The aim of this policy document is to outline the statutory minimum or threshold norms for admission to the undergraduate Higher Certificate, Diploma and Degree programmes for persons in possession of the NC (V) Level 4 qualification. Such norms will apply to all public and private higher education institutions.

Education White Paper 3, A Programme for the Transformation of Higher Education (1997), proposed a single qualifications framework for higher education. In October 2007, the Minister of Education approved a unitary Higher Education Qualifications Framework (Government Gazette No. 30353, October 2007), which, with effect from 2009 replaces the following policies, in terms of which the higher education institutions have been offering HE qualifications:

This policy document supplements the existing Minimum Admission Requirements for Higher Certificate, Diploma and Degree Programmes (Government Gazette No. 31231, July 2008). The purpose of this policy is to provide for the statutory minimum admission requirements in terms of the National Certificate (Vocational) (NCV) at Level 4 of the National Qualifications Framework, whose specifications were approved by the Minister of Education in the Policy for the National Certificate (Vocational): A Qualification at Level 4 on the National Qualifications Framework, Gazette, Volume 489, No. 28677, 29 March 2006 and amended in Government Gazette, Volume 507, No. 30266, 7 September 2007.

The NC (V) Level 4 will first be issued in 2009. This policy, therefore, will be implemented from 1 January 2010.