History
The University of Pretoria (UP) was established in 1908 with just four professors and 32 students, in a little house called Kya Rosa. Today, it is one of the largest research universities in South Africa. UP has transformed into a dynamic university community of staff and students who come from a range of diverse backgrounds and cultures showcasing South African and global societies.
Education
The degrees are locally accredited and internationally recognised. We have agreements in place with the relevant legal accreditation bodies around the world, which means that, with UP behind your name, your qualification will always be recognised.
The educational approach has a strong focus on inclusivity and equitable access to education, but ultimately on equity of outcomes. We effectively use contact sessions in traditional lectures, seminars, laboratories and practical sites, together with the experience gained by more than 20 years of using online learning platforms. This has enabled access and success for an increasing number of students.
Research
We present here UP’s research achievements, including the increase in research publications, a trend that has continued over the past five years, and since the start of the implementation of the University’s long-term strategic plan, UP 2025. Notable also with respect to strengthening our research identity, there has been a year-on-year increase in doctoral enrolments and graduates, and in the overall number of graduates with postgraduate qualifications. By December 2018, 66% of our academic staff held doctoral degrees, which underscores the research and postgraduate training capacity at UP.
Career
UP has seven beautiful campuses, each with its own unique character and purpose. The faculties of Veterinary Science, Health Science, and Education are customised to their purposes, self-contained on campuses at Onderstepoort, Prinshof and Groenkloof respectively. Our Hillcrest campus is home to all our sporting codes, professional and recreational sport teams, and sports science research facilities. Our business school, the Gordon Institute of Business Science, is in Illovo, Johannesburg. All other faculties are located centrally at the Hatfield Campus. For students who have lectures across multiple campuses, a regular bus service connects all the campuses to and from Hatfield and official residences.
University of Pretoria Key Statistics & Highlights
- #362 Ranking
- 29 Courses
- 1,622 Academic Staff
- 36,337 Students
- 2,544 Students (int'l)
- 21,075 Students (female)
- Public Institution Type
University of Pretoria Overview
University of Pretoria Scholarships
University of Pretoria Scholarships
Below you will find scholarships related to University of Pretoria. Distinction can be made between scholarships provided by the University and those provided by independent providers.
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
Read more about eligibility
University of Pretoria 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.
QS World University Rankings
By TopUniversities
Dropped 8 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 323 | 354 | 362 |
We don’t have enough recent ranking data to show a 3-year trend for this university.
World University Rankings
By Times Higher Education
Climbed 100 places compared to 2025
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 501 | 601 | 501 |
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 | 501 | 501 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 439 | - | - |
We don’t have enough recent ranking data to show a 3-year trend for this university.
Housing services
Are you looking for that special place you can call your home away from home? Then a residence at the University of Pretoria is just the place for you. Whilst living in a residence, you will be able to take part in a variety of different events, join every committee you can think of, take part in a variety of sports, do community outreach projects and make a lot of new friends. All of this will be available in our residences, where academic progress is on the forefront.
Library services
The Department of Library Services (DLS) focuses on supporting the learning needs of scholars and academics in the Learning Centre and provides customised research support through its faculty libraries and two research commons, Merensky 2 Library Research Commons and Groenkloof Research Commons, to facilitate information and knowledge management in the context of the University's core business.
ICT services
Each campus of the University presented unique challenges for the implementation of the WiFi access points and technology. The project team had to assess each installation based on the best WiFi coverage maps and physical placement of the WiFi infrastructure. The Google campus maps are continously updated with new WiFi access points - please see the short URLs below for each campus.
Medical services
Student life can sometimes be a bit stressful when you have to juggle a high-volume workload and a host of other responsibilities. UP Student Counselling will assist you by providing guidance and counselling when you need it. We have Student Health Services facilities on all campuses if you are not feeling well and our Disability Unit helps to accommodate students with disabilities.
Campus life
UP has seven beautiful campuses, each with its own unique character and purpose. The faculties of Veterinary Science, Health Science, and Education are customised to their purposes, self-contained on campuses at Onderstepoort, Prinshof and Groenkloof respectively. Our Hillcrest campus is home to all our sporting codes, professional and recreational sport teams, and sports science research facilities. Our business school, the Gordon Institute of Business Science, is in Illovo, Johannesburg. All other faculties are located centrally at the Hatfield Campus. For students who have lectures across multiple campuses, a regular bus service connects all the campuses to and from Hatfield and official residences.
University of Pretoria Campus Locations
University of Pretoria Student Reviews & Awards
Based on 100 reviews
- 5 Star 40 Reviews
- 4 Star 36 Reviews
- 3 Star 15 Reviews
- 2 Star 8 Reviews
- 1 Star 1 Review
How Students Rated This University
- Overall Satisfaction 4.1
- Student Teacher Interaction 4.2
- Student Diversity 4.1
- Online Classroom Experience 4.0
- Admission Process 4.3
- Quality of Student Life 4.2
- Career Development 4.0
My studies have not yet started in depth but great
I have already gotten to character building and more
Doctor of philosophy
I really enjoyed my studies when l was taking masters in a school of social and economic studies, department of Economics at University of Juba. I was the best student in the second and the third semesters. I indeed graduated with the best GPA.
Strive for excellence
My university study was great because it had opened me many ways like getting along with great minds, I have learned a lot which I want to increase my proceeding with my studies.
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!
-
Overall SatisfactionHow would you rate your overall study experience?
-
Student Teacher InteractionHow helpful were your teachers?
-
Student DiversityHow diverse was the atmosphere at your university?
-
Online Classroom ExperienceHow was your experience with online courses?
-
Admission ProcessHow simple was it to apply to your programme?
-
Quality of Student LifeHow was your everyday life?
-
Career DevelopmentDid the university provide support for your career development?