Key facts
- Status
- Applications closed Closed 25 August 2026
- Provider
- Rhodes University
- Study level
- Postgraduate
- Academic year
- 2027
- Last checked
- September 2026
The 2027 Rhodes University Postgraduate Scholarship closed on 15 August 2026 and the Ruth First and David Ryan awards on 25 August 2026; 2027 departmental bursary calls were not yet posted.
VerifiedRhodes University in Makhanda funds Honours, Master’s and PhD students through a set of internal awards run by its Postgraduate Funding Office. The largest is the Rhodes University Postgraduate Scholarship, open to all fields. Around it sit named scholarships for particular disciplines, mostly funded by donor families, plus small departmental bursaries and automatic awards for top graduates. The 2027 round of the main scholarship closed on 15 August 2026, and the Ruth First and David Ryan awards closed on 25 August 2026. Most of the smaller bursaries for 2026 closed in October and November 2025. Rhodes had not posted their 2027 calls when we checked.
All the awards are listed on the Research Office’s internal funding page. The application route differs by award. The main scholarship is applied for online through ROSS, the Rhodes student system. Most named awards want a single PDF emailed to pgfunding@ru.ac.za, and some go by nomination from the Head of Department.
Rhodes University Postgraduate Scholarship
The 2027 call opened on 1 June 2026 and closed on 15 August 2026. It was open to Honours, Master’s and PhD candidates in every field with an average of at least 65%. Applicants logged in to ROSS and chose “Rhodes University Postgraduate Scholarship Application” from the menu, with all supporting documents uploaded before the deadline. Rhodes accepted no other route and did not consider incomplete applications. The published call does not state the award value.
Funding lasts one year for Honours, up to two years for a Master’s and up to three for a PhD, provided academic progress is satisfactory. It covers only the years you still have left. Someone entering the second year of a Master’s in 2027 is considered for that year only, and a second-year PhD student for the remaining two. Applicants who have not heard by 30 November 2026 should treat the application as unsuccessful. The Ada and Bertie Levenstein Scholarship used the same ROSS form, dates and rules this year.
Ruth First Scholarship
This award supports Master’s and PhD research “in the spirit of the life and work of Ruth First”: work that asks difficult social questions and links scholarship with action. Eligible fields are politics, sociology, philosophy, anthropology, economics, social policy, democracy studies, development studies, media studies and related disciplines with a strong social and human rights focus. Rhodes particularly encourages black and women candidates from South Africa and Mozambique. The 2027 award pays R130,000 a year for a PhD and R120,000 a year for a Master’s, and applications closed on 25 August 2026. Applicants sent one PDF named “surname_RFirst_Schol.pdf” to Sibu Makeba at s.makeba@ru.ac.za, and Nichole Austin at n.austin@ru.ac.za also takes enquiries.
David Ryan Memorial Scholarship in Philosophy
The family and friends of the late Dr David Ryan set up this award for Master’s or doctoral study in Philosophy. It is worth R120,000 for a Master’s and R130,000 for a doctorate, and the latest call closed on 25 August 2026. Applicants submit a motivation letter, a brief research proposal, a CV and an academic transcript as one PDF named “surname_DRyan_Schol.pdf”. Sibu Makeba (046 603 8755) handles enquiries.
Bruce and Robert Murray Memorial Scholarship in History
This is the most generous named award on the list and the only one with a work condition. It pays R140,000 a year for a PhD and R130,000 a year for a Master’s or Honours. The Master’s and PhD awards are renewable if progress is adequate. Applicants must be South African citizens with an average of 65% or more and a History degree at the right level: a BA with a History major for Honours, History Honours for an MA, or an MA in History for a PhD. Holders must study full-time, take part in the History Department’s academic life and tutor in the department for six hours a week. Anyone who does not complete the degree may have to repay the scholarship. The last call closed on 30 November 2025. Applicants sent a motivation letter describing their proposed research, their latest transcript, an academic CV and a recent writing sample to pgfunding@ru.ac.za. Enquiries go to murrayscholarship@ru.ac.za.
Nicholas Iain Paumgarten Scholarship in Accounting
The Paumgarten family funds this award for full-time South African students in Honours, the HDAC or a Master’s in Accounting. Besides academic merit, the committee looks at sporting, cultural and altruistic involvement during undergraduate study. The award totals R100,000 for one year, usually split into two awards of about R50,000 each, depending on the budget. There is no form. Applicants email an academic CV, certified transcripts and an essay of no more than 300 words explaining their choice of field and their plans in South Africa after qualifying. The 2026 award closed on 30 October 2025.
Smaller departmental bursaries
| Award | Who it is for | Value | Last closing date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ian Mackenzie Scholarship | Full-time Master’s or PhD in a listed science discipline (from chemistry and geology to zoology), on research that helps preserve or improve the environment | R55,000 for one year | 30 October 2025 |
| Makabongwe Ndzwayiba Bursary | Economics Honours students with financial need, who have overcome hardship and helped uplift local communities; open to all nationalities | Up to R44,000 a year | 30 October 2025 |
| Smart Ergonomics Bursary | Full-time Master’s in Ergonomics, based on financial need and merit | About R30,000, for up to two years | 30 October 2025 |
| Lelona Fufu Memorial Bursary | Honours in Mathematics or Mathematical Statistics, with preference for Foundation Programme graduates in financial need; the application includes an essay titled “The magic of Mathematics” | Not stated in the latest call | 20 October 2025 |
| Margaret Smith Bursary | Honours, Master’s or PhD in Ichthyology or Fisheries Science, based on record and financial need | R18,000 | 20 October 2025 |
| Rodney Davenport History Scholarship | History Honours, Master’s or PhD entrants with at least a high upper-second pass; preference for Rhodes graduates | Variable | 15 November 2025 |
Awards you do not apply for
Some Rhodes support needs no application. Under the 2025 notice, a student finishing a three-year degree in good standing could ask the Head of Department to put them forward for the DVC Honours Scholarship. It pays full tuition for one year of full-time Honours, but not for diplomas or the LLB. Students with a distinction received postgraduate merit awards: 50% off the Honours fee, 75% off the Master’s fee or 75% off the PhD fee, depending on the step. Top-ranked graduates also received automatic awards of R800 to R20,000. Rhodes processes these after results are released in December and credits them to fee accounts around March or April.
One call on the same page is still open. The South African Reserve Bank’s Centre for Economic Journalism scholarships for 2027 journalism study at Rhodes close on 23 October 2026. For Rhodes’ other awards, see our Rhodes University profile, the Ada and Bertie Levenstein Bursary and the Guy Butler Research Award for English studies. Other universities’ funding is on the postgraduate bursaries list.
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About Rhodes University
Public university
Rhodes University is a public university in Makhanda, formerly Grahamstown, in the Eastern Cape. Rhodes was founded in 1904 as Rhodes University College and is one of South Africa's smaller traditional universities, known for a residential, close-knit campus…
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