KwaZulu-Natal’s Youngest PhD Graduate Earns Doctorate at 25 from UKZN
A young woman from a rural KwaZulu-Natal community has made history at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, becoming the institution’s youngest PhD graduate at just 25 years old.
Source: Facebook
Dr Phumelele Basi, who grew up in Hlokozi on the KZN South Coast, earned her doctorate in 2025 after her thesis was approved without a single correction required.
Her research looked at how young Black African women navigate romantic relationships within university spaces. The study pushed back against the idea that young women are only victims in these situations. Instead, it brought their desire, agency and decision-making to the centre of the conversation.
From Hlokozi to history books
Basi did not always plan to become a gender studies scholar. She initially wanted to go into science education. That changed when she was introduced to gender studies as an undergraduate student, and something clicked. She went on to complete her undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications with cum laude and summa cum laude distinctions.
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Her master’s research explored how social media shapes ideas around gender, beauty and self-worth. Her doctoral work took things further, using interviews and student workshops to understand how culture, money and university environments shape young women’s choices and experiences.
She credited her supervisor, Professor Deevia Bhana, for playing a big role in shaping who she became as a researcher. Basi now works as a research assistant at UKZN.
Her motivation, she said, goes beyond her own success. She sees education as a way to open doors for her family and the community she comes from.
Basi plans to continue her academic journey through postdoctoral research, while also pursuing teaching and research in Gender Education.
Source: Briefly News
