All interested applicants applying for postgraduate admission are to meet the school admission requirements before submitting their application to the school.
Faculty of Engineering & the Built Environment Requirements
Details are set out in the Faculty Handbook. The standard minimum requirements for admission are as follows. Selection is based on an applicant’s academic record.
Honours degrees
A three-year Bachelors degree in an appropriate field.
Postgraduate diplomas and Masters degrees
An appropriate four-year Bachelors degree or Honours equivalent is required; but applicants who are holders of three-year qualifications plus a minimum of 5 years relevant senior working experience (post Bachelors qualification) may be considered for admission.
Postgraduate Diploma in Power Plant Engineering
Masters Degrees in City & Regional Planning, City Planning & Urban Design, and the Landscape Architecture: for these structured two-year Masters degrees in the School of Architecture, Planning & Geomatics an appropriate three-year Bachelor’s qualification.
Doctoral degrees
At doctoral degree level three qualifications are offered:
The PhD: this is a University-wide research degree. The standard entrance requirement is a Masters degree
The DArch and the DSc(Eng): these are rarely awarded senior doctorates, for example for published work which has established the author as a world authority. Detailed information on the doctoral degrees is obtainable from the Faculty Office.
Doctoral Degrees Board documentation (guidelines, forms, etc)
Faculty of Health Sciences Requirements
Postgraduate admission requirements
Postgraduate diplomas
Applicants for any of the Postgraduate Diplomas require an approved Bachelor’s degree with the appropriate subjects or other qualifications that could be considered to be equivalent. In addition, some programmes have additional admission requirements and the relevant department or the Faculty Office (Postgraduate Administration unit) should be contacted directly.
Honours
The minimum admission requirement for an Honours degree is a Bachelor’s degree with specific major subjects. Some programmes have additional admission requirements and the relevant department or the Faculty Office (Postgraduate Administration unit) needs to be contacted directly.
Master’s admission requirements
The minimum admission requirement for a Master’s degree is an Honours degree in the subject that the applicant wishes to pursue at Master’s level. The relevant department or the Faculty Office (Postgraduate Administration unit) should be contacted to establish specific admission requirements.
Applicants for research Master’s degrees are required to submit a research proposal with the application. Prospective applicants are advised to contact the relevant Department direct in this regard.
Doctorates
The minimum requirement for admission as a doctoral candidate is a Master’s degree in a relevant discipline.
Applicants are required to submit a research proposal with the application. Prospective aplicants are advised to contact the relevant Department direct in this regard.
Please note the overview document from the Doctoral Degrees Board.
Faculty of Humanities Requirements
Honours degree:
The minimum requirement for any Honours programme is that the applicant have a Bachelors’ degree in the relevant discipline or equivalent qualification. Further requirements beyond this minimum typically apply, although these will be specific to any given programme of study. Applicants should consult the Faculty of Humanities Postgraduate HandbookF for details of any further requirements beyond this minimum.
Masters degree:
Applicants are required to have an Honours degree or equivalent qualification. Further requirements beyond this minimum typically apply, although these will be specific to any given programme of study. Applicants should consult our Faculty of Humanities Postgraduate Handbook for details of any further requirements beyond this minimum. In addition, for Masters by Research (Dissertation 100%), a research proposal must be submitted. No formal registration can take place until the proposal has been considered and approved by the department’s Higher Degrees Committee (HDC).
PhD or Doctoral programmes:
Applicants are required to have the required academic background — a master’s degree or equivalent qualification — and demonstrable ability to develop an acceptable research proposal for which supervision is available.
Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL):
For all postgraduate degrees, admission through the recognition of prior learning is possible in appropriate circumstances. Such admission is processed and decided in terms of the RPL policy and must be supported by the Head of Department you are applying to.
What would normally be required is evidence of your prior experience in the tasks that would be expected at postgraduate level. Some evidence of the capacity for conceptual and analytical thought at an advanced level would be expected. For example: analytical writing such as prior publications, research reports or essays, or creative works (as part of a creative programme). In addition to your formal application to UCT, a portfolio of evidence together with a letter of support from the Head of Department, must be submitted to the Humanities Postgraduate Office for consideration by the relevant committee.
A condition of admission might include completion of prescribed undergraduate or postgraduate coursework prior to admission.
School for Advanced Legal Studies Requirements
PGDip
Looking for a short, sharp, focused qualification in Law? Four courses. One year. Straightforward.
Admission to a postgraduate diploma programme in Law is generally limited to applicants holding a law degree, or equivalent undergraduate degree. PGDip programmes start in February each year, and to graduate with a PG Diploma students must complete four courses – as prescribed for the specialisation they select – within one academic year.
While students doing the general PGDip are free to choose from the numerous courses on offer, those undertaking one of the specialised programmes must ensure that they take the courses prescribed by that specialisation, as set out in the Law Faculty Handbook.
