Underfunded students take frustration out on universities

BDLive 06 March 2015

South African universities have their backs to the wall as the demand for financial assistance outstrips the available state funding and universities have to dig deep into their own pockets to accommodate as many students as possible, writes Wyndham Hartley for BDLive.

Last month Higher Education and Training Minister Dr Blade Nzimande announced that the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, NSFAS, had been allocated R9.5 billion (US$80 million) for the 2015 academic year, but tertiary institutions have complained that their allocations were not sufficient for the number of students seeking financial assistance. Nzimande also said a forensic audit would be held into allegations of fraud and corruption at NSFAS because this could be robbing deserving students of funding.

Universities face a further problem: the state sets targets for admissions in order for the institutions to earn subsidies, meaning that more students gain admission than can be accommodated through NSFAS funding.
Full report on the BDLive site

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