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Simplifying your registration journey

13 December 2024 | Story Edzani Nephalela | Photo Supplied

Student Registration 2025 — We welcome you to the University of the Free State! The 2025 academic year is fast approaching, and we can’t wait to see new and returning students on campus. Remember: Online registration opens on 7 January 2025; early registration is key to securing your place!

The University of the Free State (UFS) is excited to welcome new and returning students for the 2025 academic year. To ensure a smooth transition into university life, it is essential for all prospective and current students to familiarise themselves with the registration process.

To avoid delays, all students are advised to complete their registration as early as possible, as some programmes may have specific deadlines that differ from the general dates mentioned.

Registration methods

The UFS strongly encourages all students to use the online registration platform for a quick and easy process. This method is available for both new and returning students; please visit the official registration website for steps to register online.

However, a face-to-face, on-campus option is available to students who need additional support. Click on your relevant faculty below to learn more about the dates and on-campus venues.

Click to view document Faculty of Theology and Religion

Click to view document Faculty of The Humanities

Click to view document Faculty of Health Sciences

Click to view document Faculty of Education

Click to view document Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences

Click to view document Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences

Click to view document Faculty of Law

Key dates to keep in mind

	First semester	Second Semester
Online Registration	7 January - 7 February 2025	21 - 25 July 2025
Curriculum advice and registration for first-year students	27 January - 7 February 2025	21 - 25 July 2025
Curriculum advice and registration for senior students	20 January – 7 February 2025	21 - 25 July 2025
Curriculum advice and registration for Postgraduate students	20 January – 7 February 2025 Honours and PGDip (unless communicated otherwise by your faculty)	21 - 25 July 2025 Honours and PGDip (unless communicated otherwise by your faculty)
Classes start on	10 February 2025	21 July 2025
The last date to add or change module	14 February 2025	25 July 2025
The last date to cancel modules with full credit	31 March 2025	15 August 2025
Returning master’s and doctoral students can register during the official registration period.	20 January – 31 March 2025 for the first semester or a year programme, NOT during the month they initially registered	21 - 25 July 2025

Do you need further assistance? We’ve got you covered!

Should you require further guidance or have enquiries regarding the registration process, multiple avenues for support are available:

Institutional Call Centre: Call +27 51 401 9111 or WhatsApp +27 87 240 6370
Email support: Reach out to studentadmin@ufs.ac.za

The UFS experience is about more than just academic achievement; it’s about becoming part of something larger than yourself.

From exciting student activities to cutting-edge research, you’ll be surrounded by opportunities that challenge, support, and inspire you to take bold steps in your personal and professional growth. Welcome to a place where you don’t just learn – you thrive, evolve, and make lasting connections that will shape your future.

News Archive

Implications of new Language Policy for first-year students in 2017

2016-10-17

Dear Prospective Students and Parents/Guardians

As we have communicated to you since January 2016, the University of the Free State’s (UFS) parallel-medium (Afrikaans-English) Language Policy was under review during 2015. In March 2016, the Senate and then Council adopted with overwhelming majority a new Language Policy that strives to achieve multilingualism. The new policy entails English as primary medium of instruction, but with the introduction of a tutorial system in Afrikaans and progressively in Sesotho to support students’ learning in their first and second year of study.

The policy will be piloted in 2017 with first-year students in three faculties: Law, Health Sciences, and the Humanities. In these faculties, the majority of students indicated their preference to be taught in English. The Afrikaans-English policy will be maintained in the rest of the faculties in 2017 and phased out according to an implementation plan as from 2018. Current registered students will be able to complete their studies in the language they selected upon registration.

As you probably know through the media, the UFS decision to change its Language Policy is before the courts. It is hoped that the final outcome will be known before the end of the year, but this is not certain. The university management gives the assurance that it will act in terms of that final outcome.

In the meantime, the UFS will proceed with the implementation of the new Language Policy in 2017 as approved by Council.

Should the court’s verdict be in favour of the Senate and Council resolution, the March 2016 decision will come into effect. If not, the Afrikaans-English policy will stand. The UFS is committed and ready to provide for both eventualities.

Released by:
Lacea Loader (Director: Communication and Brand Management)
Telephone: +27 51 401 2584 | +27 83 645 2454
Email: news@ufs.ac.za | loaderl@ufs.ac.za
Fax: +27 51 444 6393

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