Nzimande suggests prioritising certain degrees and programmes for NSFAS funding
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Higher education, science and innovation minister Blade Nzimande says perhaps National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) funding allocation should be prioritised according to certain degrees and programmes based on the country’s needs.
But before this “discrimination”, as the minister called it, there should be a large college sector that can absorb students who don’t get funding for university education.
The minister was in parliament tabling the department’s state of readiness for the 2024 academic year.
NSFAS, government’s bursary scheme, aids students who lack financial access to higher education.
For students in the “missing middle” - households earning within the threshold of R350,000 to R600,000 a year - the minister said they should be on a mixed system of a loan and a bursary. He said his preference was for PostBank to handle loan systems for the missing middle.
“We have raised R3.8bn and our figures tell us that money will go a long way in addressing the missing middle”
Last month thousand of students were left in limbo by the financial scheme when they did not receive their allowances. NSFAS blamed the universities' data management systems for the payment failures.
But before this “discrimination”, as the minister called it, there should be a large college sector that can absorb students who don’t get funding for university education.
The minister was in parliament tabling the department’s state of readiness for the 2024 academic year.
NSFAS, government’s bursary scheme, aids students who lack financial access to higher education.
For students in the “missing middle” - households earning within the threshold of R350,000 to R600,000 a year - the minister said they should be on a mixed system of a loan and a bursary. He said his preference was for PostBank to handle loan systems for the missing middle.
“We have raised R3.8bn and our figures tell us that money will go a long way in addressing the missing middle”
Last month thousand of students were left in limbo by the financial scheme when they did not receive their allowances. NSFAS blamed the universities' data management systems for the payment failures.