International Students

General Information

The Commerce Faculty welcomes international full-degree and "semester study abroad" students.  This document is a guide to assist you in finding a course that best meets your needs.  Further information on courses is available on the UCT Commerce website at www.commerce.uct.ac.za or from the Commerce Faculty Office

Selecting a Course

You may register for any courses for which you have the appropriate time available and the requisite background skills and knowledge. 

The academic pre-requisites for all courses offered are included in the Faculty of Commerce handbook.

The University of Cape Town operates on a calendar year system from February - November. The year is divided into two semesters: First Semester which runs from February to June, and Second Semester which runs from July to November. Any courses marked with a suffix H or W run over both semesters and require a full year of study. Semesterised courses have a suffix F (first semester) or S (second semester) at the end of the course code.

It is important to note that registration for a course commits a student to participating fully in all aspects of that course; this may entail group work, projects or field trips. It is important to establish the requirements of courses you are considering if you are not certain of your ability to commit. Withdrawal from courses once group work has commenced is very disruptive to other students on the course and we urge you to find out as much as you can about our courses before you register. International students are also required to follow the standard rules and procedures for examinations. Please consult the academic calendar, paying particular attention to term and exam periods before committing yourself to a course.

Approval and administration

There are two levels of approval required

• Individual course approval by a student advisor or individual course convenor who will establish your needs and review your academic background to select the most appropriate course and level for you.
• IAPO approval to ensure that the courses you are taking meet the requirements in terms of number of points/credits required for your degree.

 Notes in individual disciplines to assist you in your selection

Accounting

From past experience with international students, the most suitable courses tend to be:

• Management Accounting I ACC 2022F/S
• Management Accounting II ACC 3023S
• Financial Management ACC3024F
• Control of Financial Information systems, ACC2018S

The following courses offered by the Accounting department are not suitable for most semester abroad students.  They are very technical and based on IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) or the S.A. Tax legislation as they are designed for students writing the professional South African Chartered Accountancy examinations.  In addition the 2^nd and 3^rd year accounting courses  are very dependent on  preceding courses and the teaching philosophy used.

Financial Reporting I (ACC 1011S)
Financial Accounting II (ACC2012W)
Financial Accounting III (ACC3009W)
Tax IT (ACC3021H)
Tax I (ACC3004H ) and
Financial Reporting III (ACC3020W)

For further information, please refer to the Faculty Handbook, or to the Department of Accounting website, www.commerce.uct.ac.za/accounting/

Economics

"Semester-abroad" international students are eligible to enrol for any of the Economics courses offered at the undergraduate level, provided they meet the minimum requirements. At the first year level, ECO1010F and ECO1011S (Microeconomics and Macroeconomics respectively) are basic entry-level economics. In addition, we have an ECO1006F course, which is a course for 'non-specialists' and designed for students not wishing to proceed any further in economics - it is a first year terminating economics course.

The second year courses, ECO2003F (Intermediate Micro), ECO2004S (Intermediate macro) ECO2005S (Development) and ECO2007S (Cooperation and Competition) focus on developing the concepts, ideas and models first introduced in the first year of economics. ECO2007S seems to be a popular course taken by many of the 'semester-abroad' students, and it involves a combination of game theory and logic.

ECO3020F (Advanced Micro and Macro), ECO3024F (International Trade and Finance), ECO3009F (Natural Resource Economics), ECO3021S (Quantitative Techniques), ECO3022S (Advanced Labour and Development), ECO3023S (Public Sector Economics), and ECO3025S (Applied International Trade Bargaining) are the third year courses, and from past experience, the ECO3025S class has been popular among international students, as it is an interactive, research-based simulation of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) where the students represent assigned countries at a multilateral forum.

It must also be noted that, due to their quantitative nature, ECO3020F and ECO3021S require that students have successfully completed a first year university level mathematics, statistics, or any other approved numeracy course.

For further information, please refer to the Faculty Handbook, or to the School of Economics website, www.commerce.uct.ac.za/economics

Information Systems

International students who have not previously studied Information Systems (IS) or Computer Science would first need to complete INF1002F/S (Foundations of Information Systems) before attempting any other IS courses. Students who meet the necessary prerequisites may register for INF2004F (Information Technology in Business) or INF1003F/S (Commercial Programming).  Other Information Systems courses at 2^nd and 3^rd year level are intended for students following a 3-year IS major, and because of the close integration of course material and the prerequisites required, they are not offered for individual registration.

For further information, please refer to the Faculty Handbook, or to the Department of Information Systems website, www.commerce.uct.ac.za/informationsystems

Management Studies

The School of Management Studies comprises several sections :Actuarial Science, Finance, Marketing, Organisational Psychology, General Business Science (offering Evidence-Based Management and II) and the Postgraduate Diplomas in Management (Enterprise, Sports Management, Marketing and Tourism).

The senior courses offered in the School require that students have prior knowledge and understanding of that and other areas, so it is therefore essential that international students wishing to enrol for a senior course (a course offered in second, third or fourth year) contact the Head of the appropriate section in order to determine whether they meet the prerequisites for that course.

With a few exceptions, international students may register for any of the introductory courses offered in Management Studies. The courses offered in Finance and Actuarial Science, for instance, require strong mathematical abilities, so it makes sense that access to these courses would be more restricted. There are, however, many courses offered on the Postgraduate Diplomas in Management that do not require prior knowledge or understanding of that subject area, and so these are always a popular choice for international students wishing to broaden their knowledge and experience.

Some of the courses offered by the School that need no prerequisites and have been popular with international students are:

Evidence-Based Management (BUS1036F/S)
Issues Around Business (BUS1037H)
Marketing I (BUS2010F/S)
Introduction to Organisational Psychology (BUS1007S)
Business in Context (BUS4067F)
Entrepreneurial Strategies (BUS4078F)
Management Theory in Practice (BUS4075S)
People Management and Development (BUS4077S)
The Politics of Enterprise (BUS4054S)
Concepts and Stakeholders in Tourism (BUS4080F)
Responsible Tourism (BUS4082S)
Managing the Future (BUS4089F/S)

If in doubt as to whether you meet the prerequisites for any of the Management Studies courses, contact the Head of the School (all details on the website).

Website, www.commerce.uct.ac.za/managementstudies/

The International Office

• Provides a central contact point for all international students, staff & visitors
• Facilitates and manages international, inter-institutional agreements
• Develops international opportunities for UCT staff and students
• Manages the University Science, Humanities, and Engineering Partnerships in Africa (USHEPiA) Programme and other collaborative programmes in Africa
• Runs a dynamic Semester Study Abroad Programme
• Stimulates the development of internationalisation in all aspects of UCT's activities (research, learning, curriculum development, recruitment)
• Contributes towards UCT's self-resourcing
• Liaises with the international offices of other tertiary institutions in South Africa and the World

Contact Details

Phone: +27 - 21 - 650-2822 / 3740
Fax: +27 - 21 - 650-5667
Email: iapo@world.uct.ac.za
Website: http://www.uct.ac.za/about/iapo/overview/welcome/

Postal Address:
International Academic Programmes Office (IAPO)
University of Cape Town
Private Bag
Rondebosch
7701

South Africa Physical Address:
International Academic Programmes Office (IAPO)
3 - 4 Lovers Walk
Lower Campus
Rondebosch
7701
South Africa