UCT council encouraged by executive, SRC finding consensus on plan to address student debt

CAPE TOWN - The University of Cape Town (UCT)'s council said it was encouraged that the university executive and the student representative council (SRC) had been able to reach consensus on a plan to address student concerns over debt.

It approved a joint proposal that it said would ensure the university catered for academically eligible but financially vulnerable students.

This follows student protests on campus this past week.
 
The proposal sets out a plan with students grouped in five categories.
  
The first category of the joint proposal applies to academically eligible students who no longer have government funding. The council said these students would be contacted by the UCT student financial aid office and final-year students would be prioritised.
 
In the second category, students who had made partial payments to their 2024 debt would receive priority but only once they had settled at least 40%.

The third category is for students who had full or partial bursaries in 2024 but have historic debt.
  
Students who’ve secured funding for this year are in the fourth category. The council said that these students would be considered on a case-by-case basis.
  
And the last looks at students who are self-funded and have made no payments yet. This group will have to prove financial vulnerability or show they can make "significant partial payments".

UCT spokesperson, Elijah Moholola, said that the move would ensure students get back to lectures.

"In approving this joint proposal, councillors brought the university back towards a path where the academic year is on track while ensuring that the university lives up to its commitment of enabling access to all academically eligible students irrespective of their vulnerable financial backgrounds."

The council confirmed UCT's total historic student debt currently stands at R864 million.