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Contact University Of Stellenbosch Postgraduate School
Physical address
Graduate School Office
Room 480/1, Arts and Social Sciences Building
Corner of Merriman and Ryneveld Avenue
Stellenbosch
Postal address
Graduate School Office
Arts and Social Sciences Faculty
Private Bag X1
Matieland, 7602
Telephone: +27(0)21 808-4198/2079
Email: graduateschool@sun.ac.za
Dr CINDY LEE STEENEKAMP
Chair: Graduate School Board
graduateschool@sun.ac.za
Ms TANJA MALAN
Graduate School Co-ordinator
graduateschool@sun.ac.za
Eligibility criteria
- Scholarships are intended for students who wish to undertake a study programme to obtain a doctoral degree in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at Stellenbosch University, and who therefore are in possession of the necessary qualifications for admission to a doctoral degree in this Faculty.
- Applicants must have completed a Masters degree or an equivalent recognised by Stellenbosch University before they can be admitted to doctoral study. As a rule a minimum average of 65% should have been obtained in their previous qualifying degree or study in order to be eligible for the scholarship. The University will decide, in its sole discretion, whether any particular qualification or degree is sufficient to satisfy the admission criteria for the doctoral degree and for the award of the scholarship.
- Applicants must be citizens of an African country, which includes South Africa. Successful foreign students must be in possession of a valid study permit in order to register at Stellenbosch University at the commencement of the programme.
- Applicants must be available, and have approved study leave, for full-time study over a period of three years in Stellenbosch starting mid-January of the first year of the award, reasonable vacation periods accepted.
- Unless on sabbatical or leave approved for the purposes of taking up this full-time scholarship, the scholarship holder may not be involved in any form of salaried employment during the tenure of the scholarship without permission of the Graduate School.
- Applicants must have an adequate command of spoken and written English, as the correspondence, courses, seminars and other activities of the Graduate School will, as a rule and in view of the presence of foreign students especially at the doctoral level, be transacted in English. The use of languages other than English for the submission of written work will be acceptable, subject to the availability of academic staff members capable of supervising and examining the work submitted in such languages.
How to Apply
The doctoral scholarship programme will be rested in 2020. Please visit the website again in August 2020 when the call for applications for 2021 intake will open.
Interested applicants can begin to prepare the following:
- A letter motivating your suitability for this scholarship (no longer than one page)
- A concept note or research proposal for your proposed study (no word limit)
- Identify three academic references, one of which must be your Masters supervisor
- Collate a copy of ALL your tertiary (undergraduate and postgraduate) academic records (transcripts) AND certificates. Please scan and save these documents as one file.
- Provide proof of competency in English; i.e. English language proficiency test results or publications written in English
- A sample of your best academic writing; either a publication or chapter from your Masters thesis (in PDF).
Application and submission process
- Familiarise yourself with the Scholarship application documents, regulations and procedures. See the Application Documents below.
- Download and complete all sections of the application form and prepare or obtain the required documents and references. See the checklist below.
- Submit the application and supporting documents to reach the University on or before the closing date. Applications which are incomplete, hand-written and/or where documentation is missing, will not be considered. The application form and supporting documentation should be submitted in a single email.
- Applications should be clearly marked Graduate School Scholarship Application and should be submitted by e-mail to graduateschool@sun.ac.za.
Application documents intake
- SCHOLARSHIP REGULATIONS
- APPLICATION PROCESS
- APPLICATION FORM intake (will only be available when the call is open)
- CHECKLIST to be completed by each applicant
Scholarship selection process
After the closing date the Graduate School will:
- Acknowledge receipt of the application
- Evaluate each application and draw up a list of eligible applicants
- Circulate the list of eligible applicants to the relevant departments and supervisors
- Draw up a short list of applicants who qualify for the scholarship and who are recommended by the departments. Due to the overwhelming number of applications, only shortlisted candidates will be notified via email.
- After consideration by the Graduate School Board, successful candidates will be offered a scholarship in writing and will be required to respond within one week.
- Applicants who do not receive communication from the Graduate School Office by 01 October , should consider their applications unsuccessful.
Stellenbosch University will make every effort to process applications efficiently. Applicants are reminded, however, that the University accepts no responsibility for loss of communication or documents whether sent by surface mail or e-mail, to or from the University. Applicants should therefore ensure that they are contactable during all stages of the application process and should contact the Graduate School in case of uncertainty about the receipt of applications sent by postal mail.
Selection Criteria
Scholarships are awarded to eligible candidates taking the following factors into account:
On an individual level:
- High academic merit and the intellectual capacity to study successfully at the doctoral level.
- Strong personal motivation to complete the programme.
- The extent to which the proposed topic of study fits into the research programme of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
- Availability of suitable supervisors for the proposed topic of study.
- Candidates who are below the age of 40. Although applicants over 40 may be considered, preference will given to younger scholars.
On a collective level:
- Gender equity
- To enhance compatibility of university and linguistic backgrounds, preference will be given to applicants from African countries south of the Sahara.
- Among the South African component of scholarship applicants, CBI (Coloured, Black and Indian) applicants will be given preference, provided that they meet all the other requirements.
- Among the non-South African component of scholarship applicants, applicants whose nominations are supported by officials of the PANGeA institutions (universities of Botswana, Dar es Salaam, Ghana, Makerere, Malawi, Nairobi and Yaoundé I) will be given preference, provided that they meet all the other requirements.
The University retains the right to award, or not to award, scholarships to any persons who meet the eligibility and selection criteria.
