Qualifying for student funding from Nsfas can be a source of financial relief for any historically disadvantaged student looking to complete their tertiary studies.
During a recent Nsfas and NYDA webinar, the bursary scheme’s officials recently clarified whether Nsfas funds BEd and LLB, as there had been those assuming that they do not.
In response, Nsfas officials stated that this is false, NSFAS does fund Bachelor of Education (BEd) and Bachelor of Laws (LLB) “no it is not true”. The bursary scheme’s official added that a communication addressing this issue was sent out at the beginning of last year.
The issue had nothing to do with BEd and LLB but was related to the qualification codes. Nsfas advised institutions to update their qualification codes for these qualifications at the department.
At the time, since the Department of Higher Education and Training's licences for the majority of BEd and LLB qualifications had already expired, institutions had to reapply for these qualifications, which resulted in new codes.
However, there are study levels that do not meet the bursary scheme’s funding requirements, such as short courses and postgraduate qualifications.
Although Nsfas has since reworked its application systems to make the process more convenient for 2023 applicants, the following eligibility requirements must be met for applicants to qualify for funding:
- Must be a South African citizen
- All Sassa grant recipients immediately qualify for funding
- Must have a combined household income that is not more than R350 000 per annum
- A person with a disability: Combined household income must not be more than R600 000 per annum
- Students who started studying before 2018 and whose household income is not more than R122 000 per annum.
All 26 state universities and 50 TVET colleges in South Africa are eligible for Nsfas funding. They support a wide range of degrees and programmes.
