University of the Western Cape

The University of the Western Cape (UWC) was founded in 1959 as a University College under apartheid legislation, originally created to provide higher education for people classified as "Coloured." It admitted its first cohort of 166 students in 1960, became an autonomous university in 1984, and played a significant role in the anti-apartheid struggle, earning a reputation as an "intellectual home of the left." It gained its present configuration in 2004 following the incorporation of the University of Stellenbosch's School of Dentistry. UWC is a public university with more than 23,000 students (around 15,840 undergraduate and 6,160 postgraduate) and about 2,400 academic, professional and support staff. Its single campus is located on Robert Sobukwe Road in Bellville, Cape Town, in the Western Cape. UWC is organised into seven faculties and is particularly known for Dentistry, Natural Sciences (including pharmacy and biotechnology), Law, and its strong research and community-engagement traditions.

Faculties & Programmes

Faculty of Arts and Humanities: African Language Studies (isiXhosa), Afrikaans and Nederlands, Anthropology, English, Geography, Environmental Studies and Tourism, Historical Studies, Library and Information Science, Linguistics, Philosophy, Religion and Theology, Sociology, Women's and Gender Studies, World Languages, Literatures and Cultures (Arabic, French, German)
Faculty of Community and Health Sciences: Dietetics and Nutrition, Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy, Psychology, Sport, Recreation and Exercise Science; undergraduate offerings also span Nursing, Social Work/Community Development, Complementary Health Sciences and Public Health
Faculty of Dentistry: Community Dentistry, Craniofacial Biology, Pathology and Radiology, Maxillofacial and Oral Surgery, Oral Hygiene (Oral Health), Oral Medicine and Periodontology, Orthodontics and Paediatric Dentistry, Prosthodontics
Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences: Accounting, Economics, Finance, Industrial Psychology, Information Systems, Management and Entrepreneurship, Political Studies (International Relations, Comparative Politics, Political Theory)
Faculty of Education: Teacher education for Foundation Phase (Grades R-3) and Senior Phase/FET, Educational Psychology, Sociology of Education, Curriculum Studies, Educational Leadership and Management, Comparative Education, Policy Studies, Information Technology, Coding and Robotics in education
Faculty of Law: Criminal Justice and Procedure, Mercantile and Labour Law, Private Law, Public Law and Jurisprudence (including Constitutional Law, Human Rights Law, Administrative Law, Environmental Law, Gender Law); LLB, BCom (Law), Higher Certificate in Forensic Examination
Faculty of Natural Sciences: Biodiversity and Conservation Biology, Biotechnology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Earth Sciences, Mathematics and Applied Mathematics, Medical Biosciences, Physics and Astronomy, Statistics and Population Studies, and the School of Pharmacy

Bursaries That May Apply Here

Based on published eligibility criteria mentioning this institution or its type (public university/university of technology) — always confirm current eligibility directly with the bursary provider before applying.