This is a list of notable alumni and staff of the University of the Witwatersrand.
Arts Aggrey Klaaste, journalist, editor of the Sowetan, 1988–2002 Angelique Rockas, pioneer of multi-racial and multi-national theatre London Anton Hartman, musician Athol Williams, award-winning poet and social philosopher Aura Herzog, Israeli writer Benedict Wallet Vilakazi, Zulu poet, novelist, and educator, first black South African to receive a PhD Candice Breitz, artist, video and photography Cecil Skotnes, artist Claire Johnston, singer, known as the face and voice of Mango Groove Clare Loveday, composer Clement M. Doke, linguist Clinton Fein, artist, activist Hans George Adler, musicologist; collector and classical music promoter, Honorary Doctor of Philosophy (1978) Ed Jordan, musician, composer, singer-songwriter, actor, TV and radio presenter; wrote and produced the orchestral score for Spud Elisabeth Eybers, poet Eric Fernie, art historian Ernest Fleischmann (1924–2010), executive director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Ernst Oswald Johannes Westphal, linguist, expert in Bantu and Khoisan languages Ezekiel Mphahlele, writer and academic Ferial Haffajee, editor of the City Press; former editor of The Mail and Guardian in South Africa Fred Khumalo, journalist and author Gary Barber, American film producer of South African descent; chairman and CEO of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer from 2010-2018; co-founder of Spyglass Entertainment Gavin Hood, writer, producer and director, directed Tsotsi Gideon Emery, actor Harold Jenkins (Shakespeare scholar), notable Shakespeare scholar Herman Charles Bosman, writer and journalist Ingrid de Kok, author and poet Ivan Vladislavic, novelist Janet Suzman, actress, director Jani Allan, writer and journalist Jerry Mofokeng, actor Jillian Becker novelist, essayist, critic and expert on terrorism Johnny Clegg, musician Jodi Bieber, photographer Judith Mason, painter Kendell Geers, artist Kevin Volans, composer Kitso Lynn Lelliott, filmmaker and multimedia artist Lewis Wolpert, developmental biologist, author, and broadcaster Lionel Abrahams, novelist, poet, editor, critic, essayist and publisher Lionel Ngakane, filmmaker Lisa de Nikolits, writer Lucy Allais, philosopher Manfred Mann, keyboard player for the bands Manfred Mann and Manfred Mann's Earth Band Mbali Dhlamini, artist Mbongeni Buthelezi, artist known for "painting" in plastic Motswedi Modiba, singer-songwriter Nadine Gordimer, Nobel Prize in Literature, 1991 Phaswane Mpe, poet and novelist Pieter-Dirk Uys, entertainer, AIDS activist Raymond Heard, journalist, editor, media executive, political strategist Ruona J. Meyer, journalist, International Emmy Award nominee Sibongile Khumalo, singer Stan Katz, broadcaster Shannon Esra, actress Shulamith Behr, art historian Thuso Mbedu, actress William Kentridge, artist Rayne Kruger (1922–2002), author Cecily Sash (1924–2019), painter, professor Zoe Ramushu, writer, director, producer
Architecture and design Denise Scott Brown, architect, planner, writer and educator Rory Byrne, former chief designer for the Ferrari Formula One team Pancho Guedes, Portuguese architect, participant of Team X Allan Greenberg, American architect and one of the leading classical architects of the twenty-first century. Rex Martienssen, a leading Johannesburg modernist architect and friend of Le Corbusier Theo Crosby, was an architect, editor, writer and sculptor, engaged with major developments in design across four decades Michael Sutton, architect
Business and entrepreneurship Vusi Thembekwayo, founder and CEO of MyGrowthFund Venture Partners; at 23 founded MOTIV8 Advisory; former "dragon" on Dragons' Den (Mzansi Magic, 2014–2015); recipient of the GQ Business Leader of the Year Award (2020), Guardian Award at the EMY Africa Awards (2024), and District 74 Communication and Leadership Award (2025); author of Vusi: Business & Life Lessons from a Black Dragon (2017) and The Magna Carta of Exponentiality (2018) Adrian Gore, CEO of Discovery Holdings Ltd; Chairman of Destiny Health Inc. in the USA and Prudential Health Limited in the UK Affiong Williams, founder and CEO of Reel Fruit, a Nigerian company that focuses on processing and distribution of locally grown fruits Bridget van Kralingen, Senior Vice President, IBM Global Business Services Charles Chinedu Okeahalam, economist and businessman, CEO of AGH Capital Group; former Liberty Life Professor of Financial Economics and Banking, University of the Witwatersrand David Frankel (entrepreneur), is a South African-born American businessman. He is the co-founder of Founder Collective, a seed-stage venture capital fund with offices in New York City and Cambridge Derek Keys (born 1931), finance minister of South Africa, 1992-1994, in the cabinets of F W de Klerk and Nelson Mandela Desmond Lachman (born 1948), economist and former IMF Deputy Director Donald Gordon, founder of life insurance company Liberty Life in 1958 with R100,000 when he was 27 years old; awarded a knighthood in 2005 Elizabeth Bradley, Non-Executive Chairman of Toyota SA Limited; former Executive Director of AngloGold Gail Kelly (born Gail Currer), Australian and South African businessperson; first woman CEO of a major Australian bank or top 15 company (2002) Gary Barber, Chairman and CEO of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Bachelor of Commerce; certificate in the Theory of Accountancy Gene Sherman, philanthropist, academic and expert on art, fashion and architecture. Gordon Schachat, co-founder of African Bank Limited and prominent art collector Graham Mackay, former Chairman and Ex-CEO of SABMiller plc, the world's second largest beer brewer Ivan Glasenberg, CEO of Glencore, one of the world's largest commodity trading companies; on the boards of mining companies Xstrata plc and Minara Resources Ltd Kay Yarms, Founder of Saxx Beauty Koos Bekker, former CEO of Naspers Lael