Department of Basic Education (Funza Lushaka) Teaching Bursary PDF

Information about the Bursary-Make a difference. Become a teacher.

Department of Basic Education (Funza Lushaka) Teaching Bursary PDF

The following must be read before making an application for a Funza Lushaka bursary for 2025

1. Should you have a criminal record, charged of misconduct or dismissed from work, kindly note that you are not eligible to apply for this bursary.
2. Allocation of Funza Lushaka bursaries to Higher Education Institution employees, their spouse and their dependents/children is not permissible.
3. Non-disclosure of the information required as stated in 2 above will be treated as fraud.
4. Applicants should be 30 years and below to qualify for the Funza Lushaka Bursary.
5. To qualify, you must complete the online application. No hard copies application will be accepted.
6. If you already have a teaching qualification, you do not qualify for Funza Lushaka Bursary.

Programmes to be funded

Two types of qualifications can be funded as shown below. The qualification must include subjects which will allow the student to specialize as a teacher in at least two priority subject areas.
Priority Subject Areas – are subjects that are identified by Provinces and National

Departments of Education as subjects where teachers are required (see next section below).

Undergraduate studies
✓ 4-year Bachelor of Education degree (B.Ed.), specialising in one of the
following Foundation Phase (Grade R – 3), Intermediate Phase (Grade 4 – 6) and
Senior and Further Education and Training Teaching (Grade 7-12).

Graduate studies
✓ One-year Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) for graduates whose degrees reflect two priority subjects where one module/course was successfully completed or studied at third year level while the second priority subject was successfully completed or studied at second year level.

N.B. Only the PGCE for Senior Phase and Further Education and Training Teaching (SPFET) (Grade 7-12) will be funded through the Funza Lushaka Bursary Scheme.

N.B. NO PGCE for Foundation and Intermediate Phase.

Selection criteria

Selection criteria include the following:

1. The bursary is only awarded to South African citizens with a valid South African ID number;
2. The applicant should demonstrate good academic ability;
3. Applicants should be 30 years and below to qualify for the Funza Lushaka Bursary
4. Allocation of Funza Lushaka bursaries to Higher Education Institution employees, their spouse and their dependents/children is not permissible.
5. The Funza Lushaka bursary does not fund extended programmes.
6. The applicant must be accepted into an approved B.Ed. degree or PGCE programme to specialise in two or more of the priority subject areas.
7. The applicant should demonstrate good academic ability.
8. The applicant must show commitment to a teaching career, which includes: interest in working with young people; enthusiasm for a professional career in teaching; readiness to face and surmount difficult challenges with integrity.
9. The applicant must be committed to teach in any school to which a student may
   be placed by a Provincial Education Department (PED)
10. Students must meet the minimum academic criteria for award of the bursary. In 2025, the minimum academic criteria are:
    For 1st time entrants to university:
11. An exemption, endorsement, or ‘admission to bachelor degree studies’ pass at matric/Grade 12 level.
12. At least a level 4 pass at matric level in the two subjects which the applicant will specialise to teach.
13. For students who wish to specialise in the Foundation Phase, a Level 2 pass in Mathematics or Level 4 pass in Mathematical Literacy at Grade 12 level is required. In addition, at least a level 4 pass in the Home Language is required.
14. For students who wish to specialise in the Intermediated Phase, a Level 4 pass in Mathematics at Grade 12 level is required. In addition, at least a level 4 pass in the Home Language is required.
15. Students with Mathematics can specialise in two of the following: Language, Natural Science, Technology; Physical Science, Life Science and
16. Students with Language, Physical Science and Life Science pass level 4 can specialise in Provincial Priority Language, Natural Science and Technology
17. For students who wish to specialise in Senior FET a level 4 pass in one of the National and one of the Provincial Priority subjects or two from the Provincial Priority subjects.
18. A level 4 pass in a Provincial Priority Language and a National Priority subject or both Provincial Language and content subjects
19. Students who wish to specialize in the teaching of Technical subjects, including Computer Applications Technology (CAT), and who do not have these subjects at matric level, must have at least a level 4 pass in Mathematics or Technical Mathematics.
20. If the institution’s admission requirements are higher than the bursary requirement and vice versa then the higher requirement will apply.

For new applicants already at university

To qualify for the bursary:

The student must have passed all of the modules studied in the year prior to the bursary application at the Higher Education Institution.

