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31 August 2018
Application for 2019 NSFAS funding now open

Government has set up the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) to provide students with financial assistance to cover the cost for registration and tuition and to provide them with allowances for books, food, transport, and accommodation.

Students may apply if they comply with the following criteria:

• You are a South African citizen with a household income of R350 000 or less, you are registered at this institution, and have not been approved for NSFAS funding in 2018
• You are a South African citizen with a household income of R350 000 or less, you are registered at this institution, but have not applied for NSFAS funding before
• You are a South African citizen with a household income of R350 000 or less and you plan to study at a public university or TVET College in 2019 and require funding

Make sure that you have certified and valid copies of the following documents before attempting to apply for funding:

• Your South African identity document/card (or an unabridged birth certificate (if you are younger than 16 years old)
• ID of parents and/or guardian (or death certificate where applicable)
• Pay advice/letter of employment/pension advice stating income (SASSA slips are not required and SASSA should not be included as household income)
A completed and signed consent form must be filled in with your parent’s/guardian’s signatures. Applications without a consent form signed by all people whose incomes have been declared in the application will not be accepted and will be considered incomplete
• If you have a disability, please download the Disability Annexure A, complete it, and submit it with your application

NB: The stamp on all certified documents should not be older than three months

PLEASE NOTE – YOUR APPLICATION WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED IF:
You have already applied for 2019 on www.nsfas.org.za and have an application reference number.

You already have NSFAS funding for 2018.

You already have an undergraduate degree/diploma or postgraduate degree other than the postgraduate qualifications listed below, which you may apply for: 

• BTech – Architecture/Architectural Technology 
• BTech – Engineering (all disciplines), Cartography, Forestry
• BTech – Biokinetics, Biomedical Technology, Biotechnology
• BTech – Chiropractic, Homoeopathy, all Nursing
• BTech – Clinical or Dental Technology, Emergency Medical Care
• Postgraduate Certificate in Education
• Postgraduate Diploma in Accounting
• LLB
 
Applicants may make use of the computer lab on campus to apply and may also contact the Financial Aid office on campus for assistance with their 2019 applications.

You may call the NSFAS Contact Centre on 08 000 67327

News Archive

Medical team performs first hybrid procedure in the Free State
2014-12-08

The days when a heart operation meant hours in an operating theatre, with weeks and even months of convalescing, will soon be something of the past.

A team of cardiologists from the University of the Free State’s (UFS) Faculty of Health Sciences once again made medical history when they performed the first hybrid procedure in the Free State.

The Department of Paediatric Cardiology, in conjunction with the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, performed this very successful procedure on a 45-year-old woman from Kuruman.

During the procedure of 30 minutes, the patient’s thorax was opened up through a mini thoracotomy to operate on the beating heart.

“The patient received an artificial valve in 2011. Due to infection, a giant aneurism developed from the left ventricle, next to the aorta. Surgery would pose a very high risk to the patient. Furthermore, her health was such that it would contribute to problems during open-heart surgery,” explains Prof Stephen Brown, Head of the UFS’s Department of Paediatric Cardiology.

“After the heart was opened up through a mini thoracotomy, the paediatric cardiologists performed a direct puncture with a needle to the left ventricle cavity. A Special sheath was then placed in the left ventricle to bypass the catheters. Aided by highly advanced three-dimensional echocardiography and dihedral X-ray guidance, the opening to the aneurism, located directly below the artificial aorta valve, was identified and the aneurism cannulated.”
 
During the operation, a special coil, called a Nester Retractor, was used for the first time on a patient in South Africa to obtain stasis of extravasation and ensure the stability of devices in the aneurism.

“This is highly advanced and specialist work, as we had to make sure that the aneurism doesn’t rupture during manipulation and the devices had to be positioned in such a way that it doesn’t cause obstruction in valve function or the coronary artery. The surgical team was ready all the time to switch the patient to the heart-lung machine should something go wrong, but the procedure was very successful and the patient was discharged after a few days.”

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