Road warriors: Leilah Latief, Aadam Wei, Fareedah Davis, Ielhaam Isaacs, Ashley Detyt, Faheem Jakoet and (in front) Regan Summers added colour and whimsy to the sale of Sax Appeal.	Motoring magazine: Nonqaba Bengu and other UCT students did their best to convince motorists to part with a R20 for Sax Appeal.

The energetic students were on the go as early as 4am to get sales of the popular magazine underway. All proceeds (with R1 million the target) from sales of the 40,000 copies go to student-run charity SHAWCO, aka the Students' Health and Welfare Centres Organisation.

The 79th edition of Sax Appeal was themed Bringing Saxy Back. The students' eye-catching (and often minimalist) outfits certainly worked a treat as they enthusiastically cajoled motorists to part with R20 for a copy of the magazine.

Peddler Ross Hare said the lure of having fun making a positive contribution to the development of education in the country was a big motivation to sign up for SAX Appeal. "An important problem that needs to be addressed in this country is education," he says, "and as the leading university in Africa and South Africa, we need to be doing as much as we can to correct these kinds of problems."

Convincing sleepy motorists to splash the cash proved to be easier for some than others. Some depots exhausted stock quickly, while others found their customers to be more miserly.

Most of the students agreed that SAX Appeal was a scream - when they managed to sell it. "It's fun when you get stuff sold," reported first-year student Kim Enfield.

View the photo album.

They're in high demand, but South Africa is battling to produce accounting professionals in adequate numbers, particularly from black communities.

To improve both the quantity and quality of accounting professionals such as chartered accountants, auditors, financial managers and tax experts coming through the system, and more importantly, to help transform the profession, UCT's Department of Accounting is ringing in some changes this year.

The department, a globally-recognised leader in the accounting education, has been renamed as the College of Accounting. The college was officially launched to much fanfare on 9 February.

But the change is more than just cosmetic.

"The college will have a far more explicit professional orientation than its predecessor," explains Associate Professor Mark Graham, founding head of the college, "and this will be embodied in its vision, mission and in the performance evaluation of its academics."

This, adds Graham, will allow the college to become involved in professional and transformational activities that will benefit both the accounting profession and society in general. While the training programmes will remain largely the same, the college will explore different ways to improve its throughput, especially that of black students. So it may, for example, look at language issues in the teaching of subjects.

"We need to understand how to better the teaching of students whose first language is not English," says Graham.

Beyond its own classrooms, the college works with the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants to assist Walter Sisulu University and the University of Zululand - two of the most disadvantaged institutions in the country - ramp up its programmes. Also, the college intends to play a more active role in government, where accounting has been found to be "a little weak".

Academics will be expected to provide high-level consultation to the state, and to be involved in the drafting of legislation, among other things. It is with this ambitious agenda in mind that the college wants to kick off 2012.

"We want to focus on what we do well, and that is important to get the economy of the country sorted," says Graham.

UCT's Law, Race and Gender Unit (LRG) has called for new legislation to replace the controversial Traditional Courts Bill.

Introduced by government in 2008, the bill was withdrawn from the National Assembly last year after pressure from opponents. Its imminent reintroduction in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) was announced in mid-December, giving rural people two months to submit their comments by 15 February.

LRG is working with the Legal Resources Centre and local community-based organisations to ensure that people living in rural villages will have an opportunity to speak out against the proposed passage of the Bill, which is considered unconstitutional by legal experts. A consultative workshop involving 100 rural delegates from different provinces came together in Johannesburg in January to discuss the bill and the way forward.

LGR has proposed that new legislation should be drafted, based on the views and needs expressed by ordinary rural people in the process of their consultation. The unit established the Rural Women's Action Research (RWAR) project to support rural communities, especially women, who live under systems of customary law and traditional governance.

RWAR has played a key role in educating rural people about the Traditional Courts Bill. It has also helped many rural communities and groups to make submissions directly to Parliament on the proposed legislation.

LRG director Associate Professor Dee Smythe said the approach taken by the RWAR project provided an opportunity to build models of practice in legislation that are inclusive and participatory.

