Gradesmatch

Applying at a higher learning institution can be stressful, overwhelming and time consuming for both parents and learners. Most learners in Grades 12 are stressing about which institutions they want to apply for or if they will meet the requirements of their ideal qualifications. Some learners apply late at a higher learning institution and that limits their chances of being admitted and enrolling. 

Gradesmatch is introducing Gradesmatch Bridge. The purpose of Bridge is to disburden both parents and learners with applying at a higher learning institution of a learner at a fixed price. Learners also choose the qualification that they wish to pursue. Parents can choose the package that they can afford. Prices for the packages vary from R500 to R4500. Each package varies to what they cover. 

Here are six simple steps that parents and learners can follow:

Parents and learners do not have to miss out on this great opportunity. Gradesmatch Bridge will help them relieve the stress of going to different institutions and sending out applications. Learners must focus on passing their Grade 12 and leave applications to the capable hand of Gradesmatch Bridge team to stress them. 

Parents can access Bridge, they can go to www.gradesmatch.co.za/bridge 

Figure 1: Overall project system hours spent

The Gradesmatch Foundation team has impacted an overall of thirteen schools in Western Cape and Gauteng. In these schools, we achieved a total of 7258 learners have spent a total of 5.58 thousand hours on the platform. Learners spent 4.51thousand hours in a classroom with the help of the facilitators. 1.05 thousand hours was spent independently by leaners out of the classroom. 

Figure 2: Total number of schools covered in both Gauteng and Western Cape province and their names. 

In the first-term and second-term of schools opening, the Foundation team was in the classroom delivering career guidance lessons. In Western Cape, the facilitators delivered career guidance lessons to Grade 9 and Grade 11 learners. In Gauteng, the facilitators delivered career guidance lessons to Grade 11 and Grade 12 learners. Gradesmatch aim is to make sure that learners are given proper career guidance and that learners are not misinformed, and that they make a positive impact in the lives of the learners.

Figure 3: Overall project system hours spent in Western Cape

In Western Cape, facilitators went to Seven Schools across Province. Facilitators registered 4413 learners on Gradesmatch platform. Leaners spent a total of 4.46 Thousand hours exploring the platform. In the classroom, learners spent 4.05 thousand hours with the facilitators inside the classroom. Learners spent 590.11 Hundred hours exploring the platform on their own. 

Figure 4: Overall project system hours spent in Gauteng

In Gauteng, facilitators went to Six Schools around the Province. Facilitators registered 2845 learners on Gradesmatch platform. Leaners spent a total of 944.14 hours exploring the platform. In the classroom, learners spent 459.14 hours with the facilitators inside the classroom. Learners spent 485.01 hours exploring the platform on their own. Learners in Gauteng explore the platform the most when they are outside the classroom. 

When the facilitators get to schools, they encounter challenges that might affect the learners when they want to start applying at higher learning institutions. For example, most learners are told that they need their Grade 11 June report card to apply at a higher learning institution instead of a Grade 11 year-end report card. When facilitator gets in the classroom they find out that some learners do not know which qualification do they want to pursue, or they the learner knows which qualification they want to pursue but they do not qualify or they institution that they want to go to does not have the qualification that the learner wants. 

According to the Gradesmatch statistics, the top five matched qualifications in the Western Cape are: 

Top five matched qualifications	Top five matched institutions
MBChB Medicine	University of Cape Town
MBChB Medicine	Stellenbosch University
Bcom Law	Stellenbosch University
Bcom Law	Western Cape University
LLB	Western Cape University

The top five careers liked by the learners in the Western Cape are:  

• Administrative lawyer 
• Mechanical Engineer 
• Civil Engineer
• Advocate 
• Actor 

According to the Gradesmatch statistics, the top five matched qualifications in Gauteng are:

Top five matched qualifications	Top five matched institutions
B Clinical Medical Practice	University of Pretoria
BCMP Clinical Medical Practice	University of Witwatersrand
Bcom Law	University of South Africa
MB BCh Medicine	University of Witwatersrand
B Nursing	University of South Africa

The top five careers liked by the learners in Gauteng are: 

• Administrative lawyer
• Civil Engineer
• Attorney 
• Cardiologist 
• General Medical Practitioner 

Statistics show that learners in the Western Cape province are interested in the Law study field and Engineering study field. In Gauteng, learners are interested in the Health Sciences study field and the Law study field. Learners from both Gauteng and Western Cape Province liked institutions that are situated in their provinces.

