The College of Law and Management Studies Continues to be the College of Choice for Top Achievers

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The College of Law and Management Studies (LMS) welcomed 125 first-year students across its various degree programmes who achieved between six and eight distinctions and an Admission Point Score (APS) ranging from 46 points to 40 points in the 2021 National Senior Certificate (NSC) matric exams.

Bright sparks Mr Thembelihle Mthuli, Mr Thomas Kaztenellenbogen and Ms Sameera Esat, who all achieved an APS score of 46, said despite the challenges of studying during the COVID-19 pandemic, deciding on UKZN as their institution of choice was a no brainer.

For Mthuli, who aspires to become a chartered accountant, finding a university with vision, goals and objectives that align perfectly with his own led to him pursuing a Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting at UKZN.

‘I had to take into consideration the course I intended to pursue and after I did some research and consulted current UKZN students at the School of Accounting, Economics and Finance, I was further put to ease about my choice and never looked back. Although the idea of being at UKZN excites me greatly, l still keep focused on my dreams and goals - the main one being the one I’ve had since I was a little boy which is to become a chartered accountant and this is the first step,’ he said.

For Bachelor of Laws student Katzenellenbogen, hearing from his older brother about his enjoyable experience when he was a Law student at UKZN, and the fact that the University is an affordable option for his family is what reaffirmed that the School of Law was the right choice.

‘My brother told me about UKZN’s renowned Law School and I hope to grow through the academic challenges and be even more passionate about my degree. I have faced challenges in my life such as my parents’ divorce and losing my father three years ago. These struggles, however, pushed me harder to achieve more at school,’ he said.

For Esat, while a Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting was not her first choice as she was already pursuing a medical career, her aspirations of becoming a Chartered Accountant were too strong.

‘After matric, I completed four years of the MBChB degree at the University of Cape Town, after which I made the extremely difficult decision to transfer to BCom. This came after the realisation that I did not enjoy clinical medicine and no longer wished to pursue a career in the field of healthcare. I had multiple reasons, some of which included my disillusionment with the healthcare system, as well as struggling to deal with the immense suffering and death of patients. This was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. I enjoy Accounting and the degree offers a diversity of opportunities. I also find that it fits well with my personality type,’ she said.

Words: Thandiwe Jumo

Photographs: Supplied