For the 2024 academic year, the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) revealed that over 22 954 student loan applications have been submitted. Despite the substantial number of applications, only a minimal fraction, just over 100 students, were provisionally funded.
NSFAS received 22 954 loan applications (as of 16 February 2024), and the application closing date was also on the 15 of February 2024.
The NSFAS missing middle student loans were introduced in January as a component of the Comprehensive Funding Model, spearheaded by Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande. These loans cater to students who do not meet the criteria for NSFAS bursaries but still face financial challenges in covering the expenses related to higher education.
The term "missing middle students" pertains to individuals from households with a combined income surpassing the NSFAS threshold of R350,000, rendering them ineligible for government-funded assistance. Despite their income exceeding the set threshold, these students face challenges affording higher education costs.
In 2024, the Minister disclosed that NSFAS intends to provide 31,000 missing middle student loans. However, only 139 of these loan applications have been approved, signifying provisional funding.
The benefit of the NSFAS loan for provisionally funded students commences upon confirmation of their registration by the respective educational institution.
NSFAS reported that 12,890 loan applications are currently under evaluation to ensure compliance with all eligibility criteria before funding. Meanwhile, 841 applications are labeled as "NOT-STARTED," indicating instances where applicants created profiles but did not submit completed applications.
Additionally, 476 loan applications were rejected, and only five of the rejected applicants submitted NSFAS appeals.
NSFAS emphasizes its commitment to transparency and efficiency in communicating funding decisions, providing updates as applications are processed. To expedite the process, 100 case workers have been deployed, aiming to process all applications by the end of February 2024 and address any appeals by April 2024.
"NSFAS has made the budget available for additional resources (100 case workers) to ensure that all applications are processed by no later than the end of February and further processes all 2024 appeals received by no later than the end of April 2024."