The project is one of the recipients of the 2011 UCT Distinguished Social Responsiveness Award, established by vice-chancellor Dr Max Price to promote the university's commitment to social responsiveness.

Tabling of the bill took place on 26 January 2012 after which members of the select committee took it to their provinces for rural consultations. Once the NCOP has made amendments and a decision about the bill, it will return to the National Assembly.

Dr Sindiso Mnisi Weeks, a senior researcher in RWAR, said many rural people were not aware of the pending bill, nor were they consulted about how it would affect them.

"The bill would centralise power with traditional leaders, and would allow them to singlehandedly decide a dispute," she said. "It was drafted in consultation with traditional leaders only.

"As the bill now stands, women in particular would be affected, because they would not be assured of their right to self-representation. Should a woman's husband die, she would not be protected against those who would want to grab her property."

Limpopo community leader Patric Mashego is one of the rural people working with the RWAR to oppose the Traditional Courts Bill.

"This bill and laws such as the Limpopo Traditional Leadership and Institutions Act destroy the dream we fought for over many years. Instead of making rural people equal citizens in a unitary South Africa, they make us subjects of chiefs who are given the coercive power to get rid of those who try to hold them to account. You may say that not all chiefs are bad. That is true, but only bad chiefs need laws like this."

Mashego said the bill would create a crisis around the issue of tribal levies.

"We are experiencing a serious problem with tribal levies and the bill will make the problem into a serious crisis if it is enacted."

Aninka Claassens, the RWAR project leader, added: "If people don't pay those levies, traditional leaders refuse to give them the proof of addresses that are necessary in applications for identity documents, pension and child grants."

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In the game: When Dillyn Leyds touched down, UCT appeared to be back in the game.	Fumble: All too often, as here with Damian de Allende, UCT's handling - with the goal line beckoning - let the side down.

The Ikeys were punished for a litany of missed chances and unforced errors as the players from Bloemfontein outscored them by four tries to two. The home team seemed to be its own worst enemy on an unusually windless Green Mile.

Despite creating several clear scoring opportunities, UCT's pack were outgunned in the set-pieces and tight-loose, forcing the team onto the back foot. The visitors had raced into a 16-0 lead before UCT finally troubled the scorers through fullback Dillyn Leyds, who finished an expansive move in the corner.

UCT conceded a further 14 points before they scored again, but captain Ntsolo Setlaba's five-pointer came when the match was already lost. How Kevin Foote's team rued twice dropping the ball with the try-line at their mercy.

Ikeys flyhalf Nicholas Holton, one of the few in blue and white hoops who caught the eye, saw his expertly crafted opportunities squandered by team-mates far too often. Foote was crestfallen.

"Our handling was just atrocious, and we couldn't get through any phases," the coach said.

Foote refused to blame match-day nerves for his new-look squad's defeat.

"We're better than that," he said, adding that the next game against the University of Johannesburg was crucial. "We have to fight for our lives going up to Johannesburg. If we don't, then this campaign is going to finish before it's even started."

UCT orientation headed down the homestretch with O-Week kicking off on Monday with the plaza baraza, and a whole string of side events.

Despite the mercury pushing unbearable, there was a pool of cool societies and clubs strutting their stuff to potential new members. With many of the more than 80 societies on show, students were spoilt for choice - on offer was everything from tabletop gaming, politics and worship to wakeboarding and gymnastics.

Also part of the day's line-up was the condom fashion show staged by the UCT HIV/AIDS Institutional Co-ordination Unit (HAICU), in partnership this year with online magazine Vintage Lifestyle, to create awareness around HIV/AIDS.

"It is an important start to the year to get students thinking about prevention messages and making responsible decisions," said HAICU project officer, Lucina Reddy.

With Craig de Sousa spinning the decks and MC DJ Suga spurring on the crowd, student teams created stylish yet edgy outfits with condoms as the main accessory. Second-year history and law student Phathiswa Magangane walked away with Cavendish Square vouchers for her winning couture and will be featured in the coming addition of Vintage Lifestyle. The runner-up was final-year BCom student Khanyisile Masango.

Jumper: BSc student Kate Hawkridge from UCT Gymnastics makes a backflip look easy-peasy.

