Key Functions of Postgraduate Funds Management at NWU:

Funding Opportunities & Applications

• Identifying and circulating funding opportunities (e.g., NRF scholarships, external grants, and institutional bursaries).
• Assisting students with funding applications and ensuring adherence to funder guidelines.

Pre-Award Support

• Providing guidance on grant applications, eligibility criteria, and submission requirements.
• Reviewing applications to ensure completeness and compliance before submission to funders.
• Offering training and workshops on research funding strategies.

Post-Award Administration

• Managing the disbursement of awarded funds to postgraduate students.
• Ensuring compliance with funder conditions, including financial reporting and progress tracking.

Overview

All NRF applications are submitted electronically on the NRF Connect System https://nrfconnect.nrf.ac.za/ .

Important: NWU students interested in applying must adhere to the internal cut-off date to allow sufficient time for internal screening and amendments.

LATE APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED. Submit your application on or before the internal cut-off date!

Internal announcements

• NRF Funding for Students
• Other Funding Opportunities

DSI-NRF Postgraduate Student Funding for the 2026 Academic Year

The DSI and NRF are pleased to announce a call for new applications for DSI-NRF Postgraduate Student Funding for the academic year 2026.  All continuing students who are eligible for a second or third year of funding must submit a Progress Report and not a new application.
 

• The NRF minimum academic requirement for postgraduate funding is 65%. 
• The entry age requirement is 28, 30 and 32 years or younger for honours, master’s and doctoral studies respectively, in the year of application, regardless of first year of registration. 
• Successful applicants will be funded either at Full Cost of Study (FCS) or Partial Cost of Study (PCS). The FCS funding will be awarded to South African citizens and Permanent Residents only, who are either financially needy (i.e., those whose combined household family income is less than or equals to R350 000 per annum), living with a disability or exceptional academic achievers. However, the PCS funding will be awarded to 5% of international students including South African citizens and Permanent Residents who could not be funded under FCS, but meet other minimum requirements for the NRF scholarship funding criteria. 
• The scholarships are intended to support honours, master’s and doctoral candidates to pursue studies in all areas of Science, Engineering, Technology, Social Sciences, and Humanities.

 All the postgraduate students will be expected to apply on the NRF Connect System by accessing the link: https://nrfconnect.nrf.ac.za/. No manual applications will be accepted.

Students' applications opening and closing dates

The NRF Postgraduate Funding Call will open in April 2025. Announcements on briefing sessions will be communicated once finalised.

• NB: No late applications will be considered. Students should adhere to the NWU INTERNAL CLOSING DATES.
• NB: Honours General Scholarships will open in July 2026 and institutions will have until end of March 2027 to claim funds of recommended eligible students. Honours applicants requiring ISFAP assessment should submit their applications by 02 September 2026.

 Please refer to the Application and Funding Guide and Framework documents when completing the online application form at every step of the process:

• FAQ's
• NRF statement of expectation

Contact Information

Pre-Award Queries & Post-Award Queries

• Ms. Yolanda Nxumalo - Pre-Award Management Programme
• Application process until submission to the NRF
• Outcomes, Conditions of Grants, Payments, Progress Reports, etc.

Application support

Potential applicants who need assistance with the NRF application process must contact Ms. Yolanda Nxumalo at Yolanda.Nxumalo@nwu.ac.za with the following details:

• Subject: Funding opportunity applying for
• NRF Application reference number / ORCID ID
• Description of the problem or issue

For further details and enquiries please contact the NWU Research Support Office first before contacting NRF:

NRF Postgraduate Scholarships

• Ms Yolanda Nxumalo (Research Support Assistant, Postgraduate Support)
• Telephone: 018 285 2081
• Email: Yolanda.Nxumalo@nwu.ac.za
• Office: 322, Ferdinand Postma Library, Potchefstroom Campus

NRF Emerging & Established Researcher Grants

• Mr Johann du Plessis (Senior Financial Officer, Funds Management)
• Telephone: 018 299 4854
• Email: Johann.DuPlessis@nwu.ac.za
• Office: 201, building C1, Potchefstroom Campus

• Ms Heide Goedhals (Senior Research Support Officer, Funds Management)
• Telephone: 018 299 4855
• Email: Heide.Goedhals@nwu.ac.za
• Office: 214, building C1, Potchefstroom Campus