By Sbongile Sokela
Adults who qualify to write the 2024 Senior Certificate examination are invited to register from 01 October 2025 until 06 February 2026. Candidates may register at any provincial education office, including the provincial head office, district office or circuit office, or alternatively register online.
To complete the registration process, candidates are required to submit a completed registration form together with a certified copy of their ID document, birth certificate or passport (for foreign candidates). Repeater candidates must attach a copy of their previous highest qualification. In addition, candidates who have entered and written any Grade 12 or equivalent examination before must provide the examination numbers for those exams.
Admission to the Senior Certificate examination is open to several categories of adult learners. These include adult learners aged 21 years and older who have obtained a General Education and Training Certificate (GETC), a Grade 9 school report (or old Standard Seven) confirming that they have passed Grade 9 or Standard 7, or a recognised equivalent qualification obtained at NQF Level that requires two official languages. Adult learners aged 21 years and older who have an incomplete Senior Certificate or an incomplete National Senior Certificate (NSC) also qualify for admission.
In exceptional cases, out-of-school youth aged 18 to 21 years who were unable to complete their schooling due to circumstances beyond their control may be considered, provided this is verified by the Head of Department in the Provincial Education Department. Adult candidates aged 21 years and older with an incomplete NSC may choose either to complete the NSC or convert to the Senior Certificate. Once a candidate chooses to convert to the Senior Certificate, they may not revert to the NSC to complete that qualification. Adult candidates who have already obtained a qualification but wish to improve their results or status are also eligible. For more information on registration criteria, subject choices and promotion requirements, candidates are encouraged to visit the Senior Certificate page on the Department of Basic Education website.
Adults who are looking to rewrite their subjects are also encouraged to take advantage of the Second Chance Matric Programme, which is available free of charge. The Department of Basic Education urges unsuccessful NSC candidates to register to rewrite or add subjects for the May/June examination cycle at no cost via https://zurl.co/uFTfH
