Will nsfas fund me if I was receiving sassa relief grant? Will my nsfas application be canceled? Will my sassa relief grant be canceled? These are the concerns prospective students have and I'm going to shed some light regarding concerns raised. First things first don't panic. I've seen a lot of people panicking because they have been feeding their minds with fake news as a result causing them unnecessary depression. When education is concerned always communicate with the right people for accurate answers. Communicate with your institution and communicate with your funder to get all the genuine answers.
Due to the covid, 19 pandemic sassa relief grant was introduced mainly to ease a burden of unemployed individuals of South Africa. When the government instilled the national lockdown for the first time which lasted for 3 weeks the South Africans were strained of the new normal. This meant that people were now obliged to stay indoors and the majority of South Africans depend on doing informal jobs to survive day-to-day life to put food on the table. It is evident that most individuals live from hand to mouth hence they are unable to save money for unforseen events. Businesses, organisations and individuals played a significant role in assisting the disadvantaged communities by donating food parcels to those who were unable to hustle because of the lockdown restrictions. The sassa relief grant was to help the unemployed South Africans to survive and be able to buy basic needs in the pandemic and lockdown.
The covid, 19 pandemic opened many people's eyes. The need for education grew. Many realised that without education life can be hard especially in lockdown where everything was put to a standstill meaning people were not able to do the simplest jobs to earn some cash to feed their families. Many applied to higher institutions to further their studies so that they can be educated, get secure and better-paying jobs. Institutions like UNISA have made it possible for individuals of all ages to study part-time so they can secure their qualifications.
This brings us to NSFAS application. The question asked by many, does the sassa relief grant affect the nsfas application? Let's break down NSFAS. What is NSFAS? The national student financial aid scheme provides financial help to disadvantaged undergraduate students to help pay for their tertiary fees. To qualify for NSFAS you need to ensure that your combined household income is not more than R350 000 per year and of course, you are a South African.
Sassa relief grant and NSFAS are two different things and they help on different occasions therefore they should not be associated with each other because it's like associating the child grant with nsfas, to say if a child received a grant they automatically don't qualify for Nsfas. For example, a learner finishes matric at the age of 17 and by the age of 18 she goes to varsity, does that mean the child will not get nsfas just because she gets a grant? the answer is no. Let's say that indeed sassa relief grant affected the nsfas application. Can R350 received for few months add up to R350 000 a year? the answer is No. Which means that you do qualify for Nsfas.
Does the sassa relief grant affect the nsfas application? NO, it does not affect your application but once you are a registered student at a higher institution and approved by NSFAS for funding you won't get the sassa relief grant because now you will be receiving a monthly allowance from nsfas.
AcaNet ❤