matric

Brand South Africa congratulates the Matric Class of 2015 and acknowledges the role each learner has played in moving the country forward. With the new year rolling in, South Africa's newest high school graduates can look forward to a year filled with possisbilities and new ways to be inspired. 

There are more than 200 000 spaces available for first years at South Africa's 26 universities - including the Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University, which will be accepting its first students this year, Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande told a media briefing on Monday.

This year's matric exams have been approved by the Council for Quality Assurance in General and Further Education and Training, even though there was evidence of cheating and group copying in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape. Maths and science marks were also lower than in previous years.

State-owned companies and major business have a responsibility to step forward, invest and create jobs, says Transnet. The parastatal is doing its bit to invest in education, and offers bursaries and internships to hundreds of students.

A "catalogue of opportunities" and more than R8.3-million in financial assistance is available to school leavers wishing to further their education, Higher Education and Training Minister Blade Nzimande said on Thursday after congratulating the 2013 matriculants for the highest school pass rate since 1994.