It’ll be an anxious holiday for thousands of students

In debt, many have not received their results because their fees have not been paid

By Adel Van Niekerk

15 December 2021

Thousands of university students will return home this December without their results due to outstanding fees. It has become customary for universities countrywide to withhold results or graduation certificates of cash-paying students until they’ve paid up their fees. Bursary holders and students on the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) receive their results timeously.

In March Parliament heard submissions from universities who say this is the most strategic way to ensure student debt is paid. Universities countrywide are owed R10 billion in outstanding fees.

We spoke to one student, Anelisa Ndamase, who turned to social media for crowdfunding in a desperate attempt to pay off his fees and get his results in time for the holidays.