UWC Sports Bursary for Student-Athletes

Written by Keagan HendricksStaff Writer (Unisa Alumnus)

Reviewed & verified by Naledi KhumaloSenior Admissions and Bursaries EditorVerified

The University of the Western Cape (UWC) runs a Sports Bursary for students who play sport for the university, but it is not a bursary with an open call. UWC’s Fees and Financial Aid FAQ says the selection is administered by the UWC Sports department and that students are recommended for it by their coaches and administrators. UWC publishes no application form, closing date, award amount or list of criteria for it. This page sets out what UWC does say, what it leaves out, and which UWC Sport offices can answer the rest.

Selection by recommendation from UWC coaches

The only official description of the award sits in the FAQ on UWC’s Fees and Financial Aid pages. In summary, the FAQ makes three points:

• The UWC Sports department, not the Financial Aid Office, administers selection for the Sports Bursary.
• Students are put forward by their coaches and administrators rather than applying on their own.
• Readers who want more detail are referred to the Sports Administration department.

UWC does not describe a route for a student who is not yet known to a UWC coach, and it does not say whether first-year entrants can be recommended before they register or only once they are playing for a club.

Details UWC leaves unpublished

On the UWC pages checked for this article (the financial aid FAQ, the UWC Sport website and the 2026 undergraduate application brochure), none of the following appears for the Sports Bursary:

• the value of the bursary, or whether it covers tuition, residence or anything else;
• how many students receive it each year;
• any academic minimum, sporting level or financial-need test;
• an opening date, a closing date or a time of year when coaches submit names;
• whether the bursary is renewed from year to year and on what conditions.

Treat any figure or deadline for the UWC Sports Bursary found elsewhere with caution unless UWC Sport confirms it in writing.

UWC Sport clubs in three categories

UWC’s FAQ names coaches as the people who make recommendations. The UWC Sport website groups its clubs into three categories, decided by national sport priorities, federation positioning, the level at which each code performs in university sport and UWC’s own development plans:

The club category is UWC Sport’s way of ranking its codes. UWC does not say that the category affects who is recommended for the bursary. UWC Sport also names an Athlete Support Programme among its values and runs a High Performance Centre for student-athletes, but neither is described as a source of bursary money.

UWC Sport offices to ask

• UWC Sport general enquiries: 021 959 2023, sport@uwc.ac.za (listed on the UWC Sport website).
• Sport contact in UWC’s 2026 application brochure: Skhu Nkomphela, snkomphela@uwc.ac.za.
• Director of Sport, Elmien Cloete: 021 959 2207, edcloete@uwc.ac.za (UWC Sport contact directory).

For bursaries outside sport, the same brochure gives the Financial Aid Office numbers as 021 959 9753 and 021 959 2737. Readers comparing other routes can look at our guide on how to get a sports bursary for university, the UWC provider profile and our list of university bursaries.

FAQs

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The University of the Western Cape (UWC) is a public university in Bellville, Cape Town. UWC describes itself as a research-led, learning and teaching African university with a legacy of social justice, community engagement and graduate employability. Registered…

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