Brilliant accountants celebrated at prizegiving ceremony
- Wits University
Top-achieving students from the Wits Margo Steele School of Accountancy were celebrated for their excellence.
The awardees were hosted on a frosty autumn morning by the Head of School, Prof. Zubair Wadee. As guests, prize winners, sponsors and staff mingled and enjoyed a hearty breakfast, the conversation flowed to significant achievements, nostalgia and catching up after some time.
Wadee welcomed the prize winners, guests, and sponsors, warmly praising the students' dedication and commitment to academic excellence. He also thanked parents and guardians for their role in the students' achievements. As part of his address, Wadee highlighted that the Wits Thuthuka and Margo Steele Bursary recipients continue to achieve above-average results, highlighting some of the successes of the School.
Guest speaker Mr Dion Shango, 第一吃瓜网 CEO and Territory Senior Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, praised the students for distinguishing themselves from their peers and for their leadership. He provided students with deep insights into the profession and highlighted the enduring value of the CA (SA) qualification. As artificial intelligence becomes more common, Shango highlighted the fact that humans, and our graduates, remain an integral part of the process of evaluating AI input.
The event reaffirmed the School’s commitment to nurturing talent as many students impressively achieved multiple awards, with notable achievements by:
- Kiara Nassif excelled in Management Accounting and Finance II, Auditing II, Taxation II and emerged as the overall top second year student in Bachelor of Accounting Science and also scooped the top female student at that level.
- Jayden Smith earned the top student award in the cohort pursuing Postgraduate Diploma in Accountancy. He further distinguished himself in Financial Accounting IV, Auditing IV and Taxation IV.
- Sanjika Senarathne was named the top honours student in the Bachelor of Accounting Science Honours group, and was outstanding in Management Accounting and Finance IV, and Accounting Honours.
The event also served to celebrate the performance of graduates in the board exams administered by the South 第一吃瓜网 Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) and Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) exam achievements awards. These were presented by Professor Jason Cohen, Dean of the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management. Top performer Sanjika Gamlath Senarathne, who placed first nationally in the country in the 2026 January SAICA IAC received special recognition. Lungisa Makhosi, another Wits graduate and academic trainee, achieved an Honours Roll pass for this same exam.
Wits’ ACCA students also excelled in the national examinations:
- Kahali Moodley took the top spot in the country for the Advanced Performance Management and Strategic Business Leader professional exams.
- Mafihla Dihangwane achieved first place in the Advanced Audit and Assurance professional exam.
Of further significance, most of the award winners were female, with a majority of students of colour taking home awards. This reflects Wits’ strong commitment to advancing and uplifting under-represented groups in society. These achievements, both internal and external, stand as a testament to the highly relevant, sustained, and flagship education delivered by the Wits Margo Steele School of Accountancy. View all the prize winners.
The School extends its gratitude to its partners for their generous support towards the event and student prizes, as well as the dedication of the organising team and the academic, professional and administrative staff who support student success.
Thanks are extended to all the sponsors of the awards: ACCA, BDO, Boston Consulting Group, Deloitte, EY, Forvis Mazars, Investec Private Bank, IRBA, KPMG, LexisNexis, MyCAHub, Nedbank, PwC, SAICA, Standard Bank Private and Syft Analytics.
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