It was a time for huge celebration in the Arumugam family when father, Dane, and son, Jadrian, were awarded post graduate degrees together at UKZN’s 2020 virtual graduation ceremony.
Dr Dane Arumugam, who is the Finance Manager at UKZN’s College of Humanities, received a PhD in Higher Education alongside Jadrian, who achieved an Honours degree in Industrial Psychology.
Speaking about his father, Jadrian said: ‘My dad has always been my role model and watching him achieve numerous qualifications inspired me to follow in his footsteps. Thank you to my mum and sister as well as the rest of my family for their love and support.
Dane congratulated his son saying: Your mum and I are extremely proud of your achievements. Always remember the values and traits that we have instilled in you and thank you for being such an awesome child. May God keep you his palms and drive your future to great success.
Dane examined higher education financing which incorporated experiences from abroad with a focus on South Africa. His study analysed the South African funding framework and its allocations to universities and how universities in turn funded their academia and support services. ‘The findings were quite interesting and provided me an opportunity to develop a “roadmap” for higher education financing, especially for developing countries,’ he said.
Within the South African funding framework, it was apparent that the historical disparities had created a ‘roller coaster’ effect in the Higher Education system. ‘While every effort was made to remedy this with the new funding framework post-1994, the sad reality is that it expanded the disparity. Historically disadvantaged universities continued to be negatively impacted,’ added Dane.
He notes that while Annual Financial Statements (AFS) are available in the public domain via annual reports, budget frameworks remain within the confines of the respective university. There is an overall perception within the sector that each HEI believes their model to be unique and most suited to their organizational, operational and strategic needs and challenges. said Dane. ‘However, stemming from the findings it is clear that a forum for sharing best practice must be considered.’
Dane thanked his family, friends, colleagues at UKZN and his supervisor, Professor Chats Devroop, for their support and guidance.
