List of University of Johannesburg people

This is an incomplete list of notable alumni and faculty (past and present) of the University of Johannesburg including notable people from the merger of the Rand Afrikaans University (RAU), the Technikon Witwatersrand (TWR) and Vista University into the University of Johannesburg.

Alumni

Athletes

Name	Class year	Notability	References
Lisa-Marie Deetlefs	N/A	South African Olympic field hockey player	[1]
Zaid Timol	N/A	South African rugby player who plays for the Lions	[2]
Uzair Docrat	N/A	South African basketball player	[3]
Thornton McDade	N/A	South African Olympic field hockey player	[1]
Caylib Oosthuizen	N/A	South African rugby player for the Tel Aviv Heat	[4]
Shireen Sapiro	N/A	South African Paralympic swimmer	[5]
Micheen Thornycroft	N/A	Zimbabwean Olympic rower	[6]
Francois Uys	N/A	South African rugby player who plays for the Free State Cheetahs	[7]
Irvette van Zyl	N/A	South African Olympic long-distance runner	[1]
Walter Venter	N/A	Former South African rugby player who represented the Golden Lions, Leopards, Falcons, Griquas and the Lions	[8]
Jano Vermaak	N/A	South African national rugby player	[9]
Adel Weir	N/A	South African squash player	[10]

Business

Name	Class year	Notability	References
Zibusiso Mkhwanazi	2005	Entrepreneur	[11]
Bridget van Kralingen	1985	Senior Vice President of IBM Global Business Services	[12]
Lizelle Bisschoff		Founder of the Africa in Motion (AiM) film festival in Scotland	[13]

Politics

Name	Year	Notability	Reference
Joseph Kabila	2019	Former President of the Democratic Republic of Congo	[14]

Faculty

Name	Class year	Field of expertise	Academic level	Notability	References
Nicolaas Johannes Diederichs	N/A	Economics	Doctorate (Ph.D.)	First chancellor of the Rand Afrikaans University and Minister of Finance of South Africa (1967–1975)	[15]
Farid Esack	N/A	Religion	Professor	Islamic studies	[16]
Hendrik C. Ferreira	N/A	Engineering	Professor	NRF "A-rated" researcher specialising in Communication technologies, Information systems and technologies, Electronic engineering, Applied mathematics, Communication technologies & Information systems and technologies	[17]
Adam Habib	N/A	Political Science	Professor	Former deputy Vice Chancellor	[18]
Tshilidzi Marwala	N/A	Engineering	Professor	Known for extensive contributions to the field of mechanical engineering; received the Order of Mapungubwe in Bronze for outstanding contributions to, and inspirational achievements in, the field of engineering science	[19]
Gerrit Viljoen	N/A	Classical literature & Philosophy	Masters	First vice-chancellor of the Rand Afrikaans University, Minister of Education in South Africa (1980–1989), and Minister of Constitutional Development (1989–1992)	[20]

Honorary doctorates

The university may confer advanced degrees, including an honorary doctoral degree honoris causa as an academic award in any faculty. The university follows a conservative awards policy in order to emphasise the extraordinary and inherent value of the honorary doctorate.

Name	Doctorate field	Year awarded	Notability	References
Richard Goldstone	Law	2010	Former Constitutional Court judge	[21]
Richard Maponya	Management	2010	Businessman	[22]
Willem Boshoff	Fine Arts	2010	South African artist	[23]
Aung San Suu Kyi	Literature	2011	Nobel Peace laureate	[24]
Barack Obama	Law	2013	44th president of the United States	[25]
Kees Schouhamer Immink	Engineering	2014	Digital pioneer	[26]
Barbara Masekela		2025	Poet, academic and diplomat	[27]

References

1. "UJ delivers Olympic talent". Sport24.co.za. 13 June 2012.
2. "Prop boost for Lions".
3. "Team South Africa Profile - 2011 FIBA Africa Championship | FIBA.COM". Archived from the original on 2013-09-21. Retrieved 2013-11-07.
4. "UJ steals the show in Varsity Cup opening match". Archived from the original on 2014-10-06. Retrieved 2013-07-23.
5. "Jacaranda FM Mobi site - UJ Paralympian strikes gold". Jacarandafm.com. 2013-08-01. Archived from the original on 2013-08-23. Retrieved 2013-09-15.
6. SSN Staff (2 April 2014). "Down Memory Lane With Micheen Thornycroft • SSN". School Sports Network. School Sports Network. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
7. "UJ crowned Grand Challenge champs". SowetanLIVE. Retrieved 2021-07-28.
8. "Maties too strong for Joburg". Sport. Retrieved 2021-07-28.
9. "SA Rugby Player Profile – Jano Vermaak". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 30 May 2016.
10. http://www.linkedin.com/pub/adel-weir/10/8b0/2b2 ^{[ self-published source ]}
11. "Zibusiso Mkhwanazi | Who's Who SA". Archived from the original on 2013-06-30. Retrieved 2013-11-07.
12. "Bridget van Kralingen". LinkedIn. 2015. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
13. Schmidt, Mimi; Anagli, Sophie (2020-05-06). "Interview with Lizelle Bisschoff, Founder of the Africa in Motion Film Festival". agnès films. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
14. "DR Congo ex-President Joseph Kabila gets Master's degree". 19 July 2021.
15. "Rand Afrikaans University". touristlink. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
16. "Farid Esack". Archived from the original on 2014-01-05. Retrieved 2013-11-07.
17. "UJ has a total of 1 1 3 NRF - Rated Researchers as at April 2013" (PDF). University of Johannesburg. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 19 September 2013.
18. "South Africa: Adam Habib On Higher Education's Role in South Africa's Racial and Economic Transformation (Page 1 of 12)". allAfrica.com. 2013-08-22. Retrieved 2013-09-15.
19. "National Orders awards". South African Government Information. South African Government. Archived from the original on 2012-02-04. Retrieved 12 July 2013.
20. "Gerrit Van Niekerk Viljoen Viljoen". South African History Online. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
21. "Announcement".
22. "Richard Maponya".
23. "Boshoff Biography". Archived from the original on 2013-11-12. Retrieved 2013-11-12.
24. "UJ: Honorary doctorate for Suu Kyi". News24. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
25. "Barack Obama accepts UJ doctorate". City Press. Archived from the original on 5 November 2013. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
26. "Digital pioneer Prof Immink inspires UJ engineering graduates". UJ Newsroom. Retrieved 16 June 2014.
27. Motumi, Mpiletso (11 March 2025). "UJ confers honorary doctorates on two icons". iol.co.za. Retrieved 8 July 2025.