A significant number of Stellenbosch University (SU) students in the postgraduate certificate in education (PGCE) course have struggled to start their academic year amid financial uncertainty.
This is according to a member of the PGCE class, who requested to remain anonymous to avoid conflict. Some students have allegedly noticed that they have been denied National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) funding on their NSFAS portals for the 2021 academic year and suspect that NSFAS might be cutting funding for all PGCE students, according to the source.
The exterior of the Stellenbosch University GG Cillié (education) building. While most postgraduate certificate in education (PGCE) lectures are currently online, face-to-face lectures are expected to increase as the year progresses, according to Naseegha Cariem, a PGCE student. PHOTO: Tamsin Metelerkamp
“So, people who thought they had funding and were appealing for funding, and all in the process, they’ve all just smack-bang been told no,” claimed the anonymous source, referring to notifications that some students claimed to have received on their NSFAS portals.
A petition in support of NSFAS funding for PGCE students, entitled NSFAS funding for PGCE students 2021, was set up on Change.org on 25 March.
However, students have not received official confirmation of the cut in funding, said the source. This prompted students to compile a list of 62 PGCE students who were awaiting funding from NSFAS and send it to SU management on Friday 26 March. The intention was to raise awareness of how many students were facing funding issues, according to the anonymous source.
“We have this academic stress and the financial stress,” said Naseegha Cariem, a PGCE student who has been denied NSFAS funding via her NSFAS portal. “I don’t know of anyone [in the PGCE course] whose application [for NSFAS funding] has been successful,” she added.
The lack of clear communication from NSFAS has placed strain on those PGCE students who are reliant on NSFAS to pay for registration and accommodation, according to Cariem.
“[No-one] has communicated with us what is going to happen [going] forward, what the next steps are. Because imagine…we are submitting assignments already, and what if they deregister us because we haven’t paid registration?” said Cariem.
Naseegha Cariem, a Stellenbosch University PGCE student who is reliant on NSFAS funding, explains the impact that a lack of clear communication from NSFAS is having on students in need.
In previous years, NSFAS provided funding for students in need who pursued a PGCE after completing their undergraduate degree, according to Sherwin Abrahams, a PGCE student who has secured alternative funding to NSFAS. There were 124 PGCE students on NSFAS last year, according to the SU centre for undergraduate bursaries and loans.
In an official circular dated 12 February, NSFAS stated that the overall funding status for postgraduate qualification was being reconsidered.
“NSFAS was communicating very different things. First, they said that they’re restructuring their funding. And then they said courses might not be included,” said Abrahams, in reference to the NSFAS official circular. NSFAS has now appeared to have pulled out of funding for all PGCE students, according to Abrahams.
However, SU has not received written confirmation from NSFAS that PGCE funding has been cut, according to Arrie Hanekom, deputy director of the centre for undergraduate bursaries and loans at SU.
“[W]e will need to wait for NSFAS’s official guidelines before we can confirm any information,” said Hanekom in an emailed response.
PGCE students had the option to apply for the Funza Lushaka bursary programme, which is funded by the Department of Basic Education, according to Hanekom.
According to the Funza Lushaka bursary application notes for 2021, “The Funza Lushaka bursary is a prestigious bursary that must be awarded firstly on the basis of academic ability.” Applicants are required to study certain priority areas, such as mathematics and physical science, in order to qualify for the bursary, according to the Funza Lushaka bursary website.
Not all students who applied for NSFAS funding will be eligible for the Funza Lushaka bursary programme, according to Cariem.
“Personally, I cannot apply for Funza Lushaka because I’m over thirty. So, NSFAS is basically the only other option for me,” said Cariem.
MatieMedia reached out to NSFAS for comment, but they had not responded by the time of publication.
A petition to ensure NSFAS funding for PGCE students, called ‘NSFAS funding for PGCE students 2021’, was set up on Change.org on 25 March. The petition calls on NSFAS and the government to provide funding for PGCE students, “as teachers play a key role in the future of this country”. At the time of publishing, the petition had 2760 signatures. IMAGE: Change.org