The University of Cape Town (UCT) has opened its application for 2025, so if you are a grade 12/matric student who wants to become a part of this institution, now is the time to get your application documents together and begin your online application.
The University of Cape Town is one of the best universities to attend in South Africa. The institution offers courses in different faculties like Commerce, Engineering & the Built Environment, Health Sciences, Humanities, and more. The acceptance rate of UCT is 25% so you’ll have to perform very well in your matric exams to get admitted.
UCT Applications 2025 opened on 02 April and will close on 31st July 2024. Please try to submit your application as soon as possible. ensure to apply early, as UCT doesn’t consider late applications. You are to pay your application fees and apply online.
UCT Admission Requirements
the admission requirements differ depending on what level you are entering and the degree you want to obtain. below are the University of Cape Town admission requirements.
Undergraduate Certificate Study
To confirm eligibility for admission to undergraduate certificate study, applicants must consult the Admissions Office or the faculty concerned.
Undergraduate Diploma Study
The minimum requirement for admission to undergraduate diploma study is a National Senior Certificate (NSC) as certified by Umalusi with an achievement rating of 3 (Moderate Achievement, 40-49%) or better in 4 recognised NSC 20-credit subjects.
Bachelor’s Degree Study
To be eligible for admission to degree study, all applicants need to meet minimum requirements for eligibility:
- Applicants holding a South African National Senior Certificate (NSC) need to pass a minimum of 4 subjects at a rating of 4 (Adequate Achievement, 50-59%) or better in any four 20-credit NSC subjects.
- Applicants holding a South African Senior Certificate need matriculation endorsement.
- Applicants holding non-South African school-leaving certificates must qualify for a matriculation exemption certificate. For more information please visit the website of the Matriculation Board.
Minimum language proficiency
All applicants must have attained a certain level of proficiency in English and are required to submit evidence of this, as outlined below, as part of their application to study.
South African Senior Certificate undergraduate applicants
- South African Senior Certificate undergraduate applicants to UCT must have achieved a 40% or more pass on the Higher Grade in English (First or Second Language) at the Senior Certificate level.
South African NSC undergraduate applicants
- South African NSC undergraduate applicants to UCT, must have achieved a rating of 2 (Elementary Achievement, 30-40%) or better at Home Language or First Additional Language level.
Applicants holding non-South African school-leaving certificates
- Please see UCT’s language requirements.
For further information on the IELTS and TOEFL exams, please get in touch with the UCT English Language Centre
UCT Application Fees
All applicants are expected to pay an application fee. It is not refundable and it doesn’t guarantee that you will be admitted. The application fees differ, depending on your country of citizenship. The application fees are as follows:
| Undergraduate and postgraduate applications from South Africa and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region | R100 |
| Undergraduate and postgraduate applications from outside the SADC region | R300 |
| Graduate School of Business (GSB) applications from South Africa and African citizens/residents | R2,070 |
| GSB applications from outside of Africa | $300 |
The application fee may be paid by cash, credit card, direct bank deposit or electronic funds transfer (EFT). Cash payments must be made at the Cashiers Office, Kramer Building, Middle Campus, UCT. Credit card payments must be made online.
- EFT payments for all degrees/diplomas EXCEPT GSB must be made to the following account:
Beneficiary: UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN – No.1 Sundries Account
Bank: Standard Bank SA Ltd
Branch: Rondebosch, Western Cape
Branch Code: 025009
Account: 071503854
Swift code (for international payments): SBZAZAJJ
Reference Number: 11196, applicant number (you will receive your applicant number when your application is captured).
E.g. 11196 ABCDEF001.
(This reference number must be entered on the appropriate bank form.)
- EFT payments for the GSB (Graduate School of Business) programmes must be made to the following account:
Beneficiary: UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN – No.9 GSB Account
Bank: Standard Bank SA Ltd
Branch: Rondebosch, Western Cape
Branch Code: 025009
Account: 072953004
Swift code (for international payments): SBZAZAJJ
GSB Reference Number: GSB, applicant’s first name, applicant’s last name.
E.g. GSB Betty Brown
(This reference number must be entered on the appropriate bank form.)
Application fees should be paid in South African Rands, except when applying for a GSB qualification from outside the SADC region, in which case payment should be in US dollars. UCT graduates are exempt from paying an application fee, except in the case of GSB qualifications.
Submitting results and documents
Current learners at UCT must make sure that all examination results from Grade 11 until September of grade 12 are submitted. Failure to submit these results may result in delays.
Transferring students should submit all transcripts and academic records as early as possible.
Documents must be submitted as certified electronic copies to [email protected] (undergraduate applicants) or [email protected] (postgraduate applicants). Please do not send your submissions to both email addresses as this will only delay the processing of your application.
Calculating Admissions Points Score (APS)
The percentages achieved in National Senior Certificate examinations (preliminary and final examinations) will be allocated an admission score equal to that percentage.
The sum of 6 subjects, excluding Life Orientation, but including English and any required subject(s) for the relevant programme, is considered when deciding on admission. For example, for a given programme where Maths and Physical Sciences are required, we will take scores for English, Maths, Physical Sciences and the next best 3 subjects other than Life Orientation to compute the NSC score towards the APS.
Results below 40% for any subject do not attract a score. All scores will be calculated into an average which will determine whether you will be admitted into the University of Cape Town. Learn more about it in the UCT prospectus 2025.
How to Apply to UCT
- Go to the UCT Application 2025 portal
- Click on ‘Applications’ and then ‘Online applications’
- Select between undergraduate and postgraduate applications.
- Fill in the necessary information and submit the needed documents.
- Submit your application
Track Your Application
Once the University of Capetown admission management updates your application, you will be notified via email. Please keep a close eye on your email account for any updates. Additionally, you can track your application status online using the login credentials provided by UCT upon application. UCT is not permitted to disclose your application status over the phone.
Related Articles:
University of Cape Town (UCT) Application Fees Schedule 2025
University of Cape Town (UCT) Prospectus 2025 – PDF Download
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