The 'missing middle' crisis persists in South Africa with organisations such as the Ikusasa Student Financial Aid Programme (ISFAP) putting in the work to bridge this gap. They do this by providing bursaries for both undergraduate and postgraduate students.
This year, ISFAP is supporting 940 students with financial aid with more to still be confirmed for the year. This support doesn't only include finances but academic and mental health support as well.
Careers Portal recently sat down with ISFAP to discuss funding for the 2025 academic year. Sifanele Biyela, Corporate Partnership and Operations Manager at ISFAP, revealed:
We go live on the 3rd of June 2024 and will remain open until the end of October.
ISFAP 2025 bursary applications is set to open on 3 June and close on 31 October.
Once applications close, ISFAP then initiates their second process in November.
ISFAP Bursary Requirements
All courses funded by ISFAP are those which are viewed as scarce skills. "ISFAP is driven by occupation in high demand", explains Sifanele.
Students also need to be South African citizens and have a household income that comes to less than R600 000 per annum.
While we wait for 2025 ISFAP bursary applications to open, students are advised to prepare the documents needed.
Documents Needed For ISFAP Application
- Indemnity form stamped by the commissioner
- Certified copies of your ID
How To Apply
ISFAP will make two websites available for ISFAP applications, one for undergraduate and one for postgraduate.
What ISFAP Funding Covers
The ISFAP funding structure has tuition built into it, accommodation, living allowances, textbooks and laptops.
So how we supply all these is based on the budgets, the funding available from our donors, as well as the caps which we apply to the different pockets that we make available to the students.
They also provide wraparound support that they "make available to the students where they're able to get social skills, they're able to get study assistance, we try and support the students on a more well-rounded structure".
You are supported not just financially, where your mental health matter, where if you need guidance in terms of tutoring and mentoring, there's that space.
ISFAP is a non-profit organisation which aims to lay a foundation that supports students who want to obtain a university qualification. After the Fees Must Fall movement, plans had to be made to address the big gap that exists in terms of the missing middle funding space, which is where ISFAP was born.
