Finding Courses as a Semester Student

Course Admission Process Courses at Stellenbosch University Global Education Programme Courses Finding Courses Global Service Learning

Please ensure that you complete the learning agreement in your application form. While you can list more courses than you need credits for, be sure to indicate how many credits you need, and also which courses you have to take. We will then liaise with the relevant SU departments. You can take fewer courses than those you have been preapproved for, but not a course for which you have not been preapproved.

Once we’ve received feedback from our departments on your course selection, we will return your learning agreement. Kindly ask your home coordinator to sign the final learning agreement. Also please note the following important information on courses at Stellenbosch University.

Course Admission Procedure at Stellenbosch University

Your listed courses are manually processed and evaluated to allow you a sufficient number to choose from for registration after arrival. The course admission procedure consists of these three phases:

1) Application Process:

The course applications are handed in online.

All courses should be listed the first time.

However, a second application phase will be opened by a date, decided on by the Stellenbosch programme coordinator.

2) Evaluation Process:

Firstly, SU International works through the courses, making initial approvals and rejections – mainly based on semester offering and clear proof of academic background.

Secondly, the courses are sent to the relevant Departments for their input. The approval or rejection of these courses are at the Department’s discretion and their decision cannot be overturned by the Office.

After the Evaluation Process, each student will receive the list of approved courses.

3) Registration Process:

After Arrival, during the compulsory orientation week, students are to hand in a Final Course Registration Form. This form lists the students’ final choice of courses for the Semester. No changes are to be made after a certain date as set out by the Office and University Guidelines. If a course is not deregistered within these dates and the course is not complete, it will reflect as a Fail on the Academic Transcript.

The number of courses that can be registered for per semester amounts to 60 SU Credits, 30 ECTS, 15 USA Credits.

Courses at Stellenbosch University

Mainstream Courses:

Undergraduate Courses

At Stellenbosch University, most undergraduate degree programmes are three years. The level of application is compared to the applicant’s academic background. However, first year level courses are open to all applicants. Courses on second or third (final) year level, pre-requisites need to be considered. If no pre-requisites are listed, applicants are encouraged to apply for the course target of their choice as well as lower level courses to enlarge the possibility of admission. The levels of the courses are indicated by the three-digit course code, also called module codes.

Undergraduate courses are listed in each faculty’s Calender, For enquiries about SU’s undergraduate offering per semester, please contact our Unit for Global Education, who will approach the relevant department for more information.

Postgraduate Courses

Postgraduate courses at SU are either honours or master’s programmes. An honours programme is a year-long degree in which students further their studies in one of their majors. Modules from these degrees are indicated by a three-digit code, starting with a 7. Master’s course options, which are indicated by the number 8, are limited, as many master’s degrees at SU are thesis/research-based, and modular work is not always an option.

Postgraduate courses are listed in each faculty’s Calender, or on the respective departments’ websites. For enquiries about SU’s postgraduate offering per semester, please contact our Unit for Global Education, who will approach the relevant department for more information.

Faculty Yearbooks

Mainstream Courses

Global Education Programme Courses

The Global Education Programmes (GEP) are modules offered to international students studying at Stellenbosch University (SU). These modules are designed to supplement SU’s mainstream course offering by offering:

Courses that South Africans would not necessarily need to take but which are worthwhile for international students (e.g. Introductory Afrikaans),
Courses specifically designed to harness Stellenbosch University expertise that lies outside of normal departmental offerings (e.g. Equity and Leadership in the Global Classroom), and
Transdisciplinary and experiential courses that are aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (e.g. Sustainable Agriculture: Community Gardening for Improved Living).

The Unit for Global Education, which is part of the Centre for Global Engagement, believes in the power of Higher Education to contribute towards solving global problems such as those contained in the SDGs. The GEP modules contribute to producing a transformative student experience for our international students; an intent reflected in our Global Student Learning Outcomes.

Read our statement on Global Learning here.

Global Education Programme Booklet

Booklet for Second Semester 2024

Global Service Learning

General Course Description

Finding Courses

For general instructions on finding courses, please click here. For course specific information by department, click here. Both aforementioned links will direct you to, among others:

SU’s online Calendar (for an overview of degree programmes and course lists by faculty); and
the faculty websites, which, in turn, will lead you to the departments’ websites.