University of KwaZulu-Natal

The University of KwaZulu-Natal came into being in 2004, when the University of Natal and the University of Durban-Westville merged. UKZN describes itself as building on more than a century of higher education in the province, and the university now teaches across campuses in Durban and Pietermaritzburg.

Registered name

University of KwaZulu-Natal

Type

Public university

Fields funded

Named scholarships and bursaries across colleges, from honours to doctoral study

Website

ukzn.ac.za

Where UKZN’s student funding comes from

UKZN does not run a single bursary. The university’s student funding office pulls together several sources: NSFAS for students who qualify, a university loan scheme, and bursaries and scholarships paid for by companies, trusts, bequests from deceased estates and UKZN itself. Some awards carry the names of the people who endowed them, such as the Pius Langa Scholarship for top matriculants and the Frene Ginwala Scholarship.

Outside partners also route money through UKZN. BANKSETA funds a programme for top performers, the eThekwini maritime cluster has backed maritime study, and a fixed-term grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation once paid for spatial humanities scholarships.

Timing matters more than at most funders

Several UKZN awards open inside the academic year, not before it. The Archbishop Denis E. Hurley Scholarship, for example, goes out early in the honours year itself: the 2026 round closed on 13 March 2026. Students who wait for a December advert will miss awards like this, so current UKZN students should read faculty and college notices from the first week of term.

Some UKZN pages on BursariesAfrica also describe programmes that have ended. The Mellon spatial humanities scholarships ran for the 2022 intake under a grant with a fixed end date, and UKZN has since removed the notice. We keep that page so readers searching for the programme learn that no new call exists.

UKZN bursaries and scholarships on BursariesAfrica

CAO or the UKZN portal?

South African first-time undergraduates apply to UKZN through the Central Applications Office (CAO), which opened on 1 March 2026, while international, postgraduate, transfer and returning students apply directly on UKZN’s own portal. Medicine closed on 30 June 2026 with no late applications, and other undergraduate programmes close on 30 September 2026. Medicine and law applicants should read the NBT guide below early, since both programmes rely on benchmark results.

Checking an award before you apply

Four of the UKZN programmes listed above had no confirmed 2027 dates when BursariesAfrica last checked. Before applying, look for the award on ukzn.ac.za, confirm the closing date with the relevant college or the student funding office, and ask whether the funder still supports the programme. UKZN runs a zero-rated registration site, so students can reach university pages without spending data.

Students funding a degree at UKZN should apply for NSFAS as well if their household qualifies. Our NSFAS guide explains the income threshold and the application window.