NWU Honours Bursary

North-West University, South Africa

Scholarship overview

The NWU Honours Bursary is part of the North-West University postgraduate bursary scheme, which supports promising postgraduate students who cannot afford tertiary study and recognises good academic performance. The scheme considers admitted postgraduate students for Honours, Master's and doctoral bursaries.

The Honours bursary is valid once, in the first year of a full-time prescribed Honours degree (postgraduate diplomas and the PGCE included), and the degree must be completed within a one-year grace period. The minimum average depends on whether the preceding degree was in a scarce skills field or not. The figures below are from the 2024 scheme document. See the NWU financial support page.

Award Information

Registered full-time for a prescribed Honours degree, postgraduate diploma or PGCE. Part-time, occasional and working students (employed for a salary as main activity) do not qualify.
Scarce skills fields (BCom and BSc in accounting sciences, actuarial studies, agricultural sciences, architecture, auditing, biotechnology, chemical sciences, chemistry, computer sciences, economics, electronic sciences, engineering, financial management, geology, health science, information studies, logistics, mathematical sciences, natural science statistics, physical sciences, risk management, statistics, transportation studies): minimum 65% average in the final-year modules of the preceding completed degree.
Non-scarce fields (BA, BEd, BTh, BHSc in all subjects; BCom fields such as communication, industrial psychology, journalism, labour relations, law, management, marketing, political studies, sociology; BSc consumer science; diplomas and certificates in disaster and risk, education, management): minimum 70% average in the final-year modules of the preceding degree.
Students from other universities attach the academic record of the preceding degree; certificates alone are not valid.
Holders of bursaries from statutory councils such as the NRF, SETAs or other outside bodies may apply for a top-up.

R24 000 per year for full-time students, for both scarce and non-scarce fields (2024).
Valid once, in the first year of the Honours degree.
Top-ups for holders of external funding may be given, up to a combined maximum of R188 000; NWU may cancel or adjust the bursary if that amount is exceeded.
The amount is repayable if the student terminates studies or does not complete within the prescribed period.
A separate Postgraduate Academic Merit Bursary of R5 000 goes to students who passed the preceding degree cum laude (average 75%), once in the first year of postgraduate study.

Honours bursary (2024 cycle): 31 March 2024.
Postgraduate Academic Merit (cum laude) bursary (2024 cycle): 30 April 2024.
Late applications are accepted only with written confirmation from the faculty.

Apply online only, using the prescribed application form on the NWU bursary website (financial support page).
Complete the form fully; incomplete forms are invalid.
Students from other universities attach the academic record of the preceding qualifying degree.
Submit by the closing date. For the cum laude merit bursary, NWU students are assessed automatically, while students from other universities must apply online by the closing date.
Direct queries to the campus of registration: Mahikeng [email protected], Potchefstroom [email protected], Vanderbijlpark [email protected].

Official links

How to apply (official)

Documents you will need

Completed online application form.
Academic record of the preceding qualifying degree (students from other universities; certificates alone are not valid).

How selection works

Qualification is determined by the average in the final-year modules of the preceding degree against the scarce (65%) or non-scarce (70%) threshold, together with full-time registration in a prescribed Honours degree. The university may change guidelines, conditions and values without prior notice.

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