Shahana Rasool

Prof. Shahana Rasool serves as Head of the Department of Social Work at the University of Johannesburg and holds leadership roles as Vice President of the Association of Schools and Institutes of Social Work in Africa (ASSWA) and IASSW Board Member representing the Africa Region.

Her academic foundation includes a D Phil from the University of Oxford's Department of Social Work and Social Policy, with dissertation research examining 'Help-seeking by Abused Women in South Africa' and 'Race, Gender and Social Security: A Critique of the Impact of Social Security on African Women in South Africa' through Comparative Social Research. She is fluent in English and Afrikaans.

Her research portfolio centers on gender-based violence dynamics, with current projects analyzing gender attitudes and exposure to violence in South African contexts alongside a comparative Nigeria-South Africa study. She actively supervises 15 postgraduate students across master's and doctoral programs while teaching first-year social issues courses and advanced master's theory/research curricula.

Professional engagement extends to memberships in ASSASWEI and the International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW), with scholarly focus spanning decolonial frameworks, feminist methodologies, and domestic violence intervention strategies across African contexts.