The Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Higher Education is investigating the application fees charged by universities, sparking concerns about institutions profiting from rejected applications. One university reportedly received over 600,000 applications, each accompanied by a R200 fee.
Speaking to VOC Breakfast on Thursday, committee member Sanele Zondo shared his perspective on the issue.
“We need to look at this process, what options we have, what should be done, and why we are investigating,” he said.
Zondo highlighted the financial disparity between application fees collected and available spaces.
“One of the universities is making a lot of money with this process, whereas the spaces they have don’t match the applications they are receiving. There are a lot of students who apply and pay the application fee, but at the end of the day, they do not get a space at the institutions,” he explained.
He added that exploring a free application process is one potential solution. “One of the options we need to look at is to have a free fee application process as the first step,” Zondo concluded.
The committee’s investigation aims to ensure fair and equitable access to higher education for all prospective students.
Listen to the full interview below:
VOC News
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