If you are applying for accommodation in a student residence, your application must be submitted by the same time as your application to study at UCT: by 31 July of the year in which you submit your application for study in the next calendar year, and no late applications will be considered. Should your application be successful, you will be allocated to a particular residence.

Housing eligibility criteria for first-time entering undergraduates: first-tier student accommodation

There are limited places in residence and these are awarded to applicants on the basis of criteria described below. Meeting some of these criteria will prioritise you an offer of accommodation, while others may only make you eligible for an offer. Further information about the criteria in each of these categories is provided below.

1. Minimum criteria for an offer of student housing

   In order to be considered for an offer of student housing, you must have:

   1. applied for student housing in your UCT application, or amended your application to include an application for student housing no later than 31 July;
   2. been made an offer (conditional or firm) of admission, at any time, for the 2024 academic year.

2. Criteria for being prioritised for a place in student housing

   If you meet the minimum criteria, as well as any of the criteria listed below, you will be prioritised an offer of student accommodation:

   1. you must have applied for financial aid, and must be assessed as eligible for an award; or
   2. as a South African National Senior Certificate (NSC) applicant, you must have achieved an Admissions Point Score of 540 out of 600, for two interim examinations, or only in your final grade 12 examination; or
   3. you will be younger than 18 years of age on 1 February; or
   4. you require student accommodation urgently for reasons of incapacity. Such an application must be accompanied by the necessary supporting documentation, which apart from your application for accommodation, must be sent direct to the Director: Student Housing & Residence Life.

3. Criteria for eligibility for student housing

   In addition to the criteria which may guarantee you a place in residence there are several other ways in which you may be eligible for a place. Meeting the criteria below does not prioritise an offer of student housing:

   1. Faculty merit: you may be considered in this category if:
      1. you are academically strong and narrowly miss the priority of admission cut-off of 540 out of 600 for NSC applicants; or
      2. you are academically strong and not doing the National Senior Certificate; or
      3. you are an international applicant
   2. Redress: you may be considered in this category if you are part of a designated group as defined in the Admissions Policy.
   3. Specific programmes: some faculties set aside offers for applicants who will apply and register for particular programmes. These programmes include:
      1. BSc Geomatics and
      2. Performing Arts programmes: Music and Drama in the Faculty of Humanities

These offers may be made throughout the application cycle. If you have not yet been made an offer by the end of October, even though you may still be made an offer as late as January, we advise you to seek an off-campus accommodation. Please contact our Off-Campus Student Accommodation Services (OCSAS) office for assistance at ocsas@uct.ac.za

For any general queries about student housing offers, please contact 021 650 2977 or res@uct.ac.za