Funding Exclusions

Will students who are intending to register for part-time studies be considered for NRF Student Postgraduate Funding?

No, only students intending to register for full-time studies at any public university in South Africa will be funded. Students who commenced their master’s and doctoral studies on a part-time basis and wish to be considered for funding for completion of their studies on a full-time basis, will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Which qualifications are not funded by the NRF?

Undergraduate qualifications, regardless of National Qualification Framework (NQF) exit level;
Postgraduate certificates or diplomas, regardless of NQF exit level;
Professional master’s and doctoral degrees, regardless of NQF exit level (Further clarification of the professional degrees can be obtained from the Higher Education Qualifications Sub-Framework (HEQSF) approved by the DHET).

Will the NRF still support grantholder-linked scholarships?

Yes, however the DSI-NRF Postgraduate Funding Policy is adopting a one call approach, wherein scholarships will no longer be included in research grant awards as was previously the case. All students must apply through the NRF Connect system on https://nrfconnect.nrf.ac.za/ to be considered for postgraduate funding.