The cost of higher learning

(Fille photo) At UCT, which will be able to accommodate 4 200 first-year students, tuition fees for 2015 will ranges from R43 000 to R64 500. Picture: Ross Jansen

(Fille photo) At UCT, which will be able to accommodate 4 200 first-year students, tuition fees for 2015 will ranges from R43 000 to R64 500. Picture: Ross Jansen

Published Oct 13, 2014

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Cape Town - Parents of matrics who are starting university next year could expect to pay anything between R11 000 and R64 000 for first-year tuition And add R13 000 to R38 000 for residence fees.

At UCT, which will be able to accommodate 4 200 first-year students, tuition for next year ranges from R43 000 to R64 500, said spokeswoman Riana Geldenhuys.

This year it was R39 000 to R58 000.

“UCT fees are all-inclusive. In other words, the university does not charge additional fees for items or services such as transport/fieldwork costs, internet or wi-fi access, notes levies, laboratory fees, PC lab access fees and instruments costs.”

UCT’s most expensive programme for next year is the MBChB (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery) at R64 500. The least expensive are the BA and BSocSc (Bachelor of Social Science) at R45 600.

At Cape Peninsula University of Technology the average cost of first-year tuition rises from R25 000 to R27 500. Spokesman Thami Nkwanyane said first-year fees for its least expensive programme, journalism, were R11 220, and R42 020 for its most expensive, hospitality management.

Stellenbosch University would be able to accommodate about 5 000 first-years next year with fees ranging from R30 125 for the BA programme to R46 254 for the MBChB (Bachelor of Medicine).

University of the Western Cape fees have not been finalised but this year its least expensive programmes for first-years included the Bachelor of Education, the BA and BCom (R23 020). The most expensive was the Bachelor of Dental Surgery at R41 550.

All four universities offered financial aid.

Geldenhuys said UCT had distributed more than R440 million in financial support per year together with the National Student Funding Aid Scheme (NSFAS), donors, and corporate and government partners.

Applicants have until October 31 to apply for financial support.

Stellenbosch University spokesman Martin Viljoen said it applied the national means test of NSFAS for financial aid.

“This test calculates the contribution the family can afford to make (or arrange to make) and how much financial assistance the student needs to cover the rest of his/her study costs. The university will then make this assistance available in the form of a package of loans and assistance bursaries. Normally, all students where the joint gross family income is less than R20 000 per month qualify for financial assistance in terms of the means test – the lower the income, the bigger the financial assistance.”

UWC said it provided financial aid to students on academic merit (those who have passed subjects with As in matric or at university receive a discount) and on a means test based on availability of sponsorship and donor restrictions.

Cape Argus

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