Prof. Gawie du Toit completed his qualifications at the University of the Free State (UFS), including a Higher Education Diploma, an MSc degree in Mathematics, and a doctorate in Didactics. In 1987, he entered higher education as a senior researcher at the erstwhile Research Institute for Educational Planning at the same university. In 1997, he was appointed as department head of the Department of Didactics (later known as Curriculum Study) at the Faculty of Education at the UFS. He also occupied the position of programme director: Undergraduate Programmes from 2010-2013.

On 1 November 2013, he was seconded for three years to implement the BEd Senior Phase and Further Education and Training programme, which he developed at UFS at the newly-founded Sol Plaatjie University (SPU). Since being appointed in 2016, he has held the full-time position of head of the School for Education at the SPU. His research is focused on mathematics education and curriculum development. Since joining the Faculty of Education in 1997, he has produced nine articles and five chapters in academic books. Under his supervision, 22 master’s degree students and 11 doctoral students have successfully completed their studies.

Prof. du Toit was also involved in various research projects with the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium and the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada. Other than that, he was also the administrator of various management training seminars for educational leaders in the Free State.

Since 1 March 2019 du Toit is the dean of the Faculty of Education.