In 2022, the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology Blade Nzimande defended the government’s decision to increase the eligibility criteria for National Students Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS), allowing students to pass 75% of their modules to qualify for funding.
According to Nzimande, this move was a progressive policy to ensure there are students who finish their degrees.
As the Higher Education sector was preparing for the 2023 academic year, NSFAS board chairperson Ernest Khosa announced that First Time Entering Students (FTENs) must achieve a course credit pass rate of 50% and continuing university students must achieve a progressive course credit pass rate of 55%.
Returning university students must meet ongoing academic eligibility requirements in order to remain funded by NSFAS.
In an interview, Nzimande said:
Nsfas-funded students on average do better than non-NSFAS students.
The Minister went on to confirm that the pass rate of NSFAS bursary recipients is just above 70%, while the pass rate of Non-NSFAS students is just below 60%. The government bursary scheme celebrates its student funding ability to help students.
This is an indication that more students will be able to continue their studies in the following academic year, as they exceed the academic eligibility requirements.
It has been confirmed that the dropout rate for students who are not NSFAS recipients is 32.14%, which is 12.4% higher than the dropout rate of NSFAS-funded students.
