South Africa has more than 300 higher education institutions which include universities, private institutions and TVET colleges. These institutions enroll thousands of students every year and the Department of Higher Education has a target of 1.6 million students by 2030.
However, the Department of Higher Education and Training has found that universities have been registering less students from the 2021 academic year which deviates from the 2020 to 2025 Enrolment Plan approved by the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation.
The number of graduates in three different fields will decrease over the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) period as some of the universities which had projected high numbers have reduced them.
The following fields will decrease over the MTEF period:
- Natural and physical sciences - from 11 516 in 2023/2024 to 10 943 in 2025/2026
- Human health sciences - from 10 200 in 2023/2024 to 9 950 in 2025/2026
- Animal health sciences - from 1 013 in 2023/2024 to 925 in 2025/2026.
Besides the number of graduates decreasing in these fields due to universities decreasing registration numbers, the department has also said that students have been opting for Humanities programmes such as politics, international relations, languages and communications among others.
Students do not tend to register for subjects such as science, engineering and mathematics which the department says will give them a better chance at finding jobs when they graduate.
The Higher Education sector has said that many university students avoid programmes categorised as scarce and in demand skills which contributes to them not being able to find employment.
The country faces high levels of unemployment which has meant that graduates have also been struggling to find jobs with only a small percentage finding jobs in the field they have pursued studies in.
