The Faculty of Health Sciences continues to exemplify and build on the University of Pretoria’s vision of being a leading research intensive university in Africa: it is recognised internationally for its quality, relevance and impact, as well as for creating knowledge,  developing people and making a difference locally and globally. 

The Faculty is home to 5500 undergraduate and 1500 postgraduate students, including medical and dental fellowship training in more than 40 disciplines. Students are trained by 600 academic staff members located in four Schools, namely Dentistry, Health care Sciences, Health Systems and Public Health and Medicine. Training is in partnership with the Gauteng Health Department in Steve Biko, Kalafong and Weskoppies Hospitals and Mpumalanga’s Witbank Hospital and its community.  

After a call from the Minister of Health in 2013, the Faculty responded by increasing its medical student intake by 60 to meet the national need for more doctors.   To accommodate this increase and to enlarge the learning platform, the Faculty is expanding its facilities and working towards Thembisa and Mamelodi becoming academic hospitals. The Faculty is highly regarded for the quality and excellence of its teaching and learning and its student support systems, evidenced by high standards and throughput rates. 

The Faculty’s research output has grown, in response to the need for research that is relevant to the improvement of health and health care and advancing medicine in South Africa, Africa and globally.  The diverse research focus areas are reflected on our research pages, as is our research support system.  The number of PhD graduates, postdoctoral fellows and research grants has grown substantially and we are an institution of choice for those committed to being serious health science researchers. 

The teaching, learning and research responsibilities of the Faculty are complemented by bringing highly specialised health care to the needy, who would otherwise have had no access thereto.  It is indeed a privilege to have so many top scientists on the Faculty’s staff who are committed to seeing to these needs and to teaching the next generation of professionals, especially when the lure of private practice and international opportunities is so strong. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prof Tiaan de Jager

Dean: Faculty of Health Sciences