This week on Womanity, Dr Amaleya Goneos-Malka speaks with Professor Zethu Nkosi, Executive Dean of the College of Human Sciences at the University of South Africa (UNISA). From a township childhood and an unexpected start in nursing to international teaching and academic leadership, her journey reveals the power of education, determination and lifting others along the way. The conversation explores women’s voices, the social purpose of the humanities and embracing technology without losing touch with African roots.

When a Change of Direction Becomes a Calling

Professor Nkosi’s early ambition was to become a medical doctor, but her school did not offer mathematics. She then considered teaching, only to find that a lack of university accommodation redirected her towards nursing. What began as an alternative became a passion for caring for people and understanding their experiences. A nursing diploma, a degree through UNISA and postgraduate studies at the University of KwaZulu-Natal opened the way to education, research and leadership.

Learning Beyond Borders – and Bringing It Home

Her first teaching role took her to the United Arab Emirates, where she spent three years teaching preventive and promotive health and contributing to curriculum change. Beyond the classroom, the experience deepened her appreciation of cultural differences, religious respect and new ways of living. Yet her commitment to South Africa drew her home: having benefited from publicly supported nursing training, she wanted to give back to the communities that had helped shape her.

Human Sciences with a Human Purpose

For Professor Nkosi, the humanities are not removed from everyday life; they help us understand people in their fullness. She describes a college spanning arts, humanities and social sciences, bringing together language, spirituality, health and the forces that shape society. Ubuntu runs through this vision: respect, care and mutual support matter as much as knowledge. Excellence means involving students in learning and encouraging experienced and emerging academics to learn from one another.

Moving Beyond the Ivory Tower

The conversation turns to what universities can do about challenges such as gender-based violence, poverty and health. Professor Nkosi emphasises community partnerships, safety campaigns, health education and skills that support self-sustainability. She also highlights collaboration across disciplines: nutrition can draw on agricultural expertise, while discussions about consent and rights benefit from legal knowledge. Her message is that meaningful engagement means working with communities on solutions, rather than simply delivering knowledge to them.

Women’s Voices at the Centre

Discussing feminist, womanist and Bosadi theorizations, Professor Nkosi calls for women’s experiences to shape the questions we ask and the decisions we make. In her account, women should have space not only to participate, but to initiate ideas, lead activities and benefit from their outcomes. From household decisions to economic discussions and control over their own lives, women’s perspectives deserve to be heard. This is not about excluding men; it is about changing whose voice sets the agenda.

Lift as You Rise

Mentorship is a deeply personal commitment for Professor Nkosi. Having received guidance when she entered academia, she resolved to offer that same support to others. Her nursing background taught her the value of helping newcomers connect theory with practice; her academic journey strengthened her desire to support others towards their doctorates. For her, lifting as you rise means making time, setting clear objectives, offering regular guidance and helping people grow into independence.

Know the Criteria – and Put Yourself Forward

Asked about barriers facing women in academia, Professor Nkosi offers a practical perspective rooted in her own journey. She describes studying the requirements for each next step, building a checklist and working deliberately towards it. When encouraged to accept a lower academic rank, she pointed to the evidence that she met the advertised criteria. Without dismissing challenges beyond an individual’s control, she encourages qualified women to apply, compete and claim their place rather than hold themselves back.

A Digital Future with African Roots

The Advancing African Digital Humanities Ideation Hub brings another dimension to the discussion: how technology can enrich the humanities without replacing their identity. Professor Nkosi describes introducing academics to digital tools through boot camps and seminars, while retaining a commitment to Africanisation, decoloniality and indigenous knowledge. Her enthusiasm lies in combining new possibilities with the perspectives of historians, linguists and other humanities scholars. Progress, in this vision, does not require departing from one’s roots.

Education That Fits Around Life

Distance learning is more than an institutional model in Professor Nkosi’s story; it enabled her to earn a degree while working as a nurse and supporting her family. She reflects on the importance of that flexibility for women balancing study, work and other responsibilities. The conversation also touches on affordability, regional support and assistance for students with disabilities. Access becomes meaningful when opportunities to enrol are matched by support that helps people participate and succeed.

A Message to the Next Generation

Professor Nkosi honours the family members who protected her time to study, her mother’s community activism and her grandmother’s strength as a matriarch. Their influence connects her achievements to a wider story of care, resilience and opportunity. Her closing advice to girls and women is both hopeful and practical: dream big, align your daily work with your ambitions, enter difficult spaces and take your seat at the table. Above all, lift as you rise, so that your progress creates a pathway for others.

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