University of the Witwatersrand (Wits)
Wits does something almost no other South African university does with your APS, and if you do not know about it you will compare yourself against the wrong number.
Wits works out of 49, not 42
Wits calculates your APS on your best seven subjects, including Life Orientation. That gives a maximum of 49, not 42.
Almost everywhere else, UJ and UP included, Life Orientation is thrown out and the maximum is 42. So a Wits requirement of 26 is not the same bar as a 26 at a university scoring out of 42. It is a lower bar, because you have an extra subject contributing to the total.
How the APS actually works here
Your seven NSC subject results are converted to levels 1 to 7, and Wits adds up the best seven, which, if you took exactly seven subjects, means all of them. Life Orientation counts like any other subject.
There is a catch that trips people up: the calculation must include the subjects your chosen faculty requires. You cannot swap out a required subject for a better mark elsewhere to inflate the total. If a programme requires Mathematics and Physical Sciences, those two are in your seven whether they helped or hurt.
One consequence worth naming plainly: because Life Orientation is usually one of the marks learners score highest in, Wits totals tend to look flattering next to the same learner's UJ or UP total. That is an artefact of the scale, not a sign that Wits is easier. Compare like with like.
Meeting the minimum is the beginning, not the end
Wits is among the more competitive universities in the country, and demand for popular programmes runs well ahead of places. Clearing a published minimum makes you eligible to be considered. It does not put you in.
Several faculties also run their own selection on top of the score, and some programmes use additional criteria rather than a flat APS cut-off. Treat any single number attached to "Wits" as a floor for the institution, and go to the faculty's own requirements for the programme you actually want.
Per-programme minimum APS figures are deliberately not listed here. They are set per qualification, revised each intake, and reproducing them from memory or from another website is exactly how learners end up applying against a number that no longer exists. The authoritative list is in the Wits entry requirements, linked at the foot of this page.
Where Wits is
Wits is in Johannesburg, Gauteng, spread across campuses close to the city centre, the main East and West campuses in Braamfontein, with the Education Campus in Parktown and the health sciences teaching based around Parktown and its associated hospitals.
Practically, this means Wits is an urban, commuter-heavy university. If you are coming from outside Johannesburg, the accommodation question is as important as the admission question, and it has its own process and its own deadlines.
Applying
- Apply directly to Wits through its own applicant portal. Wits is not part of the CAO, which handles KwaZulu-Natal institutions.
- Apply as early as the cycle allows. Competitive programmes fill, and late applications compete for whatever is left.
- Residence is a separate application. Being accepted academically does not give you a bed. Apply for accommodation at the same time as your programme, not after you receive an offer.
- Funding is a third, separate process. NSFAS and Wits scholarships each have their own applications and their own closing dates.
Application fees and closing dates change every cycle and are not stated here. Confirm both on the Wits site before you rely on them.
Who Wits genuinely suits
- Learners with strong, consistent results rather than one outstanding subject and several weak ones. The seven-subject total rewards a solid spread.
- People who want a large, research-intensive university with a wide programme range and are comfortable being one of many rather than known by name.
- Learners already in or near Johannesburg, or with a realistic accommodation plan.
- Anyone aiming at a profession where the degree is the non-negotiable entry ticket.
What people get wrong when applying to Wits
Comparing a Wits number against an out-of-42 score
The single most common error. Work out both figures, the calculator gives you them side by side, and use the out-of-49 one for Wits.
Assuming a high total covers a weak required subject
It does not. Faculty subject requirements sit alongside the APS, not underneath it. A strong total with a Level 3 in a required Mathematics will still be declined.
Leaving residence until an offer arrives
By then the beds are largely allocated. Residence pressure in Johannesburg is real and it is the thing that most often turns an acceptance into a deferral.
Treating the minimum as the target
For competitive programmes, applicants well above the minimum are the competition. If you are exactly at the floor, apply, but apply elsewhere too.
Official source
Always confirm against Wits directly, since requirements are revised each cycle:
Where to next
- All South African universities
- UJ and UP: the other large Gauteng options, both scoring out of 42
- APS calculator. Get both your out-of-42 and out-of-49 totals
- How to apply: documents, routes and timing