It is quite astonishing how much universities in South Africa make from application fees which are not refundable so this is genuine income. I dare say tis is not just South Africa, but a world wide trend with every single university taking advantage of increased applications.
All I can say is this is such a beautiful business model you have to applaud them for being able to get away with this. A university being able to make R150 million or $7.5 million annually for rejecting applications due to the limited numbers besides what they earn via government support for every graduate and the obvious student fees.
Universities Are Big Business
I just checked the University of Cape Town who last year had 94 000 applications for 4 500 spaces at R300 each which is another R27 million made from nowhere. If they need more money then I expect the application fees will rise allowing for the money printer to print even more profits.
In 2024 the universities in the UK received a combined 752K applications for 565K allocated spaces so even at an average of £100 application fees that is still £20 million, but nowhere near the numbers each University is printing in SA. I still a bit gob smacked at the University of Johannesburg making in excess of R150 million from applications alone.
Like many tings in SA the prices have risen accordingly with overseas costs and expect this R200 or R300 application fee will be R500 next year which is still reasonable being $25 and way less than what they could be asking. The number of applicants is going to rise annually especially when you consider so many applicants are excluded due to being of the wrong skin color and not on academic results.
My ice had to do her medical degree via another route qualifying as a chiropractor first before then studying medicine coming in as a 3rd year medical student and then getting her doctors degree. She had distinctions, but was white and was rejected due to the numbers of how they break down the races on applications which is absurd.
I do think with how much is being made by all universities around the world on applications they could afford to reduce the course fees being charged which would result in less student debt. Still it is a very good business model knowing you will make x amount each year before you have even opened the school year. The universities that everyone wants to join as their first choice are the ones who are making all the money through their reputation and why they are first choice for so many.
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I think a hundred years from now (if the earth hasn't incinerated by then) the system of getting higher education will be described almost as another Dark Age (in the US.). Young people literally mortgage their futures. They become virtual indentured servants even before graduation, paying off loans sometimes into retirement.
The U.S. Congress has made it extremely difficult to discharge student debt even in bankruptcy. And yet, higher education is seen as the path to social mobility. So, students are left to choose between giving up the ambition to climb the economic ladder, or a lifetime of debt.
As for application fees. Most colleges/universities participate in what is called the Common App. Students who are on public assistance, live in public housing or qualify for free lunch programs (in other words, students whose families have incomes under a certain level) could have the App fee waived. Most reputable schools I think use the Common App. All the Ivies do.
We had it worse as we had 2 years National Service before thinking about University so you were staring at your late 20's before finishing your degree. The other downside was those who were exempt got ahead having a 2 year head start.
Just finished Squid Game, first season. It reminded me of The Snow Piercer. If you haven't seen either, both are startling looks at economic inequality and the desperate means people use to bridge the gap between poverty and wealth. These are artistic impressions of society, but they have a lot to say about not just the world as it is organized (and has been through most of history). I think today the gulf between rich and poor is widening. It had narrowed for a while, but that was a brief reprieve when the poor were allowed to become middle class. Will the middle class be an anachronism once again, as it was in the Middle Ages?
Thanks I will definitely look them up.
Check out the Snow Piercer film, not the series, which I haven't seen. The film is brilliant, but jarring.
Ok will do. I have heard about it, but never seen it and will watch it.
Most universities in the UK don’t charge application fees especially for undergrad courses. That’s because there is a centralised organisation called UCAS that handles students applications for up to 5 universities and costs a flat rate of £28.50 for the whole process.
UCAS is a non-profit charity.
It’s a bit different for postgrad study because students apply direct to a university rather than via UCAS but it’s only the prestigious institutions and even then only certain heavily oversubscribed courses that would consider charging a fee to apply.
Sounds like a supply and demand issue elsewhere in the world which is certainly not the case in the UK higher education sector.
It's not just universities, even private middle schools in USA charge hefty and non refundable application fees...
Yes I suppose this applies to all education level and not just universities.
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Wow ! That's crazy. What a rip off ! Maybe everyone needs to do a DNA test and see if they have a drip of something that they can claim to be. I know, that's crazy too, but sometimes you just have to get creative.