income, and teaching reputation in ranking calculations.

Petje also highlighted the movement of South African universities in global rankings, with some moving up by 124 and 200 places. University of Johannesburg's rise is noteworthy, as it is not among the elite universities but is moving up the ranks, demonstrating that success is not about being in a big university but about demonstrating impact.

Embracing AI is crucial for universities, as highlighted by UCT Vice-Chancellor Professor Mosa Moshabela, who urged collaboration with government to adopt AI tools and share them with society, particularly in South Africa.