By Anica Hattingh
For many years, the student experience at Stellenbosch University (SU) has been shaped around undergraduate life, with well-established residences, Commuter Student Communities (CSCs) and a vibrant campus experience. However, as SU has shifted its position to research output over recent years, the postgraduate population has grown significantly, now making up at least half of graduating students. Despite this, many postgraduates have found themselves without the same level of structured support or sense of community. In response, SU has officially launched a dedicated society for postgraduate students: the SU Postgraduate Network (PGN).
Liam Gillesen, a member of the PGN’s committee, shared that a particular need arose among postgraduate students, driving the motivation behind the society’s launch. The often-solitary nature of postgraduate research has left many to face issues such as isolation and limited engagement. A sense of community and belonging was what was missing from many postgraduates’ experiences on SU’s campus, and the PGN aims to address this very need.
The main aim of the Postgraduate Network is to offer “a place where [postgraduates] can feel connected [with] the institution”, especially since many of the students have finished their undergraduate degrees at other universities. While this is a relatively new society, the PGN is aiming to create a diverse and meaningful community for the postgraduates on SU’s campus.
Their first event, Encircled, was hosted on 12 March. The event was a “debate-style” discussion that allowed students from various faculties to not only share some of their research and campus experiences, but also to converse on broader topics such as South Africa’s political climate. A 10-minute allocation was allowed per topic and two sides (“proposition and opposition”) were structured, allowing attendees to offer their perspective and gain insight from others. Gillesen shared that the event allowed them to “test the waters to see, as a committee, what [they] need to work on and what kind of offerings [to provide]”.
