· Built around the Rhodes APS calculator
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This is part two of our university APS series. Matric results come out in mid-January, and the score that decides your application is the one each university works out itself - not a single national "APS". Below, the same learner's results go through eight more universities: North-West, Tshwane University of Technology, the Free State, Rhodes, Limpopo, Central University of Technology, Nelson Mandela and the Western Cape. Part one covered Wits, UCT, Stellenbosch, UP, UJ and UKZN; the standard scale is in the APS calculator.
Our sample learner
Lindiwe is the same made-up learner in every post of the series, so you can line the universities up:
- isiZulu Home Language 91% (level 7)
- English First Additional Language 72% (level 6)
- Mathematics 68% (level 5)
- Physical Sciences 64% (level 5)
- Life Sciences 75% (level 6)
- Geography 38% (level 2)
- Life Orientation 84% (level 7)
That is a bachelor's pass (matric pass level calculator), and a standard APS of 31 of 42.
Lindiwe's score at each university
Run your own marks
Rhodes is the one where Lindiwe sits right on a line, so it is pre-filled with her marks. Change any of them - or open the other calculators linked above.
NWU, TUT and Limpopo: six subjects, Life Orientation out
- All three add six subjects and leave Life Orientation out.
- NWU's scale goes to 8 (90-100%), so Lindiwe's 91% earns 8: 8 + 6 + 6 + 5 + 5 + 2 = 32 of 48.
- TUT and Limpopo use the NSC scale to 7: 7 + 6 + 6 + 5 + 5 + 2 = 31 of 42.
- TUT ignores a level 1 subject (under 30%); Limpopo counts it as 1. If Geography had been 25%, TUT would give 29 and Limpopo 30.
- Limpopo still wants Life Orientation at level 3 (40%) even though it does not count it.
- Programme minimums: NWU's BCom Accounting (Vanderbijlpark) asks 24; a TUT nursing programme asks 27, and 27 to 29 means a TUT potential assessment.
UFS and CUT: one point for Life Orientation
- Both score six subjects from 8 (90-100%) down to 2 (30-39%), with nothing under 30% - Lindiwe's six make 32 of 48.
- Both add 1 point for Life Orientation - UFS from 60%, CUT from 50%. Her 84% earns it at both: 33 of 49.
- If her Life Orientation were 55%, UFS would give 32 and CUT still 33.
- UFS's LLB asks 33 - she meets it exactly.
- CUT admits from 27, and 22 to 26 means a selection test; 21 or less is not admitted.
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Rhodes: percentages divided by ten, and a hard 40% floor
- Rhodes adds six subject scores: English plus your best five others, Life Orientation out.
- Each scores its percentage divided by ten - 72% is 7.2 - but anything under 40% scores 0.
- Lindiwe: 7.2 + 9.1 + 7.5 + 6.8 + 6.4 + 0 = 37.0 of 60.
- 45 or more is automatic acceptance; 38 to 44 is at the Dean's discretion, so she sits 1 point below the discretion range. Law's discretion range starts at 40.
- Her Geography 38% scores 0 instead of 3.8 - the whole difference between missing and making the discretion range.
Nelson Mandela University: an Applicant Score out of 600
- NMU adds the percentages of six subjects: home language, first additional language and Maths (or Maths Literacy or Technical Maths) always count, plus your best three others.
- Lindiwe: 91 + 72 + 68 + 75 + 64 + 38 = 408 of 600.
- At a quintile 1 to 3 (no-fee) school, Life Orientation at 50% or more adds 7 - 415.
- NMU's BCom General Accounting asked 410 with Maths at 60% in its 2023 guide - she would need the no-fee bonus or 2 more percentage points (NMU calculator).
UWC: English and Maths count almost double
- English and Maths (or Maths Literacy) earn up to 15 points each: 15 for 90%+, 13 for 80%+, 11 for 70%+, 9 for 60%+, down to 1 for 20-29%.
- Other subjects earn up to 8, and Life Orientation up to 3 (3 at 80%+, 2 at 50-79%).
- Lindiwe: English 11 + Maths 9 + others 8 + 6 + 5 + 2 + Life Orientation 3 = 44 of 65.