A new addition to O-week is the SRC 100Plus sports tournament. Taking place at the Sport Centre and the adjacent Green Mile (rugby fields), greenhorns got a taste of some sports on offer at UCT.

The two-day social event is organised by the Students' Representative Council and led by sport and recreation co-ordinator Lorne Hallendorf, and sponsored by energy drinks company 100Plus. First-years, new undergrads and international students could try their hand at a range of martial arts, as well as football, gymnastics, netball and volleyball, among other codes.

Grants from the US's National Institutes of Health (NIH) are sought-after treasures, but the application procedures are exacting.

To improve the success rate and management of grant applications from Africa, the NIH is in 2012 funding a series of training workshops. Two of these will involve UCT and three other African universities - Mbarara University in Uganda, Moi University in Kenya and the University of Zambia (UNZA).

The NIH's supplement grant, from its Initiative on Research and Innovation Management, will allow research administrators from these universities to meet = once at UCT and once at UNZA in Lusaka - to spruce up their grants management skills. Here participants will get a broad overview of the research environment, the role of research administrators in this context, and the links between grantees and sponsors, especially the NIH.

UCT's Wilna Venter got an early start in 2010. Courtesy of an International Extramural Associate Research Development Award (IEARDA), she spent three weeks at the NIH headquarters in Washington brushing up on NIH policies and procedures.

In what's now become business as usual, the UCT GSB's full-time MBA programme has yet again moved up the ranks (by six places to 54th spot) in the Financial Times (FT) of London's Global MBA Top 100 released in January.

This is the eighth consecutive year the school has been listed.

The GSB programme has also been ranked the best-value-for-money MBA in the world - a title it held in 2011 and 2009.

The business school first got a seat at the top 100 table in 2004, when it joined the illustrious list in 82nd position. Today, the UCT GSB remains the only business school in Africa ranked in the FT MBA Top 100 for its full-time programme.

This year's list also saw the school ranked 10th in the international experience category and 17th in the career progress ranking.

All ears: Carl Herman, director of UCT's Admissions Office, addressed hundreds of out-of-town parents at this year's Parents' Orientation.	Attentive: Throngs attended Parents' Orientations.

This assurance carries more weight when it comes from a senior student like Mike Ramothwala, Students' Representative Council (vice-president: external). Ramothwala was addressing this year's event for out-of-town parents on 31 January. (The first Parents' Orientation, for local parents, was held on 28 January.)

"Students from other universities often ask us why we never strike at UCT. But really there is nothing to strike about," Ramothwala explained to amused parents who had packed the Jameson Hall.

Ramothwala was quick to encourage parents, urging them to support their children and monitor their progress, saying studying at UCT "is not a walk in the park".

Acting vice-chancellor Professor Crain Soudien also assured parents that the university would provide the best learning environment in the form of world-recognised lecturers, quality support systems, and a suite of extra-mural activities and services such as the Jammie Shuttles, the Student Wellness Service and Campus Protection Services.

This was good news to parents like Caroline Kadenge, who brought her eldest daughter to UCT all the way from Kenya.

"For every parent it is comforting to know that your child will study in a safe environment," Kadenge said.

Seeing red: Prof Marian Jacobs, clean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, and orientation leaders Letisha Lalu (left) and Mampho Dlulane made sure first-year students received a warm welcome.	Weighty matters: This morning, law students received a talk on UCT transformation as part of their orientation.

After the humanities and commerce faculties had set the tone with their programmes last week, the majority of the expected 4,200 new first-year students got their first taste of life as a UCT student today. Upper, middle and health sciences campuses were swarming with brightly coloured T-shirts as uniformed orientation leaders (OLs) worked to give the freshers a fun and informative welcome.

The new students were treated to a combination of upbeat receptions from their OLs and useful talks from university officials. During the orientation programme, students will be briefed on just about every aspect of life as a UCT student.

The orientation programme is designed as an enjoyable yet enlightening window on life at UCT, and is packed with a myriad of activities. From curriculum advice from academics, safety tips from the ever-willing Campus Protection Services (CPS) and a low-down on the sport and societies scene, students will be sufficiently equipped to confidently wade into their careers at Africa's leading academic institution.

UCT expects to have some 25,200 students on campus this year.