NSFAS has confirmed that a total of 941 491 student funding applicants have been confirmed for funding pending registration at their chosen public universities and TVET Colleges. This comes after the scheme received 1,666,039 through its online portal.
Out of this, 206,781 are awaiting evaluation while 37,854 are awaiting financial eligibility assessment and confirmations from third parties The scheme also confirmed that 317,335 applications were rejected due to not meeting eligibility requirements.
In addition to this, NSFAS has informed bursary students for the 2023 academic year who are either non-Sassa beneficiaries or returning students that their funding decisions are now available at their respective institutions.
The bursary scheme confirmed that non-Sassa applicants and returning students' funding lists were sent to institutions on 6 February 2023. The scheme initially gave priority to First-Time Entering (FTEN) Sassa applicants and provided feedback on their funding outcomes as soon as they submitted their applications.
NSFAS stated that non-Sassa applicants and returning students require financial and academic eligibility verification, which requires third-party assistance to confirm funding. The bursary scheme closed its funding applications at the end of January 2023 and currently only allows appeals for rejected funding outcomes.
The deadline for all NSFAS appeals for the 2023 funding cycle is Monday 20 February 2023. NSFAS is a South African government-funded student financial aid scheme that aims to increase access to higher education and training for underprivileged students
