FirstRand Empowerment Foundation Honours Bursary South Africa 2025

ABOUT THE BURSARY PROVIDER – FIRSTRAND EMPOWERMENT FOUNDATION

The FirstRand Empowerment Foundation (FREF), founded in 2005 as part of FirstRand Limited’s broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE) initiative, is committed to reducing poverty and inequality by supporting public benefit activities aligned with B-BBEE principles. The foundation’s leadership primarily consists of individuals classified as black under the Financial Sector Charter.

FREF envisions a South Africa where all citizens have equitable access to economic opportunities, fostering inclusive growth. By focusing on empowering communities to actively participate in the national economy, the foundation has outlined key strategic areas to drive this mission forward.

ABOUT THE FIRSTRAND EMPOWERMENT FOUNDATION BURSARY PROGRAMME – FIELDS COVERED

The FirstRand Empowerment Foundation is inviting students to apply for their Bursary Programme, for the 2025 academic year.

Bursaries will be awarded for Postgraduate studies (Bachelor of Honours degree), within the following fields:

• • Accounting
  • Actuarial  Science
  • Agricultural  Sciences
  • BA Honours Arts (Psychology)
  • Biosciences
  • Business Information
  • Climate Sciences
  • Computer Science
  • Data Science
  • Economics
  • Electronics
  • Engineering
  • Environmental Sciences
  • Financial Management
  • Indigenous Knowledge Systems
  • Information Management
  • Information Science
  • Information Systems
  • Information Technology
  • Law
  • Mathematical Sciences
  • Mathematics
  • Physics
  • Renewable Energy
  • Risk
  • Sciences
  • Society and Sustainability
  • Statistics

(Read about the FirstRand Empowerment Foundation Undergraduate Bursary here).

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR THE FIRSTRAND EMPOWERMENT FOUNDATION BURSARY

Applicants must satisfy the following minimum entry criteria before applying (please note that failure to satisfy all the requirements will lead to your application not being considered):

• You must be a South African citizen
• You must be between 21 and 35 years old
• You must have completed Matric
• You must have achieved a minimum of 60% in Mathematics in Matric (NOT Mathematical Literacy)
• You must have completed an Undergraduate degree between 2022 and 2024
• You must be enrolled in a full-time 1 year honors degree program
• You must be pursuing your first postgraduate qualification
• You must be studying at a public university in South Africa
• You must have achieved a minimum overall average of 60% in your undergraduate degree studies
• You must have a combined gross family income NOT more than R600 000 per annum

HOW TO APPLY FOR THE FIRSTRAND EMPOWERMENT FOUNDATION BURSARY

Applications must be submitted online at: FirstRand Empowerment Foundation Postgraduate Bursary Application 2025

Submit clear copies of the following supporting documentation along with your application (the submission of these documents is compulsory – if any items are missing, your application may be disqualified):

• ID document (certified copy – not older than 6 months)
• Matric certificate (certified copy)
• Academic Records (certified copy)
• Proof of university acceptance/ provisional acceptance for 2025
• Proof of parents or guardians household income (latest payslips if employed/ affidavit if unemployed/ affidavit stating annual income if self-employed/ most recent audited financial statement or 3 months’ most recent bank statements if they own a business/ SASSA letter stating the grants received if applicable)
• Completed EEA1 form

CLOSING DATE FOR THE FIRSTRAND EMPOWERMENT FOUNDATION BURSARY

15 December 2024.
(Applications submitted after this date will not be accepted – please apply before the closing date to ensure your application is considered.)

CONTACT THE BURSARY PROVIDER

For any queries related to these bursary programmes, please contact Feenix (the administrators for this bursary) directly:
Contact page: https://frefbursary.feenix.org/contact/
Please do NOT contact StudyTrust or the FirstRand Empowerment Foundation if this bursary has already closed.