Institutions of higher learning cannot accommodate the tens of thousands of grade 12s who attain a Bachelor’s pass
The year 2024 will be remembered as the period when South Africa achieved the highest-ever matric pass rate, with 87.3% — surpassing the previous record of 82.9% set in 2023.
But, for most learners and their parents, the excitement has been short-lived. A grim reality has dawned on them: attaining a Bachelor’s admission is not a guarantee for a place at university, even for those achieving higher subject scores.
The increase in the number of learners attaining a Bachelor’s admission pass versus the number of spaces available has become a source of concern for universities.
By way of example, at the University of Johannesburg (UJ), the Faculty of Education received 68 000 applications for 772 first-year spaces. Of the 68 000 applicants, almost 50 000 had bachelor endorsements — still far more than what the university could accommodate. It was a similar situation for most faculties and programmes at UJ.
What most people do not realise is that every public institution of higher learning is restricted by an enrolment plan set in advance with the department of higher education and training (DHET). Public institutions are penalised for over-enrolling and under-enrolling against these targets. Student registrations are thus carefully controlled.
University communication with eligible students is vital under these circumstances.
And, as soon as the grade 12 results were officially released by the minister of basic education, the university admissions office communication process kicked into gear, informing applicants that they had been fully admitted and could register, and others that they had been placed on a waiting list, or unfortunately declined.
In January, thus far, 1.2 million letters, emails and SMSes have already been sent out to applicants. This is when the emails, WhatsApp messages, and other social media commentary intensifies — with many of the messages reflecting the disappointment of some applicants who are not able to register for their qualifications of choice.
As university representatives, we understand how confusing the university systems of admission may be for some applicants.
First, applications for 2025 would have opened in 2024, with most applicants applying on the basis of their final grade 11 results. A learner’s various subject marks (excluding life orientation) are calculated in a particular way, forming what is known as an admission points score (APS).
Over and above this, other eligibility requirements are also considered, such as whether an applicant has maths literacy or maths, and so forth. Using these measures, applications are then ranked from the highest to the lowest scores and candidates are provisionally admitted if they meet the minimum entrance requirements for a programme.
This is where most of the confusion in university communication arises. A provisional admission only means that a candidate meets the minimum requirements for the qualification. Once the grade 12 results are finalised the applications are re-ranked. It is at this point that an applicant’s provisionally admitted status may convert into a fully admit, waiting list, or declined status.
We try to inform applicants at every stage of the process of their admission status and what that means. For example, the provisionally admitted letter to applicants states the following: “… this is not your final application status.
If you meet all the admission requirements and selection criteria with your final grade 12 results, including the subject-specific requirements and the relevant endorsement, your application will be ranked based on your final grade 12 results and space availability.
Best performing applicants will get placed first based on their APS scores, and in accordance with the UJ and DHET approved enrolment management plan. Meeting the minimum admission requirements does not guarantee admission to a qualification.”
In the next stage, applicants with the highest APS scores (and who meet any other requirements) for a particular qualification are filtered into batches and fully admitted. Communication then goes to these applicants to register as soon as possible, because places cannot be reserved or guaranteed.
Those with lower APS scores, but who still meet the minimum requirements, are placed on a waiting list. For example, the minimum APS score for a programme could be 30, with most of the applicants meeting this requirement.
But, in most cases, only the top APS-ranked students above a particular threshold — 36 — are fully admitted. The communication from UJ also warns applicants that the minimum APS score for a programme usually does not provide access to the programme, and gives an indication of the higher APS scores of successful applicants based on history.
The available spaces for programmes are often filled within a day or two, and in some cases, within hours. It is at this point that a second major confusion arises.
If fully admitted candidates are not paying attention to university communication, they may miss their window of opportunity to register and then applicants on the waiting list are awarded a fully admitted status and invited to register. Registration is a time-sensitive process and proceeds on a “first-come-first serve” basis, and spaces cannot be guaranteed.
We try to alert applicants to the importance of registering as soon as they get the notification from the university. For instance, in the admission and registration letters, it is also stated that: “… due to space constraints, registration within the specified registration period is dependent on space availability.
This means that if all spaces are filled before the end of the registration period, registration for the specific qualification will close.”
Should a student cancel his or her registration, the space could be offered to the next ranked applicant on the list. This registration process is mostly automated and subject to auditing to make it as fair and free from human interference as possible.
As many more learners become eligible for university level studies, without additional spaces becoming available in the sector, we are likely to see an increase in the number of applicants who are unable to register and a repeat of the criticisms of university systems.
While the explanation offered in this article may serve as cold comfort to many of our unsuccessful applicants, we hope that it helps give readers an understanding of the process of university admissions followed.
We also want to use this as an opportunity to help applicants, parents and families understand the importance of reading the university correspondence carefully and ensuring that they get the necessary advice at this pressured time.
We encourage young people to look around for other opportunities for post-school learning and development.
Professor Nadine Petersen is executive dean of the Faculty of Education, University of Johannesburg and Dr Tinus van Zyl is the senior director, Central Academic Administration at the University of Johannesburg.