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Meet DUT’s Management Sciences Faculty Executive Dean  

Meet DUT’s Management Sciences Faculty Executive Dean  

Driven by his passion to bring change to higher education and to make a difference to students’ lives, Professor Rishi Balkaran was, through hard work and dedication, recently appointed as Executive Dean of the Faculty of Management Sciences.

 

He was born in Durban and matriculated at Shallcross Secondary School. He then studied towards a Diploma and BTech in Public Management. He later enrolled and completed a Diploma in Hospitality Management and a Higher Diploma in Education at the ML Sultan Technikon.  He also completed his Master’s and Doctorate in Public Management at the then University of Durban-Westville.  Prof Balkaran worked in the public and private sector for more than 10 years and then left to join the higher education sector. He says, “I always had the passion to work with youth, especially, within a higher education context.”

 

Prof Balkaran has 18 years of experience in higher education and has worked as a lecturer, senior lecturer, head of department, deputy dean and now executive dean.  He is also the national chairperson of Tourism Educators of South Africa, deputy chair of the South African Commerce Deans Association (SACDA). SACDA is an association of Deans from the Commerce discipline who meet to discuss and share issues relating to the management and execution of teaching, learning, research and community engagement. In addition, he was also part of the Durban Housing Action Committee and the Natal Advice Centre’s Association.

 

Prof Balkaran is committed to contributing towards the leadership and strategic development of the Faculty and DUT’s strategic focus areas, which are building sustainable student communities of living and learning, research and innovation for development, building a learning organisation and building a sustainable university.

 

He explains that the 2020 vision is to ensure that the Management Sciences Faculty becomes a faculty of choice with a focus on transformation in higher education within a regional, national and global context.

 

Professor Balkaran has been instrumental in driving the faculty’s curriculum renewal process through which several new qualification offerings have been planned. The faculty is also working towards building a research enterprise. He says that he works with a great team who are committed, focused and student-centred.

 

– Noxolo Memela

 

Pictured: Professor Rishi Balkaran, the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Management Sciences.

 

 

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