Thekwini TVET College is a public technical and vocational education institution serving the Durban metropolitan area in KwaZulu-Natal. It operates under the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) and provides accredited vocational qualifications designed to prepare students for direct employment or further technical study. This article covers the courses Thekwini offers, the fee structure for 2026, and the requirements students need to meet to apply.
Overview of Thekwini TVET College
Thekwini TVET College came into existence through the merger of Cato Manor Technical College, Durban Central Technical College, and LC Johnson Technical College, formalised as a public Further Education and Training institution under KZN Government Gazette No. 117 of 2002. The college is administered in line with the Further Education and Training Colleges Act and national education policy set by the Minister of Higher Education and Training.
The college runs six campuses, all strategically located within a roughly 10-kilometre radius of central Durban, making it one of the more geographically compact TVET colleges in the province. These campuses are Asherville, Cato Manor, Centec, Melbourne, Springfield, and Umbilo. Each campus tends to specialise in a particular cluster of programmes: Cato Manor focuses on electrical infrastructure, engineering, hospitality, and furniture-making; Umbilo specialises in transport and logistics; and the remaining campuses cover fields including information technology, office administration, tourism, and education and development.
Thekwini TVET College was among the first colleges in KwaZulu-Natal to pilot learnerships and maintains an active Skills Unit that runs extensive training in partnership with SETAs and industry. Its qualifications are quality-assured by Umalusi for NCV and NATED programmes, meaning certificates carry national recognition across employers and further education institutions in South Africa.
Types of Qualifications Offered
Thekwini structures its academic offering into several distinct pathways, each suited to a different starting point and pace of study.
Pre-Vocational Learning Programme (PLP): A bridging programme aimed at giving learners access to TVET study rather than functioning as a remedial course. PLP prepares students who don’t yet meet direct NCV entry requirements, equipping them with the foundational skills needed to progress into a full qualification. It runs at selected campuses, including Cato Manor and Springfield.
National Certificate Vocational (NCV): A three-year, full-time qualification spanning NQF Levels 2 to 4, designed for out-of-school youth and learners who have completed at least Grade 9. NCV blends practical, workshop-based training with academic theory and allows students to begin technical career preparation from a Grade 10-equivalent entry point. Progression is sequential, moving from Level 2 through to Level 4.
Report 191 / NATED (N-Courses): These trimester or semester-based programmes cover Engineering Studies (N1–N6) and Business and Utility Studies (N4–N6). Business and Utility Studies levels typically run on a semester system, meaning each level takes about six months, with N4-N6 semester courses beginning in January and July. The full National Diploma pathway requires 18 months of theoretical study across N4, N5, and N6, followed by a further 18 months of relevant practical, on-the-job experience before the diploma is awarded.
Skills Programmes: Shorter courses offered when SETA or other funding is available, covering trades and competencies such as bricklaying, plumbing, welding, and basic end-user computing. These don’t constitute full qualifications on their own but build specific, immediately usable skills.
Courses Offered at Thekwini TVET College
The table below sets out the main study fields available at Thekwini, organised by qualification type and campus.
| Qualification Type | Field/Programme | Campus |
|---|---|---|
| NCV | Electrical Infrastructure Construction | Cato Manor |
| NCV | Engineering and Related Design (Automotive Repairs and Maintenance, Fitting and Turning, Boilermaking) | Springfield |
| NCV | Hospitality | Cato Manor |
| NCV | Information Technology and Computer Science | Melbourne |
| NCV | Office Administration | Centec |
| NCV | Education and Development | Asherville |
| NCV | Transport and Logistics | Umbilo |
| NCV | Tourism | Centec |
| NATED (Engineering, N1–N3/N4–N6) | Civil, Electrical, Mechanical Engineering | Melbourne, Cato Manor, Springfield |
| NATED (Business, N4–N6) | Business Management, Marketing Management, Financial Management, Human Resource Management, Public Management, Public Relations | Multiple campuses |
| NATED (Utility Studies, N4–N6) | Hospitality, Tourism, Educare | Multiple campuses |
| Skills Programmes | Bricklaying, Plumbing, Welding, Electrical, Basic End User Computing, Assistant Chefs | Skills Unit, subject to funding |
Since programmes are distributed across the six campuses rather than duplicated at every site, students need to confirm which campus offers their intended field before applying — a student wanting Transport and Logistics, for example, applies to the Umbilo Campus, while a student wanting Information Technology and Computer Science applies to Melbourne.
Thekwini TVET College Fees
Applying to Thekwini TVET College doesn’t require an application fee — this applies whether the application is submitted online or in person at a campus.
Tuition fees at Thekwini vary considerably depending on the specific programme, since fees are set per programme rather than as a single flat rate across the college. Overall, course fees at Thekwini range from around R1,250 to R17,680 per year, which reflects the wide gap between lighter, less resource-intensive fields and heavier, workshop-based technical programmes. As a general guide:
- Entry-level and less equipment-intensive NCV programmes, such as Office Administration or Transport and Logistics, generally sit toward the lower end of the fee scale, often between roughly R1,000 and R10,500 per year.
