2026 University of Pretoria Programmes And Admission Requirements

General Admission Requirements

The statutory minimum requirement for degree studies is a National Senior Certificate (NSC) certified by Umalusi, with an achievement rating of 4 (50-59%) in four recognised NSC 20 credit subjects from the designated subject list, below:

• Accounting
• Agricultural Science
• Business Studies (previously Business Economics)
• Consumer Studies (previously Home Economics)
• Dramatic Arts
• Economics
• Engineering Graphics and Design (previously Technical Drawing)
• Geography
• History
• Information Technology
• Languages *
• Life Sciences (previously Biology)
• Mathematical Literacy
• Mathematics
• Music
• Physical Science (previously Natural Sciences)
• Religion Studies
• Visual Arts

* Based on the languages used as medium of instruction at the University of Pretoria, it is advisable that students should offer English and/or Afrikaans as a Home Language or as a First Additional Language, together with any other language of choice.

Prospective students who do not obtain a NSC-pass that grants them access to Baccalaureus degree studies, will not be considered for our degree programmes even though their Admission Point Score does comply with the minimum requirements.

A Grade 12 certificate with university exemption is required if Grade 12 was obtained before 2026. For learners in Grade 12, provisional admission is granted based on the results obtained in the final Grade 11 year mark (promotion mark). Please note that the final Grade 12 results remain the determining factor for admission. Also note that the achievement of the minimum requirements does not necessarily guarantee admission to any programmes or fields of study.

Full or foreign conditional exemption certificate
This prerequisite applies to non-South African citizens and to students who do not have a South African National Senior Certificate and want to enrol for undergraduate studies at UP. The certificate can only be obtained from Universities South Africa (USA).

Calculation of Admission Point Score (APS)
The calculation of an APS is based on a candidate’s achievement in any SIX recognised NSC 20-credit subjects (not only designated subjects), by using the NSC seven-point rating scale of achievement (see table 1).

Students who do not have a NSC must please refer to the Admission Point Score Conversion Table.

Table 1: National Senior Certificate achievement levels

Achievement

Achievement level

Marks

7

Outstanding achievement

80-100 %

6

Meritorious achievement

70-79 %

5

Substantial achievement

60-69 %

4

Adequate achievement

50-59 %

3

Moderate achievement

40-49 %

2

Elementary achievement

30-39 %

1

Not achieved

0-29 %

Table 2: Example of APS calculation

School subject (example)	Report mark
Afrikaans	4
English	4
Mathematics	6
Physical Science	6
Life Sciences	7
Accounting	3
APS Total	30

 

Admission Point Score (APS) Conversion Table
The following tables can be used to convert your marks/symbols into an Admission Point Score (APS) when applying for studies at the University of Pretoria (UP).

APS (requirement level for subjects as well as overall APS)	NSC/ IEB	SC HG M-score	SC SG M-score	HIGCSE NSSC HL	AS-Level	IB SL	IGCSE/ GCSE/ NSSC OL/ O-LevelGrade 11*	IGCSE/ GCSE/ NSSC OL/ O-LevelGrade  12**
7	7 (80–100%)	A		1	A	7	A
6	6 (70–79%)	B	A	2	B	6	B
5	5 (60–69%)	C	B	3	C	5	C	A
4	4 (50–59%)	D	C	3	D	4	C	B
3	3 (40–49%)	E	D	4	E	3	D	C
2	2 (30–39%)	F	E			2	E	D/E
1	1 (0–29%)	G	F			1	F	F/G

Admission Point Score (APS) Conversion Table only for Cambridge Advanced Level and IB Higher Level

APS		A-Level	IB HL
Requirement level for subjects	Requirement level for overall APS
7	10	A	7
6	8	B	6
5	7	C	5
4	6	D	4
3	5	E
2	4
1	3

NSC – National Senior Certificate (completed Grade 12 in and after 2008)
IEB – Independent Examination Board
SC HG – Senior Certificate Higher Grade (completed Grade 12 before 2008)
SC SG – Senior Certificate Standard Grade (completed Grade 12 before 2008)
HIGCSE –Higher International General Certificate of Secondary Education
A-Level – Advanced Level
AS-Level – Advanced Subsidiary Level
IB – International Baccalaureate Schools (Higher Levels and Standard Levels)
IGCSE – International General Certificate of Secondary Education
GCSE – General Certificate of Secondary Education
NSSC – Namibia Senior Secondary Certificate
O-Level – Ordinary Level

*Grade 11 = IGCSE/O-Level: APS conversion for Grade 11 equivalent only and for conditional admission and selection purposes
**Grade 12 = IGCSE/O-Level: APS conversion for Grade 12 equivalent – not for final admission and must be taken together with Advanced Subsidiary Level and Advanced Level for exemption purposes

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Disclaimer:
This publication contains information about regulations, policies, tuition fees, curricula and programmes of the University of Pretoria applicable at the time of printing. Amendments to or updating of the information in this publication may be effected from time to time without prior notification. The accuracy, correctness or validity of the information contained in this publication is therefore not guaranteed by the University at any given time and is always subject to verification. The user is kindly requested, at all times, to verify the correctness of the published information with the University. Failure to do so will not give rise to any claim or action of any nature against the University by any party whatsoever.