In South Africa, most students depend on the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) as a funding opportunity to study at a higher learning institution. Gradesmatch encourages learners to apply for other funding opportunities, as there are 350 funding opportunities available to the learners on the system. According to Gradesmatch statistics, the top five bursaries that the learners followed learners Western Cape and Gauteng are: 

Top five Bursaries followed by learners from Gauteng province	Top five Bursaries followed by learners from Western Cape province
Anglo American COAL Bursary	FNB Student Loan
FNB Student Loan	NYDA Solomon Mahlangu Scholarship Fund
Allan Gray Orbis Fellowship Bursary	Anglo American COAL Bursary
Jones & Wagener Bursary	Allan Gray Orbis Fellowship Bursary
MQA Bursary	Sasol Inzalo Foundation Bursary

In one of the schools in the Western Cape province, the Gradesmatch Foundation team registered 650 learners on the platform for both Grade 9 and Grade 11. A total of 1.43 thousand hours was spent on the platform exploring the different feature. 1.30 thousand hours were spent on the platform by learners with the assistance of the facilitators in a classroom. A total of 125.40 hundred hours was spent by learners exploring the platform outside the classroom without the assistance of facilitators. 

Figure 5: Overall statistics of what learners from Gauteng and Western Cape Province have been exploring the most. 

In Figure 5, the monthly Time Spent view shows that a large proportion of the Time Spent on the platform is accounted for by sessions in class with a facilitator. In addition to this, time spent independently seems to be driven by the sessions that learners have with facilitators as these increases in the months that sessions are facilitated.

From Exploration, we see that learners spend most of their time on the Community tab where they have career and qualification related discussions.

Figure 6: Overall statistics of Bursaries, Careers, Institutions and qualifications matched by learners 

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The National Benchmark Test (NBT) is an assessment test written by learners who want to enrol at a higher learning institution. When applying at a higher learning institution, some qualifications will require a learner to write NBT as one of the administration requirements and in some institutions, it is compulsory for a learner to write the NBT before getting admitted. The aim of the NBT is to assess the first-year enrollers (students) if they are university ready and to interpret the results on the learners National Senior Certificate (NSC).

When applying for a qualification at a higher learning institution, a learner needs to take note of the admission requirements before applying. If the qualification requires an NBT, a learner has to visit the NBT website www.nbt.ac.za to make a booking and check the dates they can write on and the closest venue which they can write the test at.

These are the requirements needed to book:

• South African Identity Document
• An email address
• City and location they want to write at
• The institution where they want to apply at
• The ideal assessment date

When making a booking for an NBT, a learner needs to take note that there are two different tests and they vary, Academic and quantitative literacy (AQL) and Mathematics Test (MAT).

AQL is a multiple-choice test that combines academic and quantitative literacy. Quantitative literacy is a method that determines if a learner can interpret charts, graphs and tables.  The AQL is taken by everyone who applied for the test regardless of the career choice a learner has chosen. MAT is a multiple-choice test taken by learners applying for qualifications that require mathematics.  Both tests run for three hours each. Learners need to note that NBT price ranges from R100 to R360 depending on the test they are writing.

Three after writing the assessments, the (NBT) team will send the results to the institution that the learner applied at. If the learner wishes to apply at other higher learning institutions, the same results can be used. However, the learner needs to inquire with the institution before submitting results. The results are valid for three years after writing.

The NBT allows learners to re-write the assessment. However, not every faculty and every higher learning institution in South Africa will accept the second result. Learners need to enquire with the university if they can submit a second result. When registering for the second time, learners do need not start a new application. Learners must login using their ID number as their username and the password they have created when they registering for the first time. Learners need to note that there should be at least six weeks between multiple writing sessions.

Learners need to check in at the writing centres from 7:30 am across all South African writing centres. Center doors close at 8:30 am, after which, they allow no one inside the test rooms. The AQL test is written in the morning and the MAT test is written in the afternoon. No learner is allowed to come mid-day to write just the MAT test. If learner is writing the MAT test, learner must write on the same day with writing the AQL test.

