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Policy

This bursary is awarded to new first year students who have at least achieved a minimum Academic Point Score (APS), based on their final grade 12 results. The rand value of the bursary is determined on a sliding scale between a predetermined minimum and maximum value and is linked to the specific APS achieved by an individual learner

Applicable Rules/Criteria:

  • Only South African citizens and permanent residents qualify for the award.
  • The award is for one year only.
  • The Scholar Merit bursary is regarded as a first payment towards fees.
  • Prospective students do not have to apply for this bursary; they qualify automatically for this award, based on their Grade 12 results, if their APS is at least 40.
  • They must have passed Grade 12 not more than 2 years prior to their first year of study.  If not passed the year adjacent of their first year of study, then a Previous Activity Form should be completed and submitted to Financial Aid before 31 March.
  • Their registration at University must be their first registration at a Higher Education institution;
  • They must remain registered for the full academic year, otherwise the bursary is withdrawn;
  • If a student cancels his/her registration before the end of the 1st semester the full award will be forfeited; if a student cancels before the end of the 2nd semester, 50% of the award will be forfeited;
  • The Scholar Merit Award is for one year only and is awarded to South African and permanent residence citizens only. The award cannot be carried forward to a next study period;
  • The student must be registered as a full-time student for degree/diploma purposes for the full duration of the academic year;
  • The calculation of a student’s APS is based on the first release of the final Grade 12 results (usually in January); results obtained after a re-mark are not considered.
  • Students who have achieved the minimum APS, but whose qualification for this bursary has not yet been confirmed by the University at the commencement of first year registrations, must submit their final Grade 12 results to the Financial Aid Office.
  • Qualifying students who have only been allowed to register for the first time in the second semester, may be awarded 50% of the bursary value.

 

The APS score is calculated as follows, using the table below: points are earned for each of the seven individual Grade 12 subjects, based on the percentage achieved for each subject (If a student has more than seven subjects, the seven best results are used). The points for each subject are all added to form the total APS.

 

Points

NSC Percentages

8

90% to 100%

7

80% to 89%

6

70% to 79%

5

60% to 69%

4

50% to 59%

3

40% to 49%

0

0% to 39%

 

For example: if a student’s results for the 7 subjects has been as follows: 69%, 72%, 75%, 79%, 82%, 87% and 90%, the APS would be 45.

The rand value of each award is determined on a sliding scale across three bands of APS scores according to the table below.

 

Total APS

Amount
Band 1:  50 and above R16,500
Band 2:  46 - 49 R12,500
Band 3:  40 - 45 R8,500

 

School Leadership Awards

A student who has been a Head Prefect (or Learner Council President) at his/her school and who meets the criteria for a Scholar Merit Bursary, qualifies for the School Leadership award of R4,200 in addition to the Scholar Merit Bursary.

Students who were Head Prefects (or Learner Council President) but do not qualify for a Scholar Merit Bursary, nevertheless qualifies for a School Leadership Award of R4,200.

Documentary proof of Grade 12 results including Letter from the School verifying the Leadership role must be submitted to Financial Aid office at North Campus. The last day for submission is 31 March.

“Information contained in this document was correct at the time of publishing. The University reserves the right to amend the policy with regards to the bursary, and may in its sole discretion, decide to implement such amendments retrospectively”.