Over the years, the demand for financial aid in the form of bursaries has increased in public universities and Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Colleges.
Following the National Student Financial Scheme’s (NSFAS) transition from a student loan to a government bursary, thousands of students in these institutions have been receiving financial support to fund their tertiary education.
The government bursary scheme funds its recipients tuition and accommodation fees, including student allowances for stationery, meals and transportation.
However, to continue receiving funding students will need to adhere to the NSFAS eligibility criteria and conditions for financial aid.
The academic progression criteria is to be measured by the percentage of course credits that a student achieves in the academic year, and this will be determined by the Scheme.
According to these conditions, here’s the criteria that is applied to university students:
- As of 2023 First Time Entering Students (FTEN) must achieve a course credit pass rate of 50% for their previous academic term.
- Continuing university students must as of 2023 achieve a course credit pass rate of 55% for their previous academic term.
The government funding scheme confirmed that students will continue receiving funding, however, they will need to make sure that they meet the academic requirements.
It is for this reason that the financial aid has guidelines which allows them to discontinue a student’s bursary should they not meet the minimum academic requirements.
One of these is known as the N+ rule, “N” refers to the minimum number of years allocated for the chosen qualification and +1 refers to the number of years that the Scheme will continue funding a student should they fail.
The rule is simply based on the number of years that the student has been registered for tertiary study at any public university in South Africa.
In the event that the student exceeds the N+ rule, they have the option of submitting an appeal, but under certain circumstances.
