Durban University of Technology (DUT) is a leading University of Technology in South Africa with over 34 400 students. DUT offers excellent, high quality and market-relevant academic programmes across six faculties. Tracing its roots back to 1907, DUT is a modern, metropolitan, multi-campus University that operates on five campuses in the vibrant port city of Durban and on two campuses in the provincial capital city of Pietermaritzburg.

DUT prioritises the quality of teaching and learning, research and innovation whilst also offering outstanding opportunities for undergraduate and postgraduate students across multiple disciplines.

The University has a pool of experienced and highly qualified staff who also are scholars in their own right and play important leadership roles in regional, provincial, national and international organisations.  The pool of its researchers who have National Research Foundation ratings and are recognised both nationally and internationally has also grown over the last eight years.

DUT qualifications are recognised both nationally and internationally. The University has a remarkable track record of producing outstanding graduates who are pioneers, innovators and leaders in various sectors of the economy in South Africa and beyond. As a member of a number of national and international organisations, DUT is consistently at the cutting edge of higher education, technological training and research. 

DUT is making significant strides with its research, innovation and engagement areas and the number of its postgraduate enrolments has dramatically increased over the last five years. To this end, DUT was awarded the prestigious Focused Research Advancement Award from the NRF, recognising its exceptional growth in research productivity and alignment with the ENVISION2030 strategy, further to this DUT scientist, Professor Faizal Bux has been named among the world’s top 2% of scientists for 2024 by Stanford University and Elsevier, highlighting his exceptional global research impact.

The University also hosts the award-winning and outstanding Institute for Water and Wastewater Technology (IWWT) that continues to produce high impact outputs, train postgraduate students and is home to a number of researchers and multi-disciplinary teams.

Since 2018, with its thriving entrepreneurial incubation programmes, the University also has a track record of students who have successfully established their own small micro and medium businesses. This addresses our socio-economic challenges and joblessness of graduates in our region.

The University offers excellent student entrepreneurship support and it has established the award-winning innobiz DUT Centre for Entrepreneurship and Innovation – Social Entrepreneurship Rapid Incubator, DUT Enactus and the University’s Entrepreneurship Programmes run across all faculties.

In addition, the Cooperative Education Directorate also offers students support in finding Work Integrated Learning placements, as required by their programmes, as well as graduate placements.

Durban University of Technology (DUT) has climbed to 11th place in the 2024 Times Higher Education Sub-Saharan Africa University Rankings, up from 13th in 2023, cementing its position as a leader in transformative education and innovation. As the top-ranked university of technology and fifth among South African universities, DUT’s success reflects its commitment to societal impact through its ENVISION2030 strategic plan. Recognised for excellence in research, sustainability, and African heritage, DUT continues to shape adaptive graduates who drive positive change.

DUT hosts the DUT Confucius Institute, the Urban Futures Centre, Institute for Systems Science, Food Science and Nutrition, Green Engineering, Smart Grids, Global Health and Sustainability and other research focus areas.

DUT also has two University Technology Stations that have been supported by the Technology Innovation Agency from their inception: The DUT Energy Technology Station known as “KZN Industrial Energy Efficient Training and Resource Centre” (IEETR); The Reinforced and Moulded Plastics Technology Station.

DUT has officially established the  Business School under the ambit of the Faculty of Management Sciences. Its curriculum is focused on applied business which will enable leaders to solve real-life problems. The School offers a variety of academic programmes, executive education courses and short learning programmes. The DUT Business School also designs tailor-made, in-house programmes and collaborates with corporate, public and non-profit organisations to develop and capacitate employees in various areas.

At its core, DUT has “People-Centred and Engaged” and “Innovative and Entrepreneurial” as its DNA strands. As part of its Stewardship Perspective of ENVISION2030, its values are Transparency, Honesty, Integrity, Respect, Accountability, Fairness, Professionalism, Commitment, Compassion, Excellence.

The University always strives to be an anchor institution that is constantly engaged with its community and richly embedded within its regional ecosystem while remaining nationally and globally connected and relevant.