West Coast College was officially declared a Further Education and Training (FET) College in 2002 — the last FET college formed in the Western Cape — built up from several smaller satellite institutions rather than around one existing technical college; it took the TVET College name in 2015. Its campuses each have distinct histories: Atlantis (started in the 1980s as Atlantis Technical Institute, joined Protea College in 1993, then West Coast in 2002), Citrusdal (opened 1999 under Tygerberg College), Vredenburg (formerly Westlake College, joined 1999), Vredendal (established 1997) and Malmesbury (opened 2005). The college operates five campuses plus a central office and is particularly known for its International Welding School, Red Seal pipe-fitting apprenticeships, and its Centre for Entrepreneurship Rapid Incubator (CfERI). No current student numbers are published on the site.
Programmes Offered
- NC(V) (National Certificate Vocational, 3-year): Education and Development, Electrical Infrastructure Construction, Management, Office Administration, Primary Health, Tourism, Hospitality, Engineering and Related Design, Transport and Logistics, Finance, Economics and Accounting, Information Technology and Computer Science (Programming and Robotics)
- Report 191 (NATED) N4-N6: Business Management, Farming Management, Financial Management, Hospitality and Catering Services, Public Management, Tourism
- Occupational Programmes — Apprenticeships (legacy and QCTO): Fitting, Turning, Electrical work, Bricklaying, Welding, Boilermaking, Painting, Mechanical Fitting, Millwright work, Refrigeration, Solar installation
- Occupational Programmes — Learnerships: Bricklaying, Carpentry, Early Childhood Development (Levels 4-5), Plant Production, Refrigeration, Wholesale/Retail
- Skills Programmes and Centres of Specialisation (various, by campus)
- Pre-Vocational Learning Programme (PLP)
- Trade Testing Services (Vredenburg and Vredendal campuses): Boilermaking, Electrical, Pipe-fitting, Welding, Coding trades
Bursaries That May Apply Here
Based on published eligibility criteria mentioning TVET colleges specifically — always confirm current eligibility directly with the bursary provider before applying.