Residences

By 1985, the Vaal Triangle Campus of the Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education (PU for CHE) was bursting at the seams, with student numbers increasing by 26% that year. The first two units of a residential complex were completed, each accommodating 25 students, but this proved completely inadequate. In response, a project to involve the community in building additional residences was launched in 1986. At a meeting with community leaders, the then Rector of PU for CHE, Prof. Tjaart van der Walt, emphasized the urgent need for expanded student housing.

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Prof Tom van Dyk (right), Rector of the Vaal Triangle Campus, views the building of the first residence on the campus.

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The first completed residential units as they appeared in 1985.

To meet the needs of students, a total of R10 million was spent on land, buildings, and equipment, with funding contributions from the government (R4 million), the community (approximately R2 million), and the University (nearly R5 million). At the time, three residential units, each accommodating 25 students, were planned. A full residence consisted of eight such units, with each unit costing R320,000 to build, or R12,800 per student. It was anticipated that the total investment in the campus over the next five years would reach R30 million. In addition to capital expenditure, operational costs amounted to R5 million, projected to increase by R1 million with the relocation of the Chemical, Electrical, and Electronic Engineering departments to the Vaal Triangle Campus, which had 216 students in 1985 who required accommodation. The first residence, initially named Timbuctu (or Timbuktu) by students due to its distance from the existing River Complex buildings, was later renamed “De Wilgers” in 1989, a name deemed more acceptable by the residence committee.

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This aerial view of the River Complex with the first residence being built. The residence was so far from the lecture halls that the students named it Timbuctu, but the name was later changed to De Wilgers. After a third name change it is still known as Vergelegen.

In the early 1990s, the residents of De Wilgers relocated back to Potchefstroom when the Engineering Faculty was moved there. They occupied Huis Izak Meyer, a former residence of the Potchefstroom Teachers Training College, which is still known as "De Wilgers." As a result, a new name was needed for the residence, and the committee proposed "Vergelegen," the name it still holds today. Mr. Pieter Möller, a lecturer in History, was the first staff member to oversee the hostel (koshuisvader). In 1989, the first residence for female students, named Jasmyn, was opened, offering a more acceptable name for the University. According to In U Lig, the following residences for male students were established: 

• Vergelegen (since 1985), 
• Watuni day residence (since 1998, formerly Njala since 1992), 
• Poekoe (since 1992), Amabhubesi (since 1998), and 
• Oryx (since 2003). 

For female students, the residences include: 

• Jasmyn (since 1990), 
• Ixia day residence (since 1998, formerly Soenie since 1992), 
• Oorbietjie (since 1992), 
• Dishweshwe (since 1998), and 
• Acasia (since 1998).