Student Funding – Purpose, Values and Mandate

In line with the University’s mission, the Department of Student Funding is to facilitate the fair, equitable and effective allocation and administration of bursaries and loans to financially needy and academically deserving students and scholarships to academically excellent students by recognising and rewarding prior and current academic excellence. The vision of Student Funding is to be a strategic partner in positioning the University as the Premier University of African Scholarship.

In pursuit of its vision and mission, the Department adopted Goal 5 (Institution of choice for students) of the University’s Strategic Goals. This states that UKZN seeks to “establish the University as an institution of choice that values students in all their diversity and has a student-centred ethos, providing students with curricula, teachers, infrastructure and support services designed around their needs and producing well-educated, competent, sought-after graduates”. In striving to attain this strategic goal and in line with its mission and vision, Student Funding has set the following goals:

• To provide equitable and efficient allocation of scholarships, bursaries and financial aid (from NSFAS – the National Student Financial Aid Scheme) to academically high achieving students and financially needy and academically deserving students, respectively.
• To manage and account for all external bursaries, internal bursaries, student loans and scholarships received on behalf of the University and to provide donors with funding reports.
• To provide advice, financial counselling and support to students.
• To provide support for external donors including pre-selection of bursary recipients, donor liaison and any other information on students which is required by a donor.
• To ensure that effective publicity relating to bursaries and scholarships is made available to all stakeholders through good communication with students and all other stakeholders.

Figure 20: 2020 Scholarships and Fee Remissions by Amounts

Figure 21: 2020 Scholarships and Fee Remissions by Number of Students Funded

Figure 22: 2021 Scholarships and Fee Remissions by Amounts

Figure 23: 2021 Scholarships and Fee Remissions by Number of Students Funded