History
Starting out with four faculties (Science, Education, Arts and Social Sciences, and AgriSciences), 503 students and 40 lecturing staff on 2 April 1918, SU today is home to 10 faculties, a vibrant and cosmopolitan community of more than 30 000 students and 3000 staff members, spread over five campuses.
Education
SU has ten faculties: AgriSciences, Economic and Management Sciences, Medicine and Health Sciences, Engineering, Military Sciences, Arts and Social Sciences, Science, Education, Law and Theology.
Research
The University is amongst South Africa's leading tertiary institutions based on research output, student pass rates and rated scientists, and is recognised internationally as an academic institution of excellence.
With 18 research chairs under the NRF South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChi), the University is regarded as a leader in the fields of biomedical tuberculosis research and management, wine biotechnology, animal sciences and mathematical biosciences. Another SARChi chair, in the field of invasion biology, is shared between SU and the University of Venda. This constitutes but one of SU's many partnerships, both local and international.
Stellenbosch University Key Statistics & Highlights
- #301 Ranking
- 244 Masters
- 46 Scholarships
- 948 Academic Staff
- 24,733 Students
- 1,979 Students (int'l)
- 13,850 Students (female)
- Public Institution Type
Stellenbosch University Overview
Stellenbosch University Scholarships
Stellenbosch University Scholarships
Below you will find scholarships related to Stellenbosch University. Distinction can be made between scholarships provided by the University and those provided by independent providers.
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Stellenbosch University Student Reviews & Awards
Based on 100 reviews
- 5 Star 51 Reviews
- 4 Star 40 Reviews
- 3 Star 5 Reviews
- 2 Star 2 Reviews
- 1 Star 2 Reviews
How Students Rated This University
- Overall Satisfaction 4.4
- Student Teacher Interaction 4.5
- Student Diversity 4.0
- Admission Process 4.4
- Quality of Student Life 4.4
- Career Development 4.0
Best Life Decision
Studying at Stellenbosch University taught me how to challenge my critical thinking abilities and be the best version of myself in all possible ways. The level of examination is incomparable, but if you are stedfast you will grow.
Love at first degree
I loved the degree. Inspired me to further my learning into sustainability.
An exceptionally impressive
Studying as a poor boy has taught me resilience, focus, and discipline. I’ve learned to push through challenges, value education deeply, and make the best of limited resources. Every struggle has strengthened my determination, shaping me into someone who works hard, stays hopeful, and believes in creating a brighter future through learning.
Global Student Satisfaction Awards 2025
The Global Student Satisfaction Awards empower students across the globe to determine the best universities of 2025. Universities with a score above 4.0 (out of 5) in any of the 7 award categories, receive Badges of Excellence. Congratulations!
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Overall SatisfactionHow would you rate your overall study experience?
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Student Teacher InteractionHow helpful were your teachers?
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Student DiversityHow diverse was the atmosphere at your university?
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Admission ProcessHow simple was it to apply to your programme?
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Quality of Student LifeHow was your everyday life?
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Career DevelopmentDid the university provide support for your career development?
Stellenbosch University Rankings
Study Portals Meta Ranking
Studyportals ranking look at the scores of the most used ranking systems and present you with one number of how well this University performs.
World University Rankings
By Times Higher Education
The university hasn’t moved up or down in the rankings over the past year.
World University Rankings is a vital resource that provides the definitive list of the world's best universities. They look at how often they're producing new ideas, what their reputation is around the world, and how much they're contributing to science and academic fields. After calculating and comparing these criteria, THE ranks the universities accordingly.
3 year trend World University Rankings
| 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 301 | 301 | 301 |
We don’t have enough recent ranking data to show a 3-year trend for this university.
