University portals, NSFAS, bursaries and residence all ask for overlapping documents. Gather them once, properly, and every application after the first takes twenty minutes. On Scenda they go into your document vault once and are reused for everything.

The pack

  • Certified copy of your ID, both sides of the smart card. If you have no ID yet, your birth certificate and a letter from the school.
  • Certified copy of your final Grade 11 results.
  • Grade 12 June results as soon as you have them, then September results.
  • Certified copy of each parent's or guardian's ID.
  • Proof of household income for each earner: three recent payslips, a UIF letter, a SASSA statement, or a sworn affidavit if unemployed.
  • Proof of home address: a municipal account, or an affidavit stating the address.
  • The NSFAS consent form, signed by you and every parent or guardian.
  • A passport-style photo.
  • A one-page motivation letter for bursaries.
  • A portfolio if you are applying for design, architecture or fine art.

Certification

Certified copies must be stamped by a commissioner of oaths: a police station, post office, some banks, lawyers and school principals. The stamp is free at a police station. Institutions and NSFAS treat certification older than three months as expired, so certify in September and again in January if asked. Scenda's vault tracks the date and tells you when a copy needs re-certifying.

Scanning without a scanner

Use a phone. Lay the document flat, in daylight, on a dark surface. Include all four corners. One page per photo. Use the phone's document mode or a free scanning app so pages come out straight, then combine into one PDF per document. Name files sensibly: ID-Thabo-Mokoena.pdf, not IMG_4432.jpg.

Keep the originals together

One plastic folder with the originals and two certified sets. You will need it at registration in February, and the smart card itself at the NBT and at any interview.