On the day that the learner is writing, they must bring:

• A South African ID booklet or foreign passport or a birth certificate with an affidavit from the police including a recent photograph.
• A Pencils and an eraser
• Water and lunch, if the learner is writing both AQL and MAT
• The leaner is not allowed to bring a calculator, ruler, dictionary or other learning aid. If you require special assistance such as a magnifier or other adaptive device, learner must send a written request to nbt@uct.ac.za at least three weeks prior to the writing session. Special arrangements will be made for any learner with a disability.

Note that learners without an official ID will be turned away and not allowed to write (unless learner provides the following documentation: a birth certificate with an affidavit from the police including a recent photograph.)

Gradesmatch paid-for services provides an opportunity for learners to get assistance with booking for NBT and pay the required amount for the test.                     For more information on Gradesmatch paid-for service visit our social media pages on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @Gradesmatch or visit www.gradesmatch.co.za

Applying late at a higher learning institution can be stressful for a final year high school learner. Most matriculants wait until they get their results to apply to higher learning institutions. The risk of applying late is that learners end up pursuing a qualification they might not be interested in. Research also shows that there is a high rate of drop-out and a change of academic streams in this group, particularly in the first year of study.

According to the Life Orientation curriculum, in Grade 10, learners should be introduced to different types of Higher Learning institutions from Private Colleges/Universities, Universities, University of Technology, and TVET colleges. In Grade 11, learners should be introduced to qualifications and they should be able to know which career pathway they want to pursue after Grade 12. Evidence shows that, even with these curriculum outcomes, learners miss out on early applications opportunities despite all the benefits associated with being an early bird.

Throughout Gradesmatch five years of experience, dealing with tertiary applications, we have seen that applying early betters learner’s chances of having a smooth transition between school and tertiary, from securing conditional offers, getting approved for a scholarship/bursary to conditional residence/accommodation offers. Applying early has shown that learners have a softer landing in their first year of tertiary. This all comes with the planning and execution of applications earlier than set institution application deadlines.

Gradesmatch has released an applications services offering for Grade 12 learners to assist learners with preparing for this transition better and executing the plan on time. Through the Gradesmatch platform, learners are taught how to apply at a higher learning institution using mock applications while they are still in Grade 11 so that they can get knowledge of applying to higher learning institutions earlier. Learners are taught which necessary documents they need when applying like; Grade 11 year-end report card or Grade 12 results, Identity Document of both learner and parent/guardian and Residential address.

From our experience, these are the best tips we can give when applying early:

• Decide what and where you would like to study
• Check the requirements of your desired qualification at all institutions of your choice.
• Check if an NBT test is required and book for a date before your trial exams.
• Ensure that with your Grade 11 results, there is a high probability of meeting the course requirements. You can do this on our Gradesmatch application.
• Collect all the required documents and portfolio resources needed for your qualification.
• Create an email address that you will use for communicating with the institution of your choice and make sure you keep the email’s password safe.
• Prioritise your prospective institutions and effort by most likely to least likely acceptance criteria.
• Apply to a minimum of 5 higher learning institutions for 3 different qualifications according to your interest.

Note: However, if you are going for a Bachelor of Medicine & Bachelor of Surgery (MBBCh), you must apply to ALL medical schools in South Africa.

• Ensure that the application fees have been paid so that your application gets processed immediately.
• And now the waiting period begins…

It is more likely that if your application is successful, the institution of your choice will give you a conditional offer for a space in your desired programme. Your conditional offer will have all the conditions that you will have to meet to get enrolled at your institution the following year. For more tips and information on the transition from high school to a higher learning institution or skills-based programme, visit www.gradesmatch.co.za.

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High school pupils in Grade 12 know that the application season has started. Higher learning institutions in South Africa, particularly universities, receive more than  160 000 applications annually. One of the major challenges faced by the tertiary institution is accommodating and funding the thousands of first-year students who seek to get a tertiary education. Pupils can avoid the disappointment of not getting an entry at higher learning institutions if planning is done effectively.

The Gradesmatch applications service is about helping pupils apply at a higher learning institution of their choice at no cost. The purpose of the application service is to provide an opportunity for pupils from disadvantaged schools particularly those situated in the rural areas and township communities with a smooth transition between high school and tertiary education.  

The purpose of the Gradesmatch early applications service is to afford pupils early admission through the traditional provisional acceptance system. Additionally, affording learners the chance of applying for the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) with the support of experienced students. Gradesmatch encourages pupils not to wait for the final hour to submit and process their tertiary education and funding applications. Qualifying students can send a motivational letter, detailing what and where they would like to study in 2020. The motivational letter must have at least three qualifications pathways and ideal institutions. The request for applications must come with certified Identity Document (ID) of both the student and parent or guardian and certified proof of residence.