Doctoral Degrees
PhDs in Law can be done either purely in Law or through an interdisciplinary approach. Candidates for the PhD may qualify for admission if they have:
- a masters degree
- an honours degree, or a four-year bachelor’s degree, plus at least one year’s registration for a masters degree
- a three-year bachelor’s degree plus at least two years’ registration for a masters degree
- an LLB or BProc degree (or qualification recognised by Senate as being the equivalent)
- in special circumstances, an approved bachelor’s degree or qualification recognised by Senate as equivalent.
With experts in the Faculty in every field of Law (see below), it is the prospective student’s responsibility to find one of these experts at UCT Law Faculty who would be willing to supervise your PhD research. A doctoral thesis must always be a single treatise, and must serve make a contribution to the development of new knowledge in the field of Law . The thesis may not exceed 80 000 words in length, unless permission is given by the Dean, in consultation with the supervisor.
All doctoral degrees are administered partly by the Law Faculty and partly by the University’s Doctoral Degrees Board (DDB). The DDB has the final say in deciding whether to register candidates and what result is to be awarded for the examination. A full linked list of DDB documents, policies and guidelines is available here.
Interested in applying to undertake a research degree in Law (PhD, or LLM/MPhil by dissertation only)? Online applications must be submitted here. Online applications must be supported by the following documents (incomplete applications will not be considered):
- A brief CV
- Official transcript (unless the applicant is a UCT graduate)
- Contact details of two academic referees; and
- A 3-4 page statement of the research topic (the statement of interest form can be found here – or look at the required application documents page).
Successful applicants are given probationary registration for a period of six months, during which they must finalise their thesis/dissertation proposals under the guidance of their supervisors. In addition, they will be required to participate in a week-long preparatory course at the beginning of the academic year. At the end of the period of probationary registration, final thesis/dissertation proposals must be submitted for consideration by the Faculty’s Higher Degrees Committee. This committee may then recommend entry into a doctoral or master’s programme.
LLM Requirements
Admission to the LLM Degree is generally limited to applicants holding an LLB degree from an institution recognised by University of Cape Town.
LLM programmes with coursework
To graduate with an LLM degree (coursework & dissertation) students must select and complete four courses and submit a dissertation of up to 25 000 words on a topic of their choice. Full-time students are expected to complete the programme requirements within one academic year and part-time students are expected to complete the requirements within two years (except that the dissertation component may be submitted by not later than: the Friday before the first term starts the year following the completion of the coursework for students who have completed their coursework in December; and 15 September of the same year for students who have completed their coursework in June).
Students who register for a general LLM are free to choose from the numerous courses on offer. However, students wanting to pursue a specialist LLM programme will need to ensure that they take the courses prescribed by that specialisation. Examples of specialised programmes include (amongst others):
To see the requirements in each of the specialist programme areas please refer to the Law Faculty Handbook.
Master of Laws by dissertation (LLM or MPhil)
Applicants for the LLM or MPhil by research may qualify for admission provided that they have:
- a law degree of the University or equivalent degrees from another university recognised by Senate for this purpose, or
- in any other manner attained a level of competence which, in the opinion of Senate (which acts on recommendation by the Law Faculty), is adequate for purposes of admission.
- or, in the case of the MPhil, candidates may qualify if they have an honours degree from UCT or another university recognised by Senate.
Although originality in postgraduate research is always desirable, it is not an exclusive requirement for an LLM degree. Instead, a dissertation should constitute a significant advance in knowledge on the subject, of such a standard that publication in a reputable journal would be justified.
Candidates must therefore show that they have:
- a thorough knowledge of the chosen subject
- mastered techniques required for competent research in law
- the capacity for independent thought and sound reasoning
- satisfactorily presented the results of research
An LLM or MPhil dissertation must not exceed 40 000 words in length.
Professional Masters Requirements
Admission to this LLM degree is generally limited to applicants holding a LLB degree. To graduate with a Professional Masters degree students must select and complete four courses and four research tasks. Full-time students are expected to complete the requirements within one academic year and part-time students are expected to complete the requirements within two years. To see the requirements in each of these specialist areas please refer to the Law Faculty Handbook.
Faculty of Science
In brief, the admission requirements that must be met in order to register for a postgraduate degree in the Science Faculty are as follows:
Honours degree:
A candidate entering an Honours degree must generally have a BSc degree in the discipline in which he or she proposes to proceed to Honours.
Master’s degree:
A candidate entering a Master’s degree must have a BSc (Honours) degree or four-year undergraduate equivalent (i.e. a four-year degree post South African National Senior Certificate equivalent, which includes a research project).
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD):
A candidate entering the PhD must have a Master’s degree.
More details on the requirements for admission to postgraduate study to can be found in the Science Faculty Handbook and the UCT General Rules and Policies