UNISA’s catalytic niche areas have been identified as scholarly spheres of strategic importance that will constitute a core element of our institutional identity in all our activities in service of shaping Africa’s intellectual futures. The inter, trans and multidisciplinary engagements with the CNAs are informing our contributions to teaching and learning, research, postgraduate supervision, innovation and engaged scholarship in substantive ways as we solidify our place in the South African higher education landscape while simultaneously expanding our wider African and global footprints. The College of Graduate Studies is particularly well-placed to play a leadership role in the intellectual and institutional optimisation of the CNAs.
CGS Scaffolded approach
- All Colleges are encouraged to participate in the CGS-facilitated catalytic niche area working groups and they are invited to identify catalytic niche area champions in their spaces.
- By participating in the CGS catalytic niche area working groups, the College champions will be exposed to broader ways of engaging with the niche areas.
- As they report back to their Colleges, this may well spark new avenues for College engagement in already identified or previously marginalised niche areas.
- In addition to its generative potential, the College champions will also alert the CGS catalytic niche area working groups when their Colleges need additional niche area optimisation support (such as workshops, inputs from external stakeholders or experts, assistance with niche area research funding applications).
- The working groups will meet at regular intervals to ensure that momentum is maintained in all the CNAs.
- They will facilitate multidisciplinary engagement with each catalytic niche area, and this will enrich engagement and ensure that the catalytic niche area response is scholarly comprehensive, rich and rigorous.
- They will offer a space to share ideas amongst colleagues who may not otherwise be aware of work that is being done on the same catalytic niche area in other spaces at UNISA.
- This will avoid a silo approach, allow for the pooling of resources, and generate collaboration opportunities.
- The CGS-facilitated CNA working groups will offer a space where challenges can be voiced and discussed, which will facilitate institutional level troubleshooting capacity to ensure that catalytic niche area engagements do not stall when challenges are encountered.
- By hosting these working groups at institutional level, we will create opportunities for inter-CNA interaction where points of cross-fertilisation, alignment, and overlaps can be identified and capitalised upon for maximal CNA optimisation.