Bethlehem, former CEO of the Johannesburg Development Agency; Investment Executive at Hosken Consolidated Investments Ludwig Lachmann, economist and important contributor to the Austrian School Maria Ramos, economist and businesswoman; CEO of ABSA Group since 2009; former CEO of Transnet Martin Morgan, Chief Executive Officer and Director of DMGT Meyer Feldberg, Senior Advisor to Morgan Stanley Nathan Kirsh, South African-born Swazi business magnate, with a property empire spanning the UK, Swaziland and Australia; has Swazi citizenship; has residency status in the UK and the USA Nthato Motlana, giant of South African business and the anti-apartheid struggle; one of the accused, with Mandela and 18 others, in the 1952 Defiance Campaign Trial Patrice Motsepe, South African mining magnate; according to Forbes magazine, worth more than R17-billion after adding a further R7-billion to his net worth in 2009 Patrick Soon-Shiong, South African-American surgeon; founder, chairman, and CEO of Abraxis BioScience Percy Tucker, Founder of Computicket, the first electronic theatre booking system in the world in 1971 Rodney Sacks, chairman, and CEO of Monster Beverage Ron Dembo, is an academic and entrepreneur Ronnie Apteker, founder of Internet Solutions, one of South Africa's largest internet service providers Sarah Langa, Social media influencer and founder of Luvant and Heaton Consulting Sir Ernest Oppenheimer, diamond and gold mining entrepreneur; financier; philanthropist; controlled De Beers; founded the Anglo American Corporation of South Africa Sir Mark Weinberg, South African-born British financier; founder of Abbey Life Assurance Company Sir Winfried Franz Wilhelm Bischoff, Anglo-German banker; chairman of Lloyds Banking Group plc; former chairman and former interim CEO of Citigroup; knighted in 2000 Sol Kerzner, hotel and gambling magnate; created the most successful hotel group in South Africa, Sun International; Chairman of the Board of Kerzner International, based in the Bahamas Steven H. Collis, CEO of Cencora (previously AmerisourceBergen); Tony Trahar, former chairman of Anglo American; educated at St John's College and the University of the Witwatersrand David Sikhosana, Business Magnet, Founder and Chairman of DSH Group, Educated at the University of the Witwatersrand Tsakani Maluleke, Auditor-General of South Africa (2020–present)
Education Prof Adam Habib, Vice-chancellor of SOAS University of London, former Vice-chancellor and Principal University of the Witwatersrand Prof Brenda Gourley, higher education pioneer; accountant Colin Bundy, Warden of Green College, Oxford; former Director and Principal of School of Oriental and African Studies, former Deputy Vice-Chancellor of University of London; former Vice-Chancellor and Principal of University of the Witwatersrand David B. A. Epstein, is a mathematician known for his work in hyperbolic geometry, 3-manifolds, and group theory, amongst other fields Garth Saloner, Dean of the Stanford Graduate School of Business Hazel Sive, is a South African-born biologist and educator Jane den Hollander, Vice-Chancellor and President, Deakin University, Australia Prof. Loyiso Nongxa, Vice-chancellor and Principal University of the Witwatersrand Prof. Mamokgethi Phakeng, Vice-chancellor of the University of Cape Town, mathematics education researcher and academic.* Max Price, Vice-Chancellor, University of Cape Town, Johannesburg; former dean, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand Mark Mostert Professor of Special Education at Regent University author and lecturer on Eugenics, Facilitated Communication and "useless eaters" Meyer Feldberg, dean of Columbia Business School 1989-2004; president of the Illinois Institute of Technology 1987-1989 Michael Stevenson, President and Vice-Chancellor, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC Patrick Deane, Principal of Queen's University, Canada Peter Sarnak, awarded the Wolf Prize 2014, Honorary doctorate 2014: University of the Witwatersrand Prof Tshilidzi Marwala, Rector of the United Nations University, former Vice-chancellor and Principal University of Johannesburg
Engineering John Burland, is an Emeritus Professor and Senior Research Investigator at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering of Imperial College London. Sir John Lazar (engineer), is a British investor, engineer and businessman 1 who was appointed as president of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2024.3 Lewis Wolpert, was a South African-born British developmental biologist, author, and broadcaster Michael Bear (lord mayor), is a civil engineer and management leader in both the construction and property industries in the UK and abroad Rob Pullen, major contributor to the practice of water resources engineering and especially to the wider engineering profession in South Africa Matthew Rabinowitz, is a doctor of engineering and co-founder and executive chairman of Natera, a clinical genetic testing company Sir Jack Zunz, was a British civil engineer and former chairman of Ove Arup & Partners. He was the principal structural designer of the Sydney Opera House Trevor Wadley, was a South African electrical engineer, best known for his development of the Wadley Loop circuit for greater stability in communications receivers and the Tellurometer, a land surveying device. Jules Fejer was an engineer with South Africa's National Institute for Telecommunications Research (NITR), He published the first estimate of the life expectancy of the recently launched Sputnik in Nature. Malcolm McCulloch was a professor of Engineering at the University of Oxford, researching and teaching in the fields of Sustainable Energy, Transport and Energy for Development.
Historians C. I. Hamilton, British naval historian Cornelis de Kiewiet Nthabiseng Mokoena, Lesotho's only female professional archaeologist Bruce Murray Charles van Onselen Charles Hilliard Feinstein
Legal profession