How to Apply to UP

You apply to the University of Pretoria (UP) online. For the 2027 intake, applications opened on 1 April 2026. Veterinary Science closed on 31 May 2026, and all other undergraduate programmes closed on 30 June 2026. Because these dates fall earlier than at many universities, plan your application in the first half of your matric year.

Choose your programme first

Before you apply, make sure that you have chosen the right programme for your career. UP offers an online programme calculator, where you enter your school subjects and marks to see which programmes you may be considered for. Then compare your results with the requirements on the UP admission requirements page.

The application steps

1. Apply online. Upload your ID or passport and your latest school results, plus academic records if you studied before. Indicate your residence preferences and pay the application fee.
2. Check the UP Portal. After you apply, check the UP Student Portal regularly for your status and messages.
3. Accept or decline your offers. If UP admits you conditionally to more than one programme, accept the one you want and decline the other.
4. Submit your contract. You cannot register without it. UP needs the original signed copy, and it does not accept scanned, faxed or emailed contracts.
5. Pay your initial fee. In 2026, this was R11,000 for undergraduates.
6. Confirm your final admission once your final Grade 12 results are out.
7. Register within the time frame UP gives you, because admission does not guarantee registration.

The application fee

UP's 2026 fee list sets the application fee at R300 for all applications for admission. If you apply online, use the online study application number that UP emails to you, usually in a form like T1234567, as your payment reference.

Applying for residence

You choose your residence preferences as part of your study application. UP places students in residences based on their Grade 11 APS and the date of their application, so applying early helps. If the residences are full, UP puts you on a waiting list. When it offers you a place, you accept it on the portal and pay the residence reservation levy.

Health sciences students

Residence placement at the Prinshof Campus, where the Faculty of Health Sciences is based, takes place in October, after selection for the following year. So health sciences applicants hear about Prinshof housing later than other students.

If you miss out

If you applied in time but did not get a place because of competition, you can look at the national Central Applications Clearing House (CACH), which helps students find space at other institutions.