The National Research Foundation (NRF) has opened the above call for applications
About National Research Foundation
The NRF is mandated by an Act of Parliament, the National Research Foundation Act (Act No 23 of 1998) to “support and promote research through funding, human capacity development and the provision of the necessary research facilities, in order to facilitate the creation of knowledge, innovation and development in all fields of science and technology, including indigenous knowledge”. The scholarships are funded by the NRF core grant allocation from National Treasury, the Department of Science and Technology (DST), the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), the International Institution for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) and the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) for Human Capital Development (HCD).
Internal closing date:
- All calls except first-time applications for master’s degrees: 2 July 2019
- First-time applications for master’s degrees: 16 August 2019
Areas of support
The scholarships are intended to support master’s and doctoral candidates to pursue research studies in all areas of Science, Engineering, Technology, Social Sciences, and Humanities, including Priority Research Areas at public universities. The table below presents the breakdown of the broad disciplines supported by the NRF:
| Broad disciplines supported for master’s and doctoral scholarships |
| Accounting, Actuarial Science, Agricultural Sciences, Astronomy, Auditing, Bioinformatics*, Biotechnology, Cellular and Molecular Biology, Chemistry, Climate Change*, Computer Science, Demography, Drug Discovery and Development*, Earth Sciences, Earth Observation*, Ecology, Economic Sciences, Education, Engineering, Environmental Sciences, Financial Management, Functional Genomics*, Geology, (Global Change, Society and Sustainability*), Health Sciences, Information Science, Information Systems, Indigenous Knowledge Systems*, Law, Mathematical Sciences, Marine Sciences*, Medicinal Plant*, Medical Sciences, Nanotechnology*, Nuclear Technologies in Medicine and Biosciences*, Palaeosciences*, Polar Science*, Physics, Renewable Energy*, Social Science and Humanities, Space Science*, Statistics, Transportation Studies, Tourism |
Students who are not eligible for support
- Students who already hold NRF funding for master’s (in 1st year of funding) or doctoral studies (in 1st or 2nd year of funding) are not eligible apply, but should submit a Progress Report (PR) to renew funding for the following year as per the Conditions of Grant.
- Individuals that already hold a degree at the level at which they intend studying, are not eligible to apply.
- Students in their pre-proposal year will not be supported. The proposal year should also not be counted as the first year of registration.
- Students who are intending to register for or that are studying for a 100% master’s by coursework, professional master’s or doctoral degree.
- Students pursuing master’s studies who commenced their degree before 2019.
- Students pursuing doctoral studies who commenced their degree before 2018.
- Individuals that will be in full-time salaried, contractual or permanent employment while pursuing master’s or doctoral studies.
- Individuals that are on sabbatical leave from their employment (including those without paid sabbatical leave).
Value of the award
1. Higher-Value Scholarship (Innovation, Scarce skills) per annum:
- Masters – R90 000 pa. for 2 years
- Doctoral – R120 000 pa. for 3 years
2. Lower-Value Scholarship (Freestanding) per annum:
- Masters – R50 000 pa. for 2 years
- Doctoral – R70 000 pa. for 3 years
Application process
All applications are submitted on the NRF Online system at www.nrfsubmission.nrf.ac.za
Late and incomplete applications will be rejected.
The process of master’s and doctoral applications has changed. Applications will undergo a college review / vetting before they can be submitted to the NRF.
Click here for the Application and Funding Guide for 2020.
Click here for the Master’s and Doctoral Scholarships for Full-Time Studies Framework 2020 document.
Click here for the 2020 Application and Funding Guide for first-time master’s and doctoral applicants.
For more information click here
