Sanlam Limited

Sanlam registered in 1918 to widen access to financial services and savings for people largely shut out of the English-controlled banking sector of the time. Sanlam demutualised and listed on the JSE in 1998, and the group now runs life insurance, investment and wealth businesses from its head office in Bellville, Cape Town, with operations across Africa.

Registered name

Sanlam Limited

Type

Private company (insurance and financial services)

Fields funded

Actuarial science, chartered accountancy, IT, data and engineering

Website

sanlam.co.za

Phone

+27 21 947 9111

A family of bursaries built around Sanlam’s hiring

Sanlam funds students in the skills the group recruits: actuarial science, chartered accountancy, IT, data and engineering. The actuarial bursary sets a very high bar and has required a minimum of 90% for Mathematics. Sanlam’s related schemes run mid-year; the actuarial bursary for 2027 closed on 30 June 2026.

The CA side works differently. Sanlam trains chartered accountants through its own SAICA-accredited training programme at its Cape Town head office. Sanlam last advertised a separate CA trainee bursary for the 2024 academic year, closing on 29 November 2023, while the intake for the 2027 CA training programme itself closed on 31 May 2026.

Sanlam had not published a 2027 closing date for its IT bursary when BursariesAfrica checked. Students in computing fields should check Sanlam’s careers pages from mid-year rather than rely on older adverts.

Sanlam Foundation and graduate careers

Sanlam also invests in education outside its bursaries. Since 2011 the Sanlam Foundation has invested more than R746 million in education, financial literacy, health, water security, enterprise development and staff volunteering. Sanlam also offers graduate opportunities in investment, accounting and underwriting for students who did not hold a Sanlam bursary.

Before you apply

Match your field to the right Sanlam programme, check the minimum marks for that programme, and confirm the current window on Sanlam’s own website. Actuarial applicants in particular should apply to several funders, because few students reach Sanlam’s Mathematics threshold.

Before applying, ask your university’s career centre whether Sanlam recruiters are visiting campus, and read Sanlam’s graduate pages to see which roles its bursars move into. Knowing whether a programme leads to actuarial, finance or technology work helps you pick the right Sanlam application and prepare for its selection tests.

Students interested in data and technology careers at insurers can compare Sanlam with other funders on our data science bursaries page.