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Monthly payment
$2,595.86
Payments
180
=PMT(6.4%/12, 15*12, -300000)- rate = 6.4%/12 → 0.005333 monthly
- nper = 15*12 → 180 payments
- Result: $2,595.86 per month
System note: Annuity formula solved in closed form, then rendered as a paste-ready spreadsheet function. Illustrative example — your numbers are computed live.
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University applications, bursaries and funding a business — the full guide
Two of the largest financial decisions most people make are how they pay for a qualification and how they pay for a business. Both are won or lost on preparation and timing rather than on luck. This guide walks through how to apply to a university or college, when the windows open and close, the kinds of bursaries that exist and how to actually win one, and the funding routes open to a business at each stage of its life — including what each option truly costs.
How to apply to a university or college
An application is an administrative process with a deadline, not a test of talent. Work through it in order and most of the stress disappears.
1. Decide on the qualification before the institution
Start with the work you want to do, then find the qualifications that lead there and the subjects each one requires. A degree, a diploma and a higher certificate are different products: a degree is academic and usually three to four years, a diploma is more practical and often includes work-integrated learning, and a higher certificate is a one-year entry route that can bridge you into a diploma if your school results fall short. Choosing the qualification first prevents the most common and most expensive mistake — registering for whatever course still had space.
2. Check the admission requirements line by line
Every programme publishes minimum requirements: the school-leaving pass level, compulsory subjects, minimum percentages per subject, and a points score (in South Africa usually an APS built from your best six subjects, excluding Life Orientation in most calculations). Some faculties add a National Benchmark Test, a portfolio, an audition, a written assessment or an interview. Write the requirements for each of your choices on one page and mark honestly where you meet them, where you are borderline and where you do not qualify at all.
3. Gather documents early — this is what delays most applications
You will typically need a certified copy of your ID or passport, your latest results (Grade 11 final or Grade 12 mid-year while you wait for finals), your final school-leaving certificate once issued, proof of payment of the application fee where one applies, and for funding applications proof of household income such as payslips, an affidavit, a pension or grant statement, or a death certificate where a parent has passed away. Certification is usually valid for a limited period, so certify close to the date you apply, and scan everything as clear PDFs before you start filling in forms.
4. Apply to several institutions, not one
Places are limited and offers are competitive, so treat applications as a portfolio: one ambitious choice, two realistic choices matched to your results, and one safe option such as a TVET college, a distance-learning provider or a higher certificate. Apply to public institutions and, where relevant, to registered private colleges — but always confirm registration and accreditation with the national regulator or qualifications authority before you pay anything.
5. Track your application and respond to every message
Once submitted you receive a student or tracking number. Keep it, and check the portal weekly. Institutions send conditional offers that expire, requests for outstanding documents, and registration instructions with hard deadlines. An offer you never accepted is an offer you lost. Update your phone number and email if they change, and check the spam folder — automated admission mail is frequently filtered.
6. Plan the money before you accept
Add up tuition, the registration deposit, accommodation, meals, transport, textbooks, a laptop and data. The registration deposit is due before classes start and is often the reason a funded student still cannot register. Compare the total against your funding: bursary, loan, family contribution, part-time work. If the gap is large, a cheaper institution or a part-time route now is better than an abandoned qualification and a debt later.
When to apply — the typical year
Dates differ by institution and country, and every year they shift a little. Use this as a planning rhythm and confirm the exact dates on each institution's own admissions page before you rely on them.
- Grade 11 / the year before you study
Research qualifications, check subject requirements, and write down the funding you might qualify for. Many institutions accept applications using Grade 11 final results, so this is where a strong year pays for itself.
- Around April – May
Most public universities and universities of technology open undergraduate applications for the following year. Applying in the first weeks is the single cheapest advantage available to you: some programmes close early once they fill.
- June – August
Peak application season. Write any required benchmark tests, submit portfolios, and complete residence or accommodation applications — accommodation often has its own separate, earlier deadline than academic admission.
- Around August – September
Closing dates for most undergraduate programmes at public institutions. Competitive faculties such as medicine, health sciences, engineering, law and actuarial science tend to close first and are rarely reopened.
- September – January
The main national and corporate bursary window. Government student funding schemes and most large corporate bursaries run in this period, with company bursaries closing anywhere from July to October.
- December – January
Final results are released, firm offers are confirmed, late and second-semester applications open at some institutions, and registration happens. This is when the registration deposit is required — have it ready rather than borrowing it expensively.
The practical rule: apply in the first month applications open, and apply for funding in the same season rather than waiting for an offer. Students who wait for an acceptance letter before looking for money routinely find the bursary windows already closed.
Document pack to keep ready
- Certified ID or passport copy
- Grade 11 and latest Grade 12 results
- Final school-leaving certificate
- Proof of application fee payment
- Parents' or guardians' payslips
- Affidavit where there is no income
- Grant, pension or UIF statements
- Death or divorce certificates if relevant
- Motivation letter, tailored per application
- Proof of residential address
Bursaries: what exists, and how to actually win one
"Bursary" covers several very different products. Knowing which one you are applying for tells you what evidence to lead with — household income for need-based funding, results and subject choice for merit and corporate awards.
Government student funding
Means-tested support for students from low-income households at public universities and TVET colleges. It typically covers tuition, a registration component, prescribed learning material and, where eligible, accommodation and a small allowance. It is not automatic: you apply separately from your admission application, you must supply household income documents, and you must keep passing to remain funded.