- Programmes with substantial practical or workshop components cost considerably more. Electrical Infrastructure Construction, for instance, runs at approximately R15,066 per year, Engineering and Related Design (covering automotive repairs, fitting and turning, and boilermaking) at approximately R19,760, and Hospitality at approximately R18,488, reflecting the cost of specialised equipment, consumables, and safety gear these fields require.
- NATED N1–N3 Engineering Studies subjects are billed per subject, at approximately R1,999.67 each per trimester, while N4–N6 Engineering subjects run slightly higher, at approximately R2,333 per subject.
Beyond tuition, students should budget for a one-time registration or enrolment administration fee, generally in the region of R200 to R300, along with materials and, for engineering and hospitality fields, any protective clothing or tools not already supplied by the college.
Fee amounts are reviewed and can be adjusted from one academic year to the next, and since figures differ by programme and campus, the official, currently published fee schedule from the college itself is the accurate reference to confirm before registering.
NSFAS Funding at Thekwini TVET College
Thekwini TVET College is registered with NSFAS, allowing qualifying students to study without paying tuition costs themselves. Once NSFAS approves a student’s funding, the award is transferred directly to the college to cover tuition, while any monthly living allowance the student qualifies for is paid into their personal bank account. This funding does not need to be repaid.
Eligibility generally follows the standard NSFAS rule applied across all TVET colleges: South African citizenship and a combined household income at or below R350,000 per year, with SASSA grant recipients typically qualifying without needing to submit separate proof of income. NSFAS applications are made directly through the NSFAS website rather than through the college, and require documents such as an ID copy and proof of household income.
Bursaries are also available at Thekwini for students who meet both financial need and academic performance criteria, offering an additional funding route alongside NSFAS for students who may not qualify for full government funding but still need financial assistance.
Admission Requirements
Entry requirements at Thekwini vary by qualification type and programme.
For the Pre-Vocational Learning Programme, the general entry point is a Grade 9 certificate or higher, generally with passes in English and Mathematical Literacy, or an NQF Level 1 qualification. Students without these can, in some cases, access NQF Level 2 through an approved bridging programme or a Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) assessment.
For NCV programmes, a Grade 9 certificate is the standard minimum for Level 2 entry, with progression to Level 3 and Level 4 dependent on passing the level before it.
For NATED Engineering Studies, entry requirements differ by level: N1 and N2 generally require a Grade 12 certificate, with N2 sometimes requiring a specific subject pass depending on the field, while N6 requires prior completion of N5. For NATED Business Studies, a Grade 12 pass is generally required for N4 admission, and fields like Financial Management specifically require a Senior Certificate with Accounting as a subject.
Certain specialised programmes carry their own distinct entry points — Furniture Making (Wood) at NQF Level 2, for example, requires a Grade 10 certificate, while Hospitality Work-Integrated Learning requires prior completion of N6.
How to Apply
Applications to Thekwini TVET College can be submitted in two ways: online through the college’s official application portal, or in person by completing a physical application form and returning it, along with certified copies of required documents, to the campus offering the intended course.
For the online route, applicants create a student account on the application portal, complete the course application form, and receive a reference number once the application is submitted. This reference number allows the applicant to track the progress of their application through the portal afterward.
Required documents for either route generally include a certified copy of the applicant’s national ID or senior certificate, along with any specific prior qualification the chosen programme requires, such as an appropriate National Certificate (N) level for progression within the NATED system.
Application periods differ depending on the intake. The primary annual application window, covering the main January intake for NCV and NATED programmes, typically opens around May and closes around August or September of the preceding year, though the college has in some years opened applications as early as January for the following year’s intake. A separate Trimester 2 application period exists for the mid-year intake, generally running from around late March to mid-April, aimed at students starting engineering or business NATED subjects in the second trimester. Because dates shift somewhat from year to year, checking the college’s website for the current year’s exact deadlines before applying is worthwhile, and students who miss the standard deadline can, in many cases, still submit a late application depending on space available in their chosen programme.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Thekwini TVET College charge an application fee?
No. Submitting an application, whether online or in person, is free of charge.
How much do courses cost at Thekwini TVET College?
Fees range from approximately R1,250 to R17,680 per year depending on the specific programme, with workshop-based fields like Electrical Infrastructure Construction and Engineering and Related Design costing more than administrative or office-based programmes.
Does NSFAS cover all fees at Thekwini?
For students who meet the household income threshold, NSFAS covers full tuition and, where applicable, a monthly living allowance paid directly to the student. It doesn’t need to be repaid.
Which campus should I apply to?
This depends on the programme. Cato Manor covers electrical infrastructure, engineering, and hospitality; Umbilo specialises in transport and logistics; Melbourne handles IT and Computer Science; and Centec and Asherville cover office administration, tourism, and education and development respectively. Confirming the correct campus for a chosen field avoids delays in application processing.
Can I still apply if I missed the main application deadline?
In many cases, yes. Thekwini generally continues to accept late applications for NCV and NATED programmes depending on available space, though applying within the standard window gives a better chance of securing a place in the intended programme.