The past decade has seen enormous changes in the quality and quantity of mathematics taught at secondary school. These changes have had a cumulative effect on the readiness of mathematics students for tertiary education. Furthermore the need for university staff to be accountable to both community and students adds to the responsibility of university mathematics departments to adapt and change to suit this environment and create new educational frameworks. This paper reviews the changes in a third year (qualifying course) in mathematics at a South African university over a period of 10 years. These changes are interrogated in the light of the international call for changes at tertiary level and the changing dynamics of the student cohort. Suggestions are made for alternate models for teaching and learning mathematics at this level.