Thousands of matriculants in KwaZulu-Natal, and the country, will only be able to realise their tertiary education dreams if they secure funding from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (Nsfas).
Many pupils from the Matric Class of 2023 were recently assisted with their online application at the Nelson Mandela Community Youth Centre in Chatsworth.
Various stakeholders, including Tech Society, Women in Tech, We Think Code, university student volunteers and school teachers provided career advice and assistance with the applications.
For many of the youth, the Nsfas funding is the key to their future.
– Ternelle Govender, 18, said she hoped to pursue a career in civil engineering. She applied to study civil, electrical and light current engineering at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) and University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN).
“I always enjoyed the subject at school and decided to pursue it further.”
She said the cost ranged between R50 000 and R80 000.
Her twin brother, Terchil, said he had applied to study biological science, computer science and information technology, also at DUT and UKZN.
“I am leaning more towards biological science, as I want to further my studies thereafter in forensic science. I want to be able to help others, especially in court cases where people have lost loved ones to crimes,” he said.
He said the average cost of his course of choice ranged between R60 000 and R90 000.
Their mother, Karen, said with the rising cost of living it would be difficult to fund both her children’s university fees.
“It is not just the fees, but also other factors that come with attending university, such as travel costs, food, clothing, and study material. While the cost of everything increases, salaries barely increase. It is difficult to make ends meet, so the Nsfas (funding) would really help.
"However, if it is not approved, then my children will have to go to a basic college or get part-time jobs, which I don’t think would be of benefit to them, as they will not be solely focusing on their studies. I may also have to work overtime, but I don't think that would be enough," she said.
– Sherylene Prenola Pillay, 17, said she was provisionally accepted to study BCom accounting at UKZN.
“I excelled at the subject in school and decided to pursue it further as there are also many job opportunities in this field. However, I live with my grandmother and we are not financially stable enough to be able to pay the fee, which is over R60 000 a year, so I decided to apply to Nsfas.
"If I am not able to get it, then I will be forced to take a gap year and find a job so that I can save up. But I don’t want to lose a year of studying as it will be a great setback in my life," she said.
– Aaliyah Govender, 17, said her dream was to teach primary school children.
She applied for the Bachelor of Education - intermediate phase at UKZN. It costs about R60 000 a year.
“I knew from a young age that I would want to teach the younger children and provide them with both the knowledge and basic life skills, just like what my teachers had done for me, so that they too can go on to achieve greatness and be good people.
“However, it is quite expensive to study nowadays, but Nsfas provides us the opportunity to achieve our dreams. If it is not approved, then we will have to approach a banking institution to apply for a student loan. I am not willing to give up on my dream,” she said.
Nitasha Pillay, the coordinator of Women in Tech, a global organisation, said their volunteers assisted the matriculants with their university applications.
“The Nsfas online applications assistance initiative was the second part of us providing the youth with help to apply for funding.
“We are not affiliated to Nsfas. We are just volunteers doing what we love, which is helping the youth. We have all been in the same position, and believe we can use our experience and knowledge to help them.
“We also saw a need in the community as many parents don’t have the money to pay for the child’s university fees, but also don't know there are other resources available. We are showing them there is funding available, such as NSFAS, as well as other avenues they can pursue to achieve their dreams,” she said.