The matric class of 2022 faced many challenges throughout their journey, from having started their grade 10 year in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic to having to prepare and write the NSC exams in a year where loadshedding was at its peak.
Despite having worked through these obstacles, the class of 2022 obtained an overall of 80,01% pass rate, the highest pass rate since 2019.
Whilst many matriculants are now waiting to register at tertiary institutions, others are left having to seek alternative opportunities as their results could not gain them admission.
Skills training and qualifications consultant Maseru Madlala says that society has forced young people into believing that once you have passed matric, the only option is to go to university and complete a degree.
She adds that this is not the case, as there are plenty of options and paths available for matriculants who did not receive university entrance.
“There are a lot of things matriculants can go for, there’s skills development and skills trade, and for those who did not make it they can do matric rewrites and consider TVET colleges as well,” explains Madlala.
The National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) says matriculants who may not have achieved their desired results should not be dismayed as the agency and its National Youth Service offers many programmes that will upskill and assist them into being economically active.
NYDA executive chairperson Asanda Luwaca, says the agency encourages individuals who are not looking at second chance opportunities or plan to write the exams, to participate in the National Youth Service programmes.
“We will be recruiting over 50 000 young people in various structured paid service opportunities,” she continues.
Luwaca says the programmes will capacitate students with various skills that will make them more employable and give them the opportunity to use these skills to open up businesses and then
“Particularly in communities, we want to inculcate the spirit of volunteerism and patriotism and taking ownership of the infrastructure that is at our disposal.”
Once individuals join the programme, they are placed into schools and communities where they help resolve various issues and challenges within those environments.
The programme currently operates in four provinces, but the agency will be expanding it so that young people throughout the country can participate.