This window of opportunity is for all students who are South African citizens across the nine provinces. For students to be considered by Gradesmatch to apply at any public institution of their choice, they must have achieved a minimum of 60% in Grade 11, and they must be in Matric in 2019. The free Gradesmatch application service has been extended to the 15th of May 2019. Don’t be among the people who apply late, send your application documents today and the Gradesmatch team will assist you in the journey from day one until your admission to a tertiary institution of your choice!

Pupils can send their documents using PEP Store Pexi services which is across all nine provinces. Parents, guardians, teacher and pupils  can send an enquiry email for more information to applications@gradesmatcch.co.za or send a WhatsApp text to 081 517 6167

The Gradesmatch Foundation team has been on a career guidance roadshow in the Western Cape, visiting various schools in the province to give learners insights into various career opportunities. The career guidance programme is part of the Western Cape Game Changers initiative. The programme kick-started at Oude Molen Technical school, and it then went on to Klein Nederburg Secondary School, Sophumelela Secondary School, Isilimela Comprehensive High school, Proteus Secondary School, and Kuils River Technical High School.

Speaking to a Grade 11 pupil at Klein Nederburg, Nicole Van Wyk said, “I did not know that there are other careers in the Health Sciences and Engineering field apart from being a Doctor or an Engineer because that is all that I wanted to be. Through the Gradesmatch platform, I’ve found out that I can become a Pharmacist, Clinical Psychologist or a Lawyer with the subjects that I have already chosen which are Mathematics and Science.” She further said, “I came across an interesting career which I found very intriguing and that is a Water Allocation Officer.” When we asked her why did she find Water Allocation Officer interesting, she said: “Cape Town has been facing water problems for a while now, I hope to bring the change that Cape Town needs.”

Speaking to one of the pupils in Isilimela Comprehensive High School, Siphelele Makhohliso, she said “I am enjoying the Gradesmatch platform and the amazing features that it has such as Study Time. I really like the Gradesmatch team of facilitators because they are very nice to us and they are helping us to see that there are more careers out there, and they made me understand how the platform works and I know which subjects I am going to choose when going to Grade 10.” Siphelele further said “Gradesmatch made it easy for me to know what are the qualifications that one can get that is related to my career interest which is in Science. I now don’t have to listen to anyone telling me which qualification I should do, and I also know that there are bursaries available for me to apply for, apart from NSFAS.”

Speaking to the facilitators of Gradesmatch foundation, Thamsanqa Ntombela said, “This journey has been a challenging but yet a very fruitful one. Going to different schools and interacting with various learners from different backgrounds through the system has been an eye-opening experience. One thing I have realised through this programme is that Gradesmatch is a tool that is needed in our schools. Most learners do not have any idea which career they will like to pursue, which qualifications are there and the different institutions they can pursue those careers in.  The most worry thing that I have taken note of is the high level of computer illiteracy in our public school quantile 1 to 3. But through this programme, I believe we can reach the gap. I am looking forward to the rest of the journey and its impact.”

Nabeelah Manie said “My job as a facilitator is to make sure that learners feel comfortable and confident using the platform and at the same time motivates them to do better. Just being able to do something and knowing that you are helping so many learners is quite rewarding and that is something I would not change for anything. I personally feel that being a part of Gradesmatch has inspired me in so many ways and has taught me a lot. Coming into contact with different learners from all walks of life, being able to communicate with them and build good relationships is beyond meaningful. Not only are learners learning from me, but so am I. As much as some days can be very challenging and overwhelming I have learnt to be more patient and to give the necessary attention to certain learners and always finding a way to adapt in order to do what I’m supposed to.”

Klein Nederburg teacher, Mr Ayford said “I am glad that we have Gradesmatch in our school. These learners need to know which career paths do they want to follow. Grade 9 should know which subjects do they want to choose this year. We don’t want them changing subjects in Grade 11 because in Grade 11 they should be choosing careers.”

Gradesmatch is working alongside the Department of Basic Education Game Changers programme to make sure that pupils make well-informed decisions when it comes to choosing their career paths. The Western Cape Department of Basic Education is focusing on delivering the career guidance lessons to Grade 9 and Grade 11 pupils across the province.