Faculty of Law at University of Pretoria produces two of the Top 10 university students in the country

Posted on October 12, 2018

 

 

The Faculty of Law at the University of Pretoria is proud to announce that two of its law students were selected by GradStar as part of the Top 10 university students in the country. They are Michelle Oelofse and Kirsten Dempsey. The Top 10 in the country were selected from the Top 100 GradStars, a programme which recognises the Top 100 university students in South Africa based on readiness for the workplace and leadership skills. DHL GradStar receives 3 500 annual entries which they narrow down to the Top 100 – and from there to the ‘Ten of the Finest’ in the country.  

Both Kirsten and Michelle are proud holders of BCom Law degrees from the University of Pretoria Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences at the University of Pretoria, and currently in the penultimate year of their LLB degrees.  They are both members of the Golden Key International Honor Society and are honoured to be part now of the Top Ten students in the country.

Michelle spent the first six months of the 2018 academic year in the Netherlands, studying at Leiden University and completing an internship at the Hague Conference on Private International law (HCCH), an intergovernmental organisation in the area of private international law, that develops and administers several international conventions, protocols and soft law instruments.  She is an Allan Gray Orbis Foundation bursary holder and feels that this programme provided her with the foundation to prepare for the GradStar selection process.  ‘I am extremely grateful for the exposure they granted me’.  She also confirmed that ‘My favourite part of the process was meeting and engaging with the Top 100 students and I believe that if these students are our future leaders, we are in good hands.’  Michelle is inter alia a founding member and former Executive Committee member of the Tuks Leadership and Individual Programme (TULIP), a student body at UP working towards making tertiary education more accessible for prospective students showing promise – ‘ the common goal of changing South Africa #1EducationAtATime’.  She also served as House Committee member of her residence and is the current Chairperson of the ’UP Debatsvereniging’ and has often represented this University society on national platforms. Michelle is excited to present her LLB dissertation research on choice of law in international commercial contracts at the first student symposium for social and humanity sciences hosted by Die Suid-Afrikaanse Akademie vir Wetenskap en Kuns.

Kirsten, a member of the 2017/18 Executive Committee of Law House, the official student body of the Faculty of Law, says that ‘being selected as  one of the Top Ten in the country has taught me a valuable life lesson – Never underestimate your abilities.'  After the loss of her brother in October 2017, Kirsten established the “Ruby’s Heart Foundation” which aims to assist grieving families after the loss of a loved one.  Kirsten, who was responsible for the Sport Portfolio of Law House, loves sporting activities and excels in running, hockey, soccer, chess and netball. She has achieved her colours for Rowing and in her first year of University, Kirsten was part of the University’s Rowing team, a sport which she has always enjoyed. In  2012 she summited Kilimanjaro at the age of 16 with her father.

Her passion for Law has motivated her to attend the School for Legal Practice at the University of Pretoria.   She is an avid reader and has a particular interest in French literature. She has already completed a Diploma in French and is currently studying Advanced French in addition to her LLB at the University of Pretoria.

Kirsten and Michelle have expressed their appreciation to Professor Anton Kok, former Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Law, for his unwavering support during the programme’s process.

They are currently searching for articles of clerkship at a South African law firm as from 2020.

 

Also read the University of Pretoria's article on these awards.

GradStart media release

 

Media coverage:

https://www.iol.co.za/pretoria-news/tuks-claims-four-out-of-10-top-varsity-students-17331868

http://www.itnewsafrica.com/tag/gradstar-2018-winners/

http://www.talenttalks.net/gradstar-10-finest-top-students-announced/

- Author Faculty of Law

Copyright © University of Pretoria 2024. All rights reserved.

COVID-19 Corona Virus South African Resource Portal

To contact the University during the COVID-19 lockdown, please send an email to [email protected]

FAQ's Email Us Virtual Campus Share Cookie Preferences