This year (2023) we are supporting 187 students studying 14 different health science disciplines - 216 of the 187 students are studying medicine! This year, we selected 58 new students who come from the Umkhanyakude, Zululand and King Cetshwayo districts of KwaZulu-Natal.
To be eligible for UYDF top-up support all students must have applied and received a National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) bursary.
Student Selection Criteria
For youth to be eligible for consideration for a scholarship, they must:
- Be from the Umkhanyakude, Zululand, or King Cetshwayo districts in Northern KwaZulu-Natal, or live close to St Patricks hospital (Bizana) or Zithulele hospital (Hole in the Wall) in the Eastern Cape
- Have completed at least one week's worth of volunteer work at their local hospital
- Have been accepted to study an approved health science degree
- Have obtained approval for NSFAS financial support (UYDF will top-up the NSFAS allowances as well as provide mentoring support)
- Be willing on graduation to work in the public sector in a rural or under-served area
- Be interviewed and accepted by a local selection committee
Once students have been accepted into the programme they receive top-up funding to complement their NSFAS bursary, and to cover costs not included in the NSFAS bursary, as well as academic and social mentoring support. Our mentoring support has enabled hundreds of rural students to successfully navigate higher education and graduate. Here are website details of 21 academic institutions that will provide information about the university application process. Below is a valuable resource providing details of different health science disciplines.
Health Science Disciplines
Click on the career for job descriptions, salary statistics, education and training information and job opportunities: