NSFAS was established to provide financial aid to students from poor and working class backgrounds who wish to attend public technical, vocational and higher education institutions as listening below.

Advantages And Disadvantages Of NSFAS

• The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) is a company limited by guarantee incorporated in terms of the Companies Act, 1973 (Act No. 61 of 1973).
• The NSFAS Trustees oversee the operations of NSFAS and ensure compliance with their mandate and objectives as set out in its trust deed, which is registered with the Master of the High Court of South Africa.
• You can find out more about how NSFAS operates on its website at: https://www.nsfas.ac.za

NSFAS is managed in terms of a trust deed that is registered with the Master of the High Court of South Africa. The trust deed outlines the purpose of NSFAS and how it is managed.

The Master of the High Court has oversight over any changes to this deed, which means that should there be any alterations made to it, you will be notified via email or postal service.

NSFAS is a company limited by guarantee incorporated in terms of the Companies Act, 1973 (Act No. 61 of 1973). The objects for which it is established are:

To provide financial assistance to poor but deserving students through loans at reasonable rates of interest;

To enable poor but deserving students to pursue education at institutions of higher learning;

To assist disadvantaged persons through training courses for occupations where skills are scarce;

To promote the development of national manpower resources and their adaptation to changing economic conditions by encouraging non-traditional fields of study.

• Tshwane University of Technology (TUT)

It is one of the best universities in South Africa with more than 30 000 students, with a campus that covers an area of over 130 hectares. It was founded in 1916 as Pretoria Technical School and became a university in 2002 after merging with the College of Engineering. It offers undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral programmes.

• Vaal University of Technology (VUT)

It is situated near Vanderbijlpark, east of Johannesburg and has over 40 000 students enrolled at its campuses. It was established in 1959 as Technikon Witwatersrand which later became part of FET Colleges before being granted university status by the Department of Higher Education in 1998. It offers undergraduate courses in engineering sciences, commerce, business studies, information technology and education among others

The first thing you need to understand is that you cannot use your NSFAS funding for everything.

If you are receiving a student allowance from NSFAS and want to use it for something that isn’t covered by the student allowance, like buying books, food or accommodation, then ask them about this before spending the money.