What are the requirements for CSIR bursary?

There are several requirements that applicants must satisfy before they can apply for the CSIR bursary. To be considered for the bursary, ensure you meet the following requirements:

For undergraduate – Honours Bursary

  • South African citizen
  • Must intend to enroll full-time for the degree of choice at a South African public university
  • English (Level 5)
  • Mathematics (Level 6)
  • Physical Science (Level 6)
  • You must NOT be older than 28 years old and you must have achieved a minimum average of 65% for all major subjects in your final year of undergraduate study

Current university students

  • Must be a South African citizen
  • Planning to enroll full-time at a South African University
  • Must have passed all the courses for which you have registered at the university for the study period already completed

For a Masters and Doctoral bursary, applicants should be South African citizens who possess the following:

  • Good scientific writing skills;
  • Good organizational and time management skills;
  • Excellent academic record;
  • A drive to conduct research, self-motivation, and the ability to work independently and within a team are essential;
  • The ability to formulate and carry out research;
  • Excellent technical abilities;
  • The ability to work well under pressure as part of a team and meet scheduled deliverables; Good communication skills both verbal and writing (e.g. with evidence of report and/or conference papers writing); and
  • Good report writing abilities.
  • You must NOT be older than 30 years old and you must have achieved a minimum average of 65% for all major subjects in your Honours level or final year of a 4-year degree
  • You must NOT be older than 32 years old and you must have achieved a minimum average of 65% at Masters level

Also, you must be pursuing or intending to pursue your studies in the following science, engineering, and technology field; specifically in the areas mentioned below:

Areas for undergraduate Bursary

  • Data Science
  • Electronic Engineering

Areas for Honours Bursary

  • Industrial Engineering
  • Mechatronic Engineering
  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Areas for Masters Bursary

  • Agricultural Sciences – Crop Science
  • Analytical Chemistry
  • Biochemistry
  • Bio-medical Biology
  • Biotechnology
  • Civil Engineering
  • Computational Biology
  • Computer Science
  • Computational and Applied Mathematics
  • Computer Engineering
  • Data Science
  • Economics and Social Science
  • Economics and Public Policy
  • Electronic Engineering
  • Geoinformatics
  • International Relations
  • Laser Physics
  • Machine learning
  • Mechatronic Engineering
  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Powder Metallurgy
  • Robotics
  • Science Communications
  • Statistics
  • Software Engineering

Areas for Doctoral Bursary

  • Applied Mathematics
  • Agricultural Engineering
  • Aquaculture
  • Biochemistry
  • Bioinformatics
  • Biotechnology
  • Cell Biology
  • Cell and Molecular Biology
  • Computer Engineering
  • Computer Science
  • Computer Science and Applied Mathematics
  • Data Science
  • Electronic Engineering
  • Geo-Informatics
  • Geo-Information Science – Remote Sensing/Data Analytics/Modelling
  • Indigenous Knowledge Systems
  • Laser Physics
  • Medical Microbiology
  • Medical Biochemistry
  • Molecular Biology
  • Microbiology
  • Pharmacology
  • Physics
  • Software Engineering
  • Veterinary Science
  • Virology

Preference will be given to students with disabilities and students from previously disadvantaged backgrounds. Also, you must NOT be employed on a full-time basis.