Students urged to sign bursary agreements before July deadline

THE National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS), in partnership with the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) has embarked on a nationwide on-campus activation to launch the NSFAS Bursary

Agreement (NBA) currently available for signing. The activation campaign commenced in the KwaZulu Natal where Deputy Minister Buti Manamela and CEO Steven Zwane visited Durban University of Technology and Thekwini TVET colleges.

The objective of the campaign is to encourage students to sign their NSFAS agreement, as all students receiving government funding through NSFAS are obliged to accept and sign the terms and conditions of the agreement before NSFAS can process payments. If students do not sign, they will not receive allowances and will not be funded. The new bursary agreement is the contractual agreement to the terms and conditions of the government bursary received by the students for the duration of study.

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“Since 10 May 2018 NFAS has been sending out notifications for the signing of the Agreement to all First Time Entering Students (FTENs) and senior students who receive funding for the first time. To date, NSFAS has generated 67 177 agreements and 49 746 have been signed. The agreement is applicable to First Entering Students (FTENs) and new senior students have applied to NSFAS for the first time. Returning students will continue to receive funding as it was in 2017. If the student has not signed within 10 days after the e-mail notification, the NSFAS Contact Centre will contact the student to sign. Institutions are encouraged to assist with this process by following-up with students to facilitate the signing process by the required deadline,” said Kagisho Mamabolo, NSFAS spokesperson.

The deadline for the signing of all NSFAS Bursary Agreement (NBAs) is 31 July 2018. Accepting the bursary funding will not require a beneficiary to pay back the funds in monetary terms. However, it does require that the beneficiary meets and maintains academic conditions/criteria, a service requirement for the duration of the study period, as well as a commitment to the country over the longer term. Students need to make sure that the number used to apply for NSFAS is still working, otherwise they must send an email to UDS@NSFAS.ORG.ZA with the required documents.

“If student has not received an email from NSFAS they must call our contact centre on 0860 067 327. Signing a NSFAS bursary agreement is a guarantee that tuition and allowances will be covered by NSFAS for the duration of the study. NSFAS will continue supporting a student provided that they pass and progress to the next level of studies. There is no need to sign the NSFAS bursary agreement again if you progress to the next study level. We encourage students to read the T&Cs because it will explain your benefits and how to utilise them,” added Mamabolo.

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