Strict rules must govern NFSAS funding

I wonder how many rich countries in the world have a student funding system that operates in the same fashion as our own NSFAS does, where everyone who starts schooling every year is assured of proceeding to tertiary education and given as many years as possible to stay at university or TVET college, no matter how bad their academic performance might be

Where they are funded by the state until they end up dropping out of the education system on their own volition, as they give up ever succeeding in their quest for education.

Many choose courses which they believe are easy to pass, only to find they are more challenging than they assumed; but those are the faculties with high enrollment figures and few employment opportunities, resulting in many graduates spending many years unemployed; once you spend one or two years unsuccessfuly looking for a job, then you end up being one of those who have stopped looking or just taking any available job, that is why there are car guards in SA who are foreigners from other countries, who are said to hold university degrees, but with no prospects of finding decent jobs.

That is the reason why most countries have bursaries for top students regardless of their social backgrounds, because education is meant to advance those who are serious about their lives, education and their future.

Until there are strict rules governing national funding for students, NSFAS will continue to face serious problems, including overcrowding, a poor academic success rate, and insufficient funds to sustain state funding, ultimately leading to collapse. 

The biggest blunder was that those who successfully acquire employment after obtaining their qualifications are not required to repay the funding they received from the state, creating a significant gap in student funding. In the past, those who received state funding had an obligation to pay back the money to sustain the funding system. 

Cometh Dube -Makholwa, Midrand.