NSFAS applications to open on Wednesday
The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) will open its application season on Wednesday for university and TVET students who need funding assistance for the 2023 academic year.
Minister of Higher Education, Blade Nzimande made the announcement in a media briefing on Tuesday.
Nzimande says the scheme resolved to open the application cycle early to give prospective applicants enough time to submit their applications and supporting documents.
"There have been a number of enhancements made to the system to ensure a seamless application experience. After benchmarking similar platforms, the NSFAS online application portal was redesigned to be more user-friendly and closer to other platforms that prospective applicants are accustomed to such as WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram,” he said.
“The application process itself has been simplified and the questions asked are easier to understand by the public.”
“Additionally, applicants can pause the process and continue at a later stage without restarting from scratch, something which was not possible in previous cycles," says Nzimande.
Nzimande says the scheme developed additional channels of application to cater for applicants from diverse backgrounds.
“Furthermore, to ensure that no applicant is left behind, NSFAS will embark on an outreach campaign, to ensure that individuals who do not have access to technological devices that enable them to apply online are given the necessary resources and support to apply," he says.
The fund is available to qualifying students who are South African citizens who plan to study in 2023 or who are already studying at a public university or TVET college.
The requirements include SASSA grant recipients, with a combined household income of not more than R350 000 per year or a person living with a disability, with a combined household income of not more than R600 000 per year.
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