Prof Ruth Hoskins

Professor Ruth Hoskins is a Full Professor in the Information Studies Programme within the School of Social Sciences at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. She currently serves as the Dean of Teaching and Learning in the College of Humanities (CHUM) and is the UKZN Facilitator for the First-Year Experience (FYE) programme across all four colleges at the university. UKZN are currently The Siyaphumelela Leaders of the FYE Workstream. 

Her research interests focus on student support, success, and the transition of first-year students at the undergraduate level. Professor Hoskins participated in the 2021/2022 Teaching Advancements at Universities (TAU3) Programme and actively contributes to teaching and learning advancement at UKZN. She serves on several institutional committees and task teams, including the UKZN Teaching and Learning Committee, and chairs both the College of Humanities Teaching and Learning Committee and the UKZN FYE Task Team.

She has presented widely at local and international conferences and is a member of several academic associations, including the International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. Additionally, she is the UKZN Project Leader for the University of the Free State’s Academic Advising Project. In the Library and Information Science (LIS) field, her research includes open access and the role of the academic library in supporting research and learning.