NWU Academic Calendar and Important Dates

North-West University (NWU) runs its year in two semesters across its Mahikeng, Potchefstroom and Vanderbijlpark campuses. For 2027 it has published a first-year arrival framework with confirmed dates, and a separate framework for the academic calendar that is still marked as a draft. This page uses both, and it tells you which dates are firm and which may still change. We checked the sources on 5 November 2026.

Confirmed first-year dates

NWU's page for first-year students lists the arrival and orientation dates for 2027:

• Residence move-in and on-campus registration: from 28 January 2027, continuing as registration unfolds
• Orientation programme: 28 January to 6 February 2027, with the main programme from 30 January
• Faculty and school welcoming days: 5 February 2027
• Main orientation ends: 6 February 2027
• Classes start: Monday 8 February 2027

What the draft calendar framework shows

NWU's "2027 Framework for academic calendar" is a year grid that is labelled version 2 and a draft. It sets out how the university plans to divide its teaching time, rather than every individual date:

• Each semester has 60 class days.
• Each semester includes a series of tests over nine days.
• The first examination opportunity lasts eighteen days.
• The second examination opportunity lasts ten days.
• The grid also shows university recesses: roughly a week in March, two weeks across June and July, a week in September and three weeks in December.

Treat these lengths as a guide until NWU publishes the final version. The grid also marks public holidays such as Human Rights Day on 21 March and Youth Day on 16 June.

Why NWU has a framework first

NWU's campuses share one framework, but each faculty then fixes its own tests and examination timetables inside it. That means a Potchefstroom engineering student and a Mahikeng education student can have different test weeks even though they start on the same day. Look for your faculty's timetable once registration is complete. Students on distance or online programmes should also check their own programme dates, since those do not follow the contact calendar.

Timetables and your first week

NWU's first-year page also has a section for class timetables, so once you are registered you can see where and when your classes meet. Bring your offer, your identity document and your proof of funding to registration, and ask the faculty welcoming day on 5 February any question about your programme. The main orientation programme is meant to settle you in before lectures begin, so try to attend all of it.

Planning with these dates

If you have been accepted, aim to arrive by 28 January if you will live in a residence, and complete registration before classes start on 8 February. Tell your funder your registration date as soon as you have it. The how to apply to NWU page, the NWU fees page and the NWU bursaries page cover the paperwork.