SARAO Undergraduate Scholarship South Africa 2025

ABOUT THE SCHOLARSHIP PROVIDER – SARAO

The South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO) is a facility of the National Research Foundation (NRF), which is responsible for managing all radio astronomy initiatives and facilities in South Africa. SARAO manages the MeerKAT Radio Telescope in the Karoo, and the Geodesy and VLBI activities at the HartRAO facility.

ABOUT THE SARAO SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMME – FIELDS COVERED

The South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO) is inviting students to apply for their Undergraduate Scholarship, for the 2025 academic year.

Bursaries will be awarded for Undergraduate degree studies, within the following fields:

Astronomy / Astrophysics and Physics (Bachelor of Science)
Computer Engineering (Bachelor of)
Computer Science, with co-major in Mathematics / Applied Mathematics (Bachelor of)
Electronic Engineering (Bachelor of)
Electrical and Electronic Engineering (Bachelor of)
Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor of)
Mechatronic Engineering (Bachelor of)
Mathematics / Applied Mathematics and Physics (Bachelor of Science)
Physics and Electronics (Bachelor of Science)
Physics and Electronics / Astrophysics / Computer Science (Bachelor of Science)

MORE ABOUT THE SARAO SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMME – VALUE, DURATION & SELECTION

Scholarships will be awarded to the value of R173 040. Students will also receive a once-off laptop grant of R12 000.

Scholarships will be awarded for the following duration:

Bachelor of Engineering degrees: 1 year for 4th year students, 2 years for 3rd year students, 3 years for 2nd year students and 4 years for 1st year students.
Bachelor of Science degrees: 1 year for 3rd year students, 2 years for 2nd year students, and 3 years for 1st year students.

Successful applicants will be notified by no later than 10 December 2024. If you do not receive any feedback by this date, please consider your application unsuccessful.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR THE SARAO SCHOLARSHIP

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 or a permanent resident
You must be currently in Matric or have completed Matric
You must be studying or intend on studying towards one of the undergraduate qualifications listed above
You must have achieved a minimum result of 70% for Mathematics in Matric OR a minimum overall average of 65% for your core subjects at undergraduate level
You must be studying or intend on studying at a recognised and accredited tertiary institution in South Africa

HOW TO APPLY FOR THE SARAO SCHOLARSHIP

Applications must be submitted online at: SARAO Scholarship Application 2025

Applicants will be required to Register an account before they can Login and apply.

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

ID document, if an SA citizen
Passport and permanent residence visa, if a permanent resident
Matric most recent report, if currently in Matric
Matric certificate, if completed Matric
University academic record, if currently studying
2 letters of reference (one must be from a teacher or lecturer)
Motivational letter, explaining the following: academic achievements, why you chose to study the degree you have selected, your research and career aspirations, and why you think you deserve to be awarded a SARAO Undergraduate Scholarship (maximum 1000 words)

CLOSING DATE FOR THE SARAO SCHOLARSHIP

31 August 2024.
Note: universities each set their own internal closing dates for applications. Please find out from your university what their internal closing date is, and ensure you submit your application by that date.
(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 this bursary programme, please contact the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO) directly:
Contact person: Mr Mkhululi Jodwana
Tel: 011 268 3412
Email: mjodwana@sarao.ac.za
Please do NOT contact the SARAO if this scholarship has already closed