Schools and Tertiary Institutions Offering Bursaries (2025/2026)

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Universities, TVET colleges, and selected high schools that run their own bursaries or scholarships — plus what’s open for 2026.

Many South African public universities and TVET colleges offer institutional bursaries and scholarships alongside NSFAS. A number of independent schools also run academic/sport/leadership scholarship rounds for Grade-8 intake. Below you’ll find where to look, typical windows for 2026, and direct links to apply. (For broad discovery across sponsors, bookmark the curated repository bursaries-southafrica.co.za.)

Universities: Where to Find Institutional Bursaries

Wits University (Johannesburg)

What to know: Wits runs merit and need-based internal awards and maintains a live Postgraduate Funding Portal plus an “External Opportunities” board (updated throughout the year).

For 2026, Wits Sport Bursaries ran from 1 April – 30 September 2025 for 2026 study.

Useful Links: Scholarships & Bursaries (overview) • Postgraduate Funding Portal • External Opportunities • Sport Bursaries.

Stellenbosch University (SU)

What to know: SU runs annual SU Funding Opportunities (SUFO) for current and prospective undergraduates as well as merit awards. For the 2026 cycle, windows are:

Current undergraduates: 1 Jul – 30 Sep 2025

Prospective undergraduates: 1 Oct – 30 Nov 2025.

Useful Links: SU Bursaries & Loans • Application Process (dates) • Merit awards • 2026 SUFO media release.

University of Pretoria (UP)

What to know: UP lists internal and external calls on a central Funding hub (including UP internal PhD bursaries, NRF calls, departmental bursaries). Several 2026 calls opened mid-2025.

Useful Links: UP Funding (live calls) • Student Funding (how to apply) • Example 2026 items: UP PhD Research Bursary 2026 • NRF 2026 summary • HCI Foundation 2026 info.

University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN)

What to know: UKZN’s Department of Student Funding administers internal bursaries (criteria often include need and academic performance), plus merit scholarships and ongoing “Current Bursaries & Scholarships” updates.

Useful Links: Student Funding (home) • Bursaries (criteria) • Current bursaries & scholarships • 2026 Sport Scholarships notice • College of Humanities call (2026).

Public TVET Colleges: Internal Bursaries & NSFAS Support

While TVET students primarily apply via NSFAS, a number of colleges also advertise college-administered bursaries or publish NSFAS guidance pages and accommodation information for qualifying students.

False Bay TVET College (Western Cape)

False Bay provides a bursaries page with NSFAS criteria and notes on accommodation allowances for eligible students.
Links: Bursaries (NSFAS criteria) • Westlake campus (accommodation note).

Northlink TVET College (Western Cape)

Northlink advertises college bursaries and provides fee policy PDFs that restate NSFAS/DHET bursary rules; guides also detail how to indicate “bursary required” during the online application.

Useful Links: College Bursaries (overview) • Fees & Bursary Policy (2025 PDF) • Online application guide (bursary flag).

Independent Schools: Grade-8 Scholarships (2026)

Independent schools typically run annual scholarship rounds (academic, sport, music, leadership) for Grade-8 entry. Timelines vary by school.

Allan Gray Orbis Foundation — High School Scholarship

A national programme placing financially deserving, high-potential learners into leading partner high schools; Grade-6 learners apply for Grade-8 entry, with the 2026 cycle publicised mid-2025 across official channels.

Useful Links: Scholarship Programme (official) • Foundation home.

Selected school examples (Gauteng)

Dainfern College: runs Grade-8 scholarship rounds and publishes documentation requirements (e.g., for “Grade 8 2026” cohort).

Steyn City School: publishes Grade-8 scholarship timelines and assessment dates aligned with ISASA schools (e.g., offers for “Grade 8 2026” around March 2025).

Links: Dainfern College — Scholarships & Bursaries • Steyn City School — Scholarships.

How to Approach 2026 Applications (Quick Plan)

  1. Start on your target school’s official funding page. Most universities keep a central bursary hub (Wits, SU, UP), and UKZN runs a dedicated Student Funding site with live notices.
  2. Know the Application Cycles. Typical university cycles for 2026 opened mid-2025.
  3. Prepare documents early. IDs, latest results, proof of income (if need-based), and any departmental forms (many sites provide checklists or forms).
  4. Diversify. Combine an institutional bursary with external options listed on university portals (e.g., Wits “External Opportunities”) or reputable aggregators like bursaries-southafrica.co.za.
  5. TVET specifics. Use your college’s bursary page for NSFAS criteria plus any college-administered support and check accommodation allowances/notes where relevant.

Useful Links (Official)