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Inside Wits University: The Johannesburg Institution Changing the Face of African Excellence

Published

1 month ago

July 23, 2025

Chiraag

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At the heart of Johannesburg, nestled between the buzz of Braamfontein and the city’s cultural corridors, sits a place that has not only stood the test of time but continues to shape the future of Africa. The University of the Witwatersrand, better known simply as Wits, is more than just a university. It is a century-old force of innovation, social justice, and academic grit.

With its iconic Great Hall, a student body of over 41,000, and a legacy that spans Nobel Laureates to Chief Justices, Wits University has earned its place in the top 1% of universities worldwide. Yet its roots are distinctly Joburg: bold, resilient, and deeply committed to progress.

Also read: Inside Grey College Bloemfontein: The Legacy of a South African Icon

From Gold Rush Origins to Global Prestige

Founded in 1922 during Johannesburg’s mining boom, Wits began as a mining school and evolved into one of the continent’s most respected academic institutions. Today, it stands tall among the top 65 universities in the EU and US equivalents and on par with the top 30 in the UK and top 10 in Canada and Australia.

But for many locals, Wits is more than just statistics. It is where generations of South Africans found their voice, protested injustice, and carved paths that led to global recognition. From Nelson Mandela’s legal studies to the halls that saw some of apartheid’s fiercest intellectual resistance, Wits’ history is deeply interwoven with the country’s own.

What Makes Wits Stand Out in 2025

Today, Wits is home to over 1,500 academics and employs around 6,000 people, including 2,500 joint staff across its six faculties. The Faculty of Humanities is ranked number one in Africa, and its health and clinical medicine programmes rank in the global top 100.

It is also the birthplace of trailblazing research. The university hosts the SARAO Chair in Radio Astronomy, led by Professor Roger Deane, tying Wits to global projects like the Square Kilometre Array. In the lab, lecture hall, and township, Wits continues to punch far above its weight.

A Legacy of Leaders

If universities are measured by the impact of their alumni, then Wits makes a compelling case. To date, the university has produced:

4 Nobel Laureates
91 Rhodes Scholars
32 Mandela Rhodes Scholars
2 Chief Justices
4 National Planning Commissioners

Wits alumni populate courtrooms, operating theatres, parliaments, and boardrooms across the globe. They are the minds behind some of Africa’s boldest ideas and toughest decisions.

The Student Pulse in Braamfontein

Wits is not just about prestige. Walk its campus today and you will find murals painted by students, debates spilling out of lecture theatres, and a sense of movement that is hard to pin down. It is dynamic, opinionated, deeply political, and alive.

Wits’ urban campus stretches across Braamfontein, a cultural hub in itself, home to art galleries, jazz bars, and youth-led activism. This setting gives Wits a unique edge: it does not sit above the city; it grows with it.

What South Africans Are Saying

On social media, Wits is often referred to as “the thinking person’s university.” Recent X posts from alumni have praised its centenary legacy and ongoing research wins. One trending comment summed it up: “Wits taught me to think, to question, to rebuild. It’s not just a campus; it’s a mindset.”

Even those who didn’t study there respect its place in South African life. As one commenter put it, “If Joburg had a brain, it would be Wits.”

Why Wits Still Matters in 2025

In a time where higher education is under pressure to be more inclusive, more future-facing and more African, Wits has become a blueprint for what a modern African university can be. Not just a place of learning, but of action.

Whether it is pioneering work in climate science, legal justice, health equity, or astronomy, Wits is showing the world what it looks like when South African talent is properly resourced, deeply curious, and unapologetically local.