BSc in Physics 4-year programme
The useful and transferable skills that physics students acquire in theoretical, experimental and computational physics equip them for a variety of career options. The Bachelor of Science in Physics programme will appeal to students who are passionate about understanding nature, are driven by curiosity, are interested in mathematics and are willing to put in the required effort.
Physics students will develop their creativity, inventiveness, problem-solving abilities, analytical thinking skills and their ability to communicate complex ideas.
Career opportunities include lecturers at universities, researchers in national laboratories and industries, developers of renewable energy sources, medical scientists and biophysicists, science advisors for non-governmental organisations, industry or government, radiation scientists, computational scientists, geophysicists, innovators and entrepreneurs, and atmospheric scientists and climatologists.
For more information, please consult the Faculty webpage.
Graduates could be employed as university academics, whose duties include lecturing, research and the supervision of postgraduate students, researchers in national laboratories such as the Nuclear Energy Corporation of South Africa (NECSA), the South African Astronomical Observatory or iThemba LABS (Laboratory for Accelerator-based Sciences), researchers in industry, for example at the CSIR or Element Six, science advisors for non-governmental organisations, industry or government, radiation scientists, medical scientists and biophysicists, atmospheric scientists and climatologists, developers of renewable energy sources, geophysicists, innovators and entrepreneurs, and computational scientists. International collaboration also takes place with experts from abroad.
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Important information for all prospective students for 2026
The admission requirements below apply to all who apply for admission to the University of Pretoria with a National Senior Certificate (NSC) and Independent Examination Board (IEB) qualifications. Click here for this Faculty Brochure.
Minimum requirements | |||
Achievement level | |||
English Home Language or English First Additional Language | Mathematics | Physical Sciences | APS |
NSC/IEB | NSC/IEB | NSC/IEB | |
58% | 58% | 58% | 32 |
Life Orientation is excluded when calculating the APS.
Applicants currently in Grade 12 must apply with their final Grade 11 (or equivalent) results.
Applicants who have completed Grade 12 must apply with their final NSC or equivalent qualification results.
Please note that meeting the minimum academic requirements does not guarantee admission.
Only students that have completed school in the last two years and have not studied at a tertiary institution will be considered for this programme.
Successful candidates will be notified once admitted or conditionally admitted.
Unsuccessful candidates will also be notified.
Applicants should check their application status regularly on the UP Student Portal at click here.
Applicants with qualifications other than the abovementioned should refer to the International undergraduate prospectus 2026: Applicants with a school leaving certificate not issued by Umalusi (South Africa), available at click here.
International students: Click here.
4 years, full-time
All modules will only be presented in English, which is the University's official language of tuition, communication and correspondence.
The Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences is home to more than 6 500 undergraduate and postgraduate students. The Faculty presents degrees in fields ranging from the proverbial A to Z – from actuaries to zoologists, and consists of 13 departments.
All degree programmes are designed to develop problem-solving individuals who can easily adapt to changing circumstances and take the lead in their chosen fields of specialisation. The qualifications awarded are of world-class and provide access to a multitude of career opportunities for dynamic and creative people. According to the latest Times Higher Education World University Rankings the University has achieved new world rankings in Physical Sciences, a discipline which features strongly in NAS and also maintains excellent positions on the ISI Web of Science (WOS) field rankings in Plant and Animal Sciences, Agricultural Sciences, and Environment and Ecology Sciences.
In the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, we strive to continuously improve our high impact research and significantly address the national shortage of PhD graduates that respond to global and local challenges.
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