Johannesburg: Higher Education and Training Minister Buti Manamela has urged young South Africans to start planning their futures now and use the September 2026 application window to apply to Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges for the 2027 academic year. The Minister warned prospective TVET students against waiting until January to start the application process, when many opportunities may already be limited.

According to South African Government News Agency, Manamela stated that young people can apply using their previous year's results and should use this period to explore their interests, understand different occupational offerings, identify the skills they would like to acquire and apply. He emphasised that making informed and timely choices about education and training is an important step towards accessing opportunities for employment, entrepreneurship, and further learning.

The Minister highlighted that TVET colleges provide important pathways to these opportunities and called for a shift in the way society views the institutions. He stressed that they are not a second choice for young people who do not get admitted into a university, but rather one of the pathways provided for in the Post-School Education and Training (PSET) sector, central to the Skills Revolution. Manamela explained that the government is building a PSET system that connects learning to the skills required by the economy and creates pathways from education to opportunity.

Manamela urged parents, guardians, teachers, and Life Orientation educators to support young people during the application period. This includes starting conversations about career choices, helping learners understand the different education and training pathways available, and encouraging them to consider TVET colleges as institutions of choice. Through the Skills Revolution, the government is working to ensure that education and training translate into skills, skills translate into opportunities, and opportunities translate into meaningful participation in the economy.

Manamela concluded with a straightforward message: "EXPLORE. CHOOSE. APPLY." Information about TVET colleges is available directly from TVET colleges or through the Department of Higher Education and Training website www.dhet.gov.za. Applications for the 2027 academic year close on 30 September 2026.