Corporate and industry bursaries
Banks, insurers, audit firms, mining houses, retailers, telecoms and utilities fund students in the skills they need — accounting, actuarial science, engineering, data, IT, health sciences and artisan trades. These are usually the most generous packages and often include vacation work, a mentor and a guaranteed graduate post. Most carry a work-back obligation of one year of service per year funded, so read the contract before signing.
Sector education and training authority funding
Industry training bodies fund scarce and critical skills, learnerships and internships within their sector. These are worth searching because far fewer students apply for them than for the big consumer-brand bursaries, so the competition is thinner.
Institutional and merit bursaries
Universities award their own entrance scholarships on academic results, sporting or artistic achievement, or financial need, and some award automatic merit awards to students above a results threshold. Check the financial aid page of every institution you apply to — these are frequently under-claimed.
Professional bodies and trusts
Accounting bodies, engineering councils, legal and medical associations, community trusts, religious foundations and local municipalities all administer smaller awards. A cluster of three small bursaries can equal one large one, and small awards attract fewer applicants.
Student loans
Where bursaries fall short, a study loan from a bank or a specialist student lender can close the gap, often with interest-only repayments while you study. Treat this as real debt: check the interest rate, the total repayable over the full term, whether a surety is required, and what happens if you fail a year or graduate into unemployment.
Six habits of students who get funded
- Apply to many, not one. Serious applicants submit ten or more funding applications a season.
- Write a motivation letter for each application that names the specific bursary and links your subjects and results to the sponsor's field. Recycled generic letters are visible immediately.
- Keep a certified document pack ready as PDFs so a two-week deadline never defeats you.
- Read the conditions: minimum pass marks, subject changes, work-back years, and what happens if you switch qualifications.
- Keep passing. Almost every bursary is renewed annually against your academic record, not your first-year promise.
- Never pay a fee to apply for a bursary, and never pay anyone who guarantees you funding — genuine bursaries are free to apply for.
Bursary and admission scams
Genuine bursaries never charge an application fee, never guarantee funding in advance, and never ask for your banking PIN or a payment to "release" money. Be equally careful with people who offer to buy you a place at a university, upgrade your results, or register you at a college that turns out to be unaccredited. Verify the institution with the national regulator, apply only through official portals, and confirm any bursary directly with the sponsor's own website or switchboard.
Funding a business: routes, readiness and real cost
Funders do not lend to ideas, they lend to evidence. The right source of money depends almost entirely on what stage your business is at, and the fastest way to be declined is to ask the wrong type of funder for the wrong amount at the wrong time.
Idea and pre-revenue
At this point you are funding proof, not growth. Realistic sources are your own savings, family and friends, small grants and competitions, incubators and accelerators, and non-financial support such as mentorship and free workspace. Keep the amount small and specific: build the first version, get five paying customers, then raise on evidence rather than on a plan.
Early trading
With invoices in hand, more doors open: government small-business agencies and development finance institutions, microfinance and cooperative lenders, asset finance for equipment and vehicles, and supplier or trade credit. Lenders here care far more about consistent bank statements than about a polished deck.
Growth
Established revenue makes bank term loans, business overdrafts, invoice discounting, merchant cash advances against card takings, purchase-order finance for confirmed contracts, and equity investment from angels or venture funds realistic. Match the instrument to the need: never fund a long-term asset with short-term expensive credit.
Grants, incentives and enterprise development
Government departments, development agencies and large corporates run grant and enterprise-development programmes, often targeted at manufacturing, agriculture, tourism, exports, township and rural enterprises, youth, and women-owned businesses. Grants are slower and paperwork-heavy, and are frequently reimbursement-based — you spend first and claim afterwards — so plan cash flow accordingly.
What almost every funder will ask for
- Formal registration of the business, and a tax number in good standing.
- A business bank account separate from your personal account, with at least six to twelve months of statements.
- A written business plan with a realistic market size, pricing and competitor view.
- Financial statements or a management pack, plus a cash-flow forecast covering the loan or grant period.
- A clear use of funds: exactly what the money buys and what that produces in revenue.
- Contracts, purchase orders or letters of intent — confirmed demand is the strongest security a small business has.
- Owner CVs showing you can execute, and quotes from suppliers for anything you are buying.
Work out the true cost before you sign
- Interest rate and whether it is fixed or linked to a reference rate.
- Initiation, admin and monthly service fees — these can dwarf the headline rate on small loans.
- Total repayable over the full term, not just the monthly instalment.
- Security demanded: a personal surety or your home as collateral turns a business risk into a family risk.
- For equity: how much of the company you give up, what board rights come with it, and what happens if you want to exit.
- For revenue-based or advance products: the effective annual cost once the fixed fee is spread over the actual repayment period.
A simple worked example
Suppose a small business borrows 100,000 over 36 months at 18% a year, with a 2,000 initiation fee and a monthly service fee of 60. The instalment on the loan itself is roughly 3,615 a month, so repayments total about 130,100. Add the fees and you repay close to 134,300 — about 34,300 for the use of the money. That borrowing only makes sense if the asset or stock it buys produces materially more than 34,300 of extra profit across those three years. Run the same arithmetic on any offer you receive, in your own currency, before the paperwork gets signed.
Application windows, funding schemes and lending terms change every year and differ by country and institution. Everything above is general information to help you prepare — always confirm the current dates, amounts and conditions with the institution, sponsor or lender directly. See our financial and editorial disclaimer.