Celebrating our history

Explore Unisa’s journey of more than 145 years and celebrate our decades of service to students in South Africa and beyond.

Application for admission to 2021

Undergraduate qualifications (higher certificates, advanced certificates, diplomas, advanced diplomas & degrees): 1 September – 30 November 2020

Honours degrees & postgraduate diplomas: 1 September – 15 December 2020

Master’s & doctoral qualifications: 15 September – 6 November 2020

Undergraduate qualifications

Applications for admission to undergraduate qualifications (higher certificates, advanced certificates, diplomas, advanced diplomas & degrees) for the 2021 academic year will be open from 1 September to 30 November 2020.

Everyone wanting to start a new qualification must apply for admission. This includes

• first-time Unisa applicants
• Unisa students changing to a new qualification and / or specialisation
• applicants who previously applied for admission and were not offered a space or who were offered a space, accepted the offer and did not register
• students completing a higher certificate or any other programme and who wish to continue with further undergraduate studies

Selection and application for 2021: here’s what you should know

Unisa is known as a provider of fair and equitable access to higher education opportunities. Flowing from its social responsibility to address past inequalities, Unisa has an application and selection process that effectively addresses historical imbalances without sacrificing quality standards.

This process promotes focused attention towards improved student support, and the alignment of our new student intake with the available academic capacity and required infrastructure to maximise all students’ chances of success.

What does the selection process entail?

• At the heart of the selection process is a calculation of your individual points score, which takes into account your final Grade 12 marks and other key factors such as the school you attended, and your gender, socio-economic group, race, and so on.
• Before submitting an application, please check whether you meet the statutory and college-specific admission requirements, and the required academics points score (APS) for your chosen qualification(s). A higher certificate requires a minimum APS of 15, a diploma a minimum APS of 18 and a bachelor degree a minimum APS of 21 or more (some exceptions apply).
• It is important to note that you will not automatically be accepted to study through Unisa in semester 1 of 2021. Students will be accommodated on the basis of the number of places available for each qualification.

The application process

• You may apply for a maximum of two qualifications, ranked in order of preference (although you may only register for one should both of your qualifications be successful).
• Unisa will inform you of the outcome of your application. If successful, Unisa will indicate for which qualification you have been accepted and will offer you a space for the period for which you have applied (ie semester 1).
• You must accept or decline Unisa’s offer within the prescribed period of time. If you miss this deadline, Unisa will withdraw the offer and give your space to another applicant.
• First-time applicants to Unisa will be required to complete the First-Year Experience (FYE) MOOC (massive open online course) before being able to accept Unisa’s offer.
• You may only accept one offer. This means that when you accept an offer for one qualification (irrespective of whether it is your first or second qualification of choice), the other offer will automatically fall away.
• If you accept Unisa’s offer, you must register for the period for which you have been granted admission (ie semester 1). Should you not register for the relevant semester of study, you will need to re-apply for admission during the next application period.

Who must apply?

• Everyone wanting to start a new qualification must apply for admission. This includes first-time Unisa applicants and Unisa students changing to a new qualification and / or specialisation.
• If you are completing a higher certificate or alternative pathway / extended programme, you must apply for admission if you want to continue with further undergraduate studies.
• You must re-apply for admission if you previously applied for admission and were offered a space, but did not accept the offer and / or did not register for any reason.
• Everyone planning to enrol for classes at a Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) college under the Unisa-TVET agreement must apply for admission.

PROCEED WITH ODL &UNISA

Honours degrees & postgraduate diplomas

Master’s & doctoral degrees

Short Learning Programmes