- UWC's Natural Sciences faculty asks 33 points and BPharm 38 - she clears both on points; subject minimums apply too.
Worked example 2: Geography re-marked from 38% to 45%
- Rhodes jumps from 37.0 to 41.5 - into the Dean's discretion range.
- Nelson Mandela goes from 408 to 415 (422 at a no-fee school).
- NWU, TUT, UFS, Limpopo, CUT and UWC each gain 1 point - 33, 32, 34, 32, 34 and 45.
- Seven points on one subject matter most where the 40% floor or raw percentages apply - check the exam mark calculator if you are deciding on a re-mark or supplementary.
Worked example 3: a seventh subject, Accounting 62%
- Every one of these universities takes your best six, so the 62% replaces the 38%.
- Rhodes rises to 43.2, Nelson Mandela to 432, NWU to 35 and UFS to 36.
- An extra subject is insurance: one bad paper stops costing you points at a university that drops your weakest result.
Checked against the universities' own methods
Each calculator was run on Lindiwe's marks in a browser against the live calculator code, and its rule checked against what the university publishes:
- NWU 2027 Grade 12 prospectus: "six best subjects ... excluding Life Orientation", up to 8 for 90%+. NWU's own example (72, 77, 85, 82, 69, 76%) gives 37 on ours.
- TUT Prospectus 2026: "Life Orientation and an achievement Level of 1 in a subject are not considered". Matches.
- UFS Undergraduate Prospectus 2027: six subjects, nothing under 30%, 1 point for Life Orientation from 60%. Matches; UFS's example (five at 60%, one at 50%, LO 60%) gives 30 on ours.
- Rhodes entry requirements: six scores including English, under 40% scores 0. Rhodes's example (78, 73, 69, 70, 89, 73%) gives 45.2 on ours.
- Limpopo admissions page: six 20-credit subjects on achievement levels, Life Orientation not used. Matches.
- CUT Admission Points (August 2026): 8 to 2 by band, Life Orientation worth at most 1, at least 50% in it. Matches.
- Nelson Mandela Applicant Score page: six percentages, out of 600, +7 for quintile 1 to 3 with Life Orientation 50%. NMU's examples (370 and 377) match ours.
- UWC application information: the weighted table. Matches band for band.
- No calculator needed a fix for this post; the UFS calculator's source note was updated from a 2020 brochure to the 2027 prospectus.
Not verified from a primary source this run: CUT and UWC do not say how many subjects they add - the calculators add six subjects plus Life Orientation (UWC: all seven NSC subjects), the reading most guides give. NWU's 2027 points table is an image we could not read; the 8 for 90%+ is from its text and earlier editions. TUT's newest official prospectus online is for 2026. The NMU BCom figure (410) and the CUT and Limpopo programme rules beyond those quoted are from older or secondary pages. Check your programme's current prospectus before you apply - and NSFAS is a separate application (NSFAS calculator).
What to do before results day
- Work out your score at every university on your list - they differ by more than a few points.
- Look for any subject just under 40%; it costs most at Rhodes and nothing extra at NWU or TUT.
- Write each programme's minimum next to your score, so January is a check, not a scramble.
Sources
- North-West University, 2027 Grade 12 Prospectus: studies.nwu.ac.za PDF, read 16 October 2026.
- Tshwane University of Technology, Prospectus 2026: tut.ac.za PDF, read 16 October 2026.
- University of the Free State, Undergraduate Prospectus 2027: ufs.ac.za, read 16 October 2026.
- Rhodes University, Admission Gateway - Entry Requirements: ru.ac.za, read 16 October 2026.
- University of Limpopo, Admissions - Undergraduate studies: ul.ac.za, read 16 October 2026.
- Central University of Technology, Admission Points (AP), uploaded 18 August 2026: cut.ac.za, read 16 October 2026.
- Nelson Mandela University, Applicant Score: myfuture.mandela.ac.za, read 16 October 2026; BCom General Accounting AS 410 from NMU's Applicant Score Guide 2023 (seen in search results).
- University of the Western Cape, Application information: uwc.ac.za, read 16 October 2026.
Calculators used in this post
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