QS World University Rankings
By TopUniversities
Dropped 6 places compared to 2025
QS World University Rankings is one of the top international rankings measuring the popularity and performance of universities all over the world. They measure university reputation based on the impressions of higher education experts, companies who hire graduates, and teaching quality. QS also considers the ratio of international teachers and students present at universities, as well as the times research papers were mentioned by researchers. After calculating and comparing these criteria, QS ranks the universities accordingly.
3 year trend QS World University Rankings
| 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 283 | 296 | 302 |
We don’t have enough recent ranking data to show a 3-year trend for this university.
Academic Ranking of World Universities
By Shanghai Jiao Tong University
The university hasn’t moved up or down in the rankings over the past year.
ARWU World University rankings is the first world university ranking. It ranks the world's top 1000 colleges and universities based on objective indicator. They look at the number of award-winning (Fields Medals and Nobel Prize) scientists who are located there, how much of their research is cited and referenced around the world, and how much they've contributed to different academic fields. After calculating and comparing these criteria, ARWU ranks the universities accordingly.
3 year trend Academic Ranking of World Universities
| 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| 401 | 401 | 401 |
We don’t have enough recent ranking data to show a 3-year trend for this university.
Best Global Universities Rankings
By U.S. News & World Report
This university doesn’t have a ranking for 2026 yet. Rankings are updated yearly, so check back later for the latest info.
Best Global Universities Rankings by U.S. News & World Report presents all the top universities from the U.S. and 60 other countries around the world. They measure the rate of students going to their second year of studies, as well as the rate of students who graduate. It also asks university representatives on the performance of universities, and evaluates university resources, teacher salaries, graduation rates, student academic achievements and satisfaction. After calculating and comparing these criteria, U.S. News ranks the top international universities accordingly.
3 year trend Best Global Universities Rankings
| 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 311 | - | - |
We don’t have enough recent ranking data to show a 3-year trend for this university.
Housing services
Stellenbosch University can accommodate about 6 500 students in approximately 31 university residences and other university accommodation on the Stellenbosch Campus. The five residences on the Tygerberg Campus, where the Faculty of Health Sciences is situated, house a further 1 000 students. Most Maties studying on these two campuses (there are more than 30 000 students in total) make use of private accommodation in Stellenbosch and its environs.
Library services
We serve the researchers, lecturers, staff and registered students of the different Faculties & Departments on the Stellenbosch campus.
ICT services
- Connection to wired network at speeds of up to 1000Mbps.
- Connection to Secure and Maties WiFi networks at speeds of up to 54 Mbps.
Medical services
We strive to cultivate a healthy campus for staff and students, offering an integrated and comprehensive service for a range of health concerns.You can find our clinics on both Stellenbosch and Tygerberg campuses. Office hours are Monday to Friday from 08:00 to 17:00, including University holidays.
Campus life
The main campus in the picturesque university town of Stellenbosch in the heart of the Western Cape winelands is quite an attraction for students. Stellenbosch is situated about 50 km from Cape Town and just 30 km from Cape Town International Airport.
Eight faculties are on the main campus, with the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences situated on Tygerberg campus adjacent to the Tygerberg academic hospital, and the Faculty of Military Sciences – the only one of its kind in South Africa and one of only two in Africa – based at the South African Defence Force Military Academy in Saldanha.Sports facilities
Stellenbosch University has a long and proud sporting tradition and Maties Sport plans to use this as a strong platform from which to launch an exciting future. This is also clear in its vision: “Drawing on tradition – imagining the future”.
Maties Sport has created five operational units to streamline its activities and to place the focus where it matters most. These units are:
- The High Performance Sports Unit
- The Centre for Human Performance Sciences
- The Recreation and Active Lifestyles Unit
- Maties Gymnasium
- The Events and Communication Unit
Student clubs
- Stellenbosch Thuthuka.
- Psychology Student Society.
- EWB-Maties.
- EcoMaties.
- SUPSF.
- QueerUS.
- Maties PAW.
- UNASA.
Accreditation
Stellenbosch University is accredited as a provider by the Department.