A Critical Analysis of the Gap Between Strategic Vision and Student Experience at a South African University

Abstract

Higher education institutions (HEIs) globally are adopting ambitious strategic frameworks to navigate the disruptions of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). However, in the Global South, these visions encounter systemic friction with deep-seated structural inequalities. This study critically analyses the "implementation gap" between the Durban University of Technology’s (DUT) ENVISION-2030 and the lived realities of students. Using an interpretive qualitative design involving 85 undergraduates and 10 lecturers within the Business and Information Management (BIM) program, the research uncovers divergent pathways of institutional engagement. While WorkIntegrated Learning (WIL) and faculty empathy serve as strategic enablers, they are frequently overshadowed by a pervasive digital divide and resource scarcity. The paper contends that for strategic visions to be transformative rather than performative, HEIs must transition from "strategic rhetoric" to "foundational equity," systematically dismantling the barriers of digital exclusion and operational burnout that impede the realisation of the adaptive graduate.