{{Short description|South African political scientist (1954–2025)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2026}} {{Infobox academic | name = Maxi Schoeman | birth_date = 29 November 1954 | birth_place = South Africa | death_date = 14 September 2025 | citizenship = South African | occupation = Political scientist, Social Scientist, Academic | alma_mater = Aberystwyth University | discipline = International relations; Security studies; African politics | workplaces = University of Pretoria }}
'''Maxi Schoeman''' (29 November 1954 – 14 September 2025) was a South African political scientist and a leading scholar of African international relations, peace and security studies.<ref name="UPObit">{{cite web |title=Professor Maxi Schoeman (1954–2025): Distinguished scholar of Security Studies and International Relations |url=https://www.up.ac.za/news/professor-maxi-schoeman-1954-2025-distinguished-scholar-of-security-studies-and-international#:~:text=Many%20of%20today's%20leading%20voices,her%20brother%2C%20and%20three%20sisters. |publisher=University of Pretoria |date=2025 |access-date=25 February 2026}}</ref> She held senior academic and leadership roles at the University of Pretoria and was recognised for her work on South African foreign policy, African security, feminist international relations, and peacebuilding.<ref name="ISS">{{cite web |title=Maxi Schoeman: A guiding voice in African international relations |url=https://issafrica.org/about-us/press-releases/maxi-schoeman-a-guiding-voice-in-african-international-relations |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=2025 |access-date=25 February 2026}}</ref><ref name="UPBio">{{cite web |title=Professor Maxi Schoeman |url=https://www.up.ac.za/political-sciences/professor-maxi-schoeman |publisher=University of Pretoria |access-date=25 February 2026}}</ref>
==Early life and education== Maxi Schoeman was born on 29 November 1954 in South Africa.<ref name="UPObit"/> She earned her doctorate at Aberystwyth University, Wales.<ref name="Labmundo">{{cite web |title=Obituary: Professor Maxi Schoeman (University of Pretoria) |url=https://www.labmundo.org/en/obituary-professor-maxi-schoeman-university-of-pretoria/ |publisher=Labmundo |date=2025 |access-date=25 February 2026}}</ref>
==Academic career== After completing her doctorate at Aberystwyth University, Schoeman returned to South Africa and joined the University of Pretoria (UP) in 2000, where she worked as a researcher, lecturer and later professor.<ref name="Labmundo"/> She rose to become one of the university's most senior scholars in the social sciences, Head of the Department of Political Sciences; Deputy Dean of Postgraduate Studies and Research Ethics and Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Humanities respectively.
Schoeman scholarship covered African peace and security, South African foreign policy, feminist approaches to international relations, African political economy, and human security.<ref name="UPBio"/> She also worked with institutions such as the African Leadership Centre, contributing to programmes that supported early‑career researchers and journalists in peace and governance fields.<ref name="ALCObit">{{cite web |title=Obituary Announcement – Professor Maxi Schoeman, Visiting Professor at King's |url=https://www.africanleadershipcentre.org/news/call-for-applications-nmejj |publisher=African Leadership Centre |date=16 September 2025 |access-date=25 February 2026}}</ref>
==Mentorship and Legacy== Schoeman was widely regarded as a generous mentor. Dr. Ruth Murambadoro described her as “a teacher of life, love and humanity” who embodied ubuntu in her mentorship and support of younger scholars.<ref name="Murambadoro">{{cite web |title=Remembering Prof Maxi Schoeman: A Teacher of Life, Love and Humanity |url=https://kujenga-amani.ssrc.org/2025/10/07/remembering-prof-maxi-schoeman-a-teacher-of-life-love-and-humanity/ |publisher=Kujenga Amani (SSRC) |date=7 October 2025 |access-date=25 February 2026}}</ref>
Throughout her career, Schoeman worked closely with a number of continental research institutions, including the African Leadership Centre (ALC) where she mentored young scholars and contributed to programmes advancing African scholarship in peace, security, and governance.<ref name="ALCObit"/>
==Death== Schoeman died on 14 September 2025. Tributes following her death described her as a “distinguished scholar of security studies and international relations,” and celebrated her contributions to African scholarship.<ref name="UPObit"/> More tributes were issued by the Institute for Security Studies, African Leadership Centre, the South African Institute of International Affairs, the NIHSS, and international academic centres.<ref name="ISS"/><ref>{{cite web |title=Condolences on the passing of Professor Maxi Schoeman (1954–2025) |url=https://saiia.org.za/news/condolences-on-the-passing-of-professor-maxi-schoeman-1954-2025/ |publisher=SAIIA |access-date=25 February 2026}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Prof Maxi Schoeman Tribute |url=https://www.nihss.ac.za/sites/default/files/latest/docs/Prof%20Maxi%20Schoeman%20Tribute.pdf |publisher=NIHSS |access-date=25 February 2026}}</ref><ref name="Labmundo"/>
==Selected publications== * Reddy, V.; Bohler-Muller, N.; Houston, G.; Schoeman, M.; Thuynsma, H., eds. (2022). The Texture of Dissent: Defiant Public Intellectuals in South Africa. Cape Town: BestRed. {{ISBN|978-1-928246-57-2}}. * Reddy, V.; Bohler-Muller, N.; Houston, G.; Schoeman, M.; Thuynsma, H., eds. (2020). The Fabric of Dissent: Public Intellectuals in South Africa. Cape Town: BestRed.{{ISBN|978-1-928246-40-4}}. * Schoeman, M. (2010). South African female peacekeepers on mission in Africa: Progress, challenges and policy options. Uppsala: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet.{{ISBN|978-91-7106-673-2}}.
==References== {{Reflist|30em}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Schoeman, Maxi}} Category:1954 births Category:2025 deaths Category:South African political scientists Category:South African social scientists Category:Women political scientists Category:International relations scholars Category:South African women academics Category:Academic staff of the University of Pretoria Category:Alumni of Aberystwyth University