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14 August 2020 | Story Amanda Tongha | Photo NSFAS
Applications for the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) 2021 are now open.  

The NSFAS application cycle will run for a period of four months starting from 3 August to 30 November 2020. 

NSFAS applications are open to students from poor and working-class backgrounds who wish to further their studies at any public Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) college or university. To qualify for NSFAS funding, the applicant must be a South African citizen; come from a family with a combined annual household income of not more than R350 000; for students with a disability, a combined annual household income of not more than R600 000. 

Applications for 2021 funding will be completed online via the myNSFAS portal as per previous years. 

New applicants need a copy of their ID or birth certificate to register and create a myNSFAS account or profile on the myNSFAS portal. Applicants with existing accounts must log on to their accounts to complete an application. Applicants are not allowed to create more than one profile on the portal. The applicant will be required to give consent to NSFAS to verify their personal information with third parties and will not be able to create a profile without giving this consent. This feature allows NSFAS to conduct a three-step verification process with the Department of Home Affairs (DHA), where an ID number will be linked to the name and surname of the applicant and the parents' details. 

In response to the status quo due to the COVID-19 pandemic, applicants will not be required to submit or upload the consent form; however, they will have to grant consent electronically during the application process, along with accepting the terms and conditions for funding. 

Applicants will, however, still be required to submit their supporting documents, comprising a copy of own ID; parents’/guardian's proof of income; copies of parents’/guardian's ID; and/or Annexure A for applicants with disabilities. 

Qualifying students are urged to make use of this opportunity and apply for funding in time. 

 
 

News Archive

UFS study shows playing time in Super Rugby matches decreasing
2016-12-19

Description: Super Rugby playing time Tags: Super Rugby playing time 

The study by Riaan Schoeman, (left), Prof Robert Schall,
and Prof Derik Coetzee from the University of the Free State
on variables in Super Rugby can provide coaches with
insight on how to approach the game.
Photo: Anja Aucamp

It is better for Super Rugby teams not to have the ball, which also leads to reduced overall playing time in matches.

This observation is from a study by the University of the Free State on the difference between winning and losing teams. Statistics between 2011 and 2015 show that Super Rugby winning teams kick more and their defence is better.

These statistics were applied by Riaan Schoeman, lecturer in Exercise and Sport Sciences, Prof Derik Coetzee, Head of Department: Exercise and Sport Sciences, and Prof Robert Schall, Department of Mathematics and Actuarial Sciences. The purpose of the study, Changes in match variables for winning and losing teams in Super Rugby from 2011 to 2015, was to observe changes. Data on 30 games (four from each team) per season, supplied by the Cheetahs via Verusco TryMaker Pro, were used.

About two minutes less action
“We found that the playing time has decreased. This is the time the ball is in play during 80 minutes,” says Schoeman. In 2011, the average playing time was 34.12 minutes and in 2015 it was 31.95.

“The winning team has less possession of the ball and doesn’t want it. They play more conservatively. They dominate with kicks and then they play,” says Prof Coetzee, who was the conditioning coach for the Springboks in 2007 when they won the World Cup.

Lineouts also more about kicking
As a result, the number of line-outs also increased (from 0.31 per minute in 2011 to 0.34 in 2015) and the winning teams are better in this regard.

“The winning team has less possession of the ball
and doesn’t want it. They play a more conservative
game. They dominate with kicks and then they play.”

Schoeman believes that rule changes could also have contributed to reduced playing time, since something like scrum work nowadays causes more problems. “When a scrum falls, the time thereafter is not playing time.”

According to Prof Coetzee, rucks and mauls have also increased, (rucks from 2.08 per minute in 2011 to 2.16 in 2015 and mauls from 0.07 per minute in 2011 to 0.10 in 2015). “The teams that win, dominate these areas,” he says.

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