Content
Figures
Location of Stellenbosch in South Africa (illustration: Gustav Visser and Dene Kisting)
Spatial distribution of the main student accommodation types in Stellenbosch (source: Authors survey)
Factors influencing location choice for HMO and PBSA students (source: Authors survey)
Important role-players influencing access to HMOs and PBSAs (source: Authors survey)
Survey participants by province of origin (source: Authors survey)
Survey participants by province of origin (source: Authors survey)
Urbani izziv Volume 30, No. supplement, February 2019
: 158-177
(Articles)
doi: 10.5379/urbani-izziv-en-2019-30-supplement-011
Author
Gustav VISSER
Stellenbosch University, Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Matieland South Africa
gevisser@sun.ac.za
Dene KISTING
Stellenbosch University, Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Matieland, South Africa
18385397@sun.ac.za
Title
Studentification in Stellenbosch, South Africa
Abstract
Globally, studentification has emerged as a prominent urban process, fast becoming entrenched in geographical
discourse. Since the early 1990s, in both developed and developing world countries, an expansion in student
enrolment has outstripped the ability of higher education institutions to provide adequate accommodation. These
trends have been noted in South Africa too. The extent and impact of studentification on the urban geography of
those places in which it has taken root is still poorly understood in both South Africa and the global South at
large. This paper investigates studentification as experienced in one of South Africa’s secondary cities –
Stellenbosch. An overview of generic studentification impacts is provided and the development of this process
tracked. Thereafter, the motivation for living in these developments and the impacts of this process comes into
view. It is argued that the areas affected by studentification have fundamentally changed in their physical and
social character. Interestingly, a range of findings in the academic record were not present in the Stellenbosch
context. Finally, it is suggested that studentification in South Africa requires greater research attention in a range
of other urban settings in which this process has emerged. This is particularly urgent as it would appear that
studentification can radically and very rapidly transform the geography of the areas in which it takes hold.
Key Words
studentification, Stellenbosch, South Africa, urban morphology