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What do you do!?

A free tool for South Africans exploring careers, trades, and study paths with more attention to joy, reality, and the kind of life you want to build.

© 2026 What do you do!? All rights reserved.

This service uses the ESCO classification of the European Commission.

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Information resources

Official funding organisations and public funding routes.

This page pulls together the public funding organisations and official opportunity routes already used across the site, so you can browse them by support type instead of only seeing them career by career.

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Funding contact

NSFAS

National Student Financial Aid Scheme

The main national public funding route for many students at public universities and TVET colleges.

What it can cover: Tuition, registration, and living support depending on the scheme and institution.

Best for: Public university and TVET students who need means-tested support.

Application windows and eligibility rules change, so always check the current cycle before you apply.

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Funding contact

SETA directory

Department of Higher Education and Training

Official DHET directory for Sector Education and Training Authorities and their learnership, bursary, and skills programmes.

What it can cover: Learnerships, apprenticeships, sector bursaries, internships, and employer-linked training support.

Best for: Trades, occupational routes, logistics, hospitality, agriculture, and practical work-linked study.

Use the sector that matches your pathway and check whether current funding is open in your province or industry.

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Funding contact

National Skills Fund

National Skills Fund

National public skills funding that often supports large training and employment-linked programmes.

What it can cover: Programme-based skills funding, often through public calls, training partners, or institutions rather than direct bursary applications.

Best for: Skills programmes, occupational routes, youth pathways, and work-linked training opportunities.

Most opportunities appear through funded projects and partner programmes, so keep checking announcements instead of waiting for one permanent application form.

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Funding contact

SAYouth

SAYouth

Free national platform for young South Africans looking for learning, skilling, and work opportunities.

What it can cover: Skilling opportunities, youth programmes, work-seeking support, and linked opportunities rather than one bursary product.

Best for: Young people who need a practical starting point for earning, learning, and short-route support.

Useful if you want to find funded short programmes or nearby opportunities without paying for data.

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Funding contact

Funza Lushaka

Department of Basic Education

Teaching bursary programme for people preparing to qualify as teachers in priority subjects and phases.

What it can cover: Teaching bursary support for approved programmes and institutions.

Best for: Teaching pathways and people who want to enter education through a university route.

Most relevant if you are seriously considering teaching rather than just comparing it casually.

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Funding contact

Provincial health bursaries

National Department of Health

Directory of provincial health bursary contacts and state health-study support routes.

What it can cover: Provincial bursary contacts for health study pathways, with service obligations often attached.

Best for: Health pathways such as nursing, radiography, occupational therapy, community health, and emergency care.

Requirements and funded disciplines vary by province, so use the provincial contacts rather than assuming one national rule.

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Funding contact

DFFE bursaries

Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment

Government bursaries for environmental, conservation, marine, and related study fields.

What it can cover: Study support for approved environmental and related fields, usually tied to specific annual calls.

Best for: Conservation, geology, environmental science, paleontology-adjacent, and natural-resource pathways.

This is a good public funding route for environment-linked pathways, but applications are seasonal and field lists can change.

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Funding contact

DSAC heritage bursaries

Department of Sport, Arts and Culture

Government bursary support for heritage-related studies, including archaeology, paleontology, and museum fields.

What it can cover: Tuition and study support for approved heritage-related tertiary fields.

Best for: Archaeology, paleontology, heritage, museum, and some culture-linked pathways.

This is not a general arts bursary; it is specifically strongest for heritage-related study areas.

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Funding contact

Department of Tourism bursaries

Department of Tourism

Official bursary opportunities for tourism and selected support fields linked to the tourism sector.

What it can cover: Bursaries for listed diploma, degree, and postgraduate fields when the annual call opens.

Best for: Travel and tourism, events, hospitality, and related management or support routes.

Check the current approved study-field list before applying because it can be broader than tourism alone.

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Funding contact

DHET international scholarships

Department of Higher Education and Training

Official DHET portal for scholarships, exchanges, and study opportunities outside South Africa.

What it can cover: International scholarship calls, exchange opportunities, and application guidance.

Best for: People considering postgraduate, exchange, or study-abroad options later in their journey.

Not a first route for everyone, but worth checking if your path is internationally portable or you want to study further abroad.

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Funding contact

Institution financial aid offices

Universities South Africa / institutions

Many public and private institutions run their own bursaries, merit awards, hardship funds, and payment support offices.

What it can cover: Institution-specific bursaries, merit support, hardship support, and payment guidance.

Best for: Anyone comparing universities, colleges, or private providers and needing another funding route beyond national schemes.

Once you know where you might study, check that institution's own financial-aid office directly as well.

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