Which are Funza Lushaka Priority subjects

• At least a 55% pass average across all the modules studied in the applicant’s last year of study at a Higher Education Institution.
• The student must have at least 66.5% pass average in modules studied in the applicant’s last year of study at university which relate directly to the priority subject area of teaching specialisation.

These are minimum criteria.

• The Funza Lushaka bursary is a prestigious bursary that must be awarded firstly on the basis of academic ability.
• The criteria applied at particular institutions may be higher than those recommended for Funza Lushaka but cannot be lower.

For new applicants enrolling for PGCE

• NO Funza Lushaka Bursary will be awarded for PCGE – Foundation and Intermediate Phases.
• The student must have successfully completed a recognized qualification that has two teaching subjects that qualifies him/her to be admitted for a PGCE.
• Funza Lushaka Bursary will be awarded for PGCE for ONLY Senior Phase and Further Education and Training Teaching (SPFET) (Grade 7-12)
• To be considered for the PGCE in Senior Phase and Further Education and Training teaching the student must have two priority subjects where one module/course was successfully completed or studied at third year level while the second priority subject was successfully completed or studied at second year level. Or both passed at second or third year level.

Applicants must note that these are minimum criteria.

• Meeting these criteria does not mean automatic acceptance for the bursary.
• There are a limited number of bursaries available, and the best students will be selected for the bursary.

The bursary is awarded for one academic year at a time. It is not automatically
rewarded. A re-award will depend on academic performance of the previous year’s results.
There is no automatic promise of financial support for a fifth (5th) year of study i.e. beyond the(4th) year of study. On evidence of good academic performance, and pending the availability of funds, the bursary may be re-awarded.
Recipients of bursaries will be required to teach one year for every year for which they have received the bursary.

What the Funza Lushaka bursary covers:

Funza Lushaka bursaries cover most of the recipient’s essential expenses. Expenses covered include tuition fees, accommodation including meals, books and learning materials, teaching practice laptop and if possible a small allowance for monthly living expenses.

• The allocation to any individual student is capped at a specific value. Where the university charges more than the capped value the bursars will have to top up from their own funds. Universities have different cost structures, so the total value of a bursary differs from institution to institution.

Repayment

Recipients of these bursaries will be required to teach at a public school for the same number of years that they received the bursary. No repayment of the bursary is therefore required.

Instances where the bursary conditions are not adhered to may require repayment of the bursary.

The amount that is repayable is the full amount of the bursary received under the programme, less one year’s funding for every year spent teaching at a public school. Interest will be charged at the rate determined by NSFAS.

If you are awarded or re-awarded the bursary, you will be expected to have an email address and a contactable cell phone number which will not be changed for the duration of the studies for communication purposes with the funder and DBE officials.

• These conditions are all contained in the bursary contract which all applicants must sign. When applicants sign the bursary contract, they are legally agreeing to the conditions described in the contract. The applicants must keep a copy of the signed contract.

Processes for applying for the bursary

Applications must only be made once students have been allocated a valid student number and have been accepted/provisionally accepted at their university of choice.

All applications must be made online at www.funzalushaka.doe.gov.za. Take note of the closing date. No applications will be entertained after the closing date.

Students must apply online and submit supporting documentation to the university’s Funza Lushaka office.

Please ensure that all information that you capture is accurate, and that priority subject areas that you capture are the ones you will specialise in.

The academic year of study refers to the level you are studying e.g. B Ed 1 = 1st year, B Ed 3 =
3rd year.

Please note that you have access to your on-line bursary application to “Update personal details” or make changes to your application while the system is still open before applications close.

Students who change institutions after submitting their bursary application forms will not be considered for selection. however, applicants are encouraged to update admission status or change institutions while the system is still open.

Having applied for the bursary is not a guarantee that a student will receive it.

Communications from students about the bursary

• All enquiries about the bursary must be directed to the Funza Lushaka academic and administrative co-ordinators at your university. They will be best placed to respond to any issues. Students should not communicate directly with NSFAS (the financial managers of the Bursary Fund) or with the Department of Basic Education (DBE) or the Department of Higher Education and Training. Students may not come in person to the DBE, but should phone and enquire at 012 357 3000 or email us at
  inquiries.funzalushaka@dbe.gov.za.