Careers › Science
Studies rocks, minerals and the earth - key to mining and the environment.
Studies rocks, minerals and the structure of the earth – crucial for finding and safely extracting mineral resources, and for understanding natural hazards. Most jobs are in mining and exploration companies, with fieldwork (sometimes remote, physically demanding sites) a real part of the job, especially early on.
This is our general description of the role and related jobs, not from an official source – it’s here to give you a fuller picture, not as a careers-counselling guarantee.
This is our general guidance about which school subjects suit this career. It is not an admission requirement and not from an official source – the real requirements are on the degrees below.
Counted from the requirements below (an “or” alternative counts for each subject named). Each programme links to the page it came from.
20 programmes at 15 universities. More are added as we verify them.
NMU Applicant Score (AS) 410 out of 600
Raw-read 2026-10-04 from the user-supplied NMU "Undergraduate Programmes 2027" Z-Card (A-Z table of Applicant Scores and subject percentages). Extended Curriculum (4 years): AS 370, Mathematics 50%.
Source: View the official page (mandela.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake
NWU APS 26 points out of 48
Raw-confirmed 2026-10-04 against the user-supplied NWU 2026 Faculty of Natural & Agricultural Sciences yearbook (admission-requirements tables). Potchefstroom campus. NWU adds your six best subjects (excluding Life Orientation) on an 8-point scale, for a total out of 48 - read from NWU’s own APS calculator. The requirement shown is what NWU publishes.
Source: View the official page (studies.nwu.ac.za) (opens the official page)
Rhodes points 45 points
Raw-confirmed 2026-10-04 against the Rhodes 2026 Undergraduate Prospectus (pages 13-19): points bands, English and subject levels match. Rhodes points of 39-44 are considered at the Dean’s discretion; 45 or more receives a provisional offer. We show 45 as the qualifying number so that "you qualify" means exactly that - but you are still worth an application from 39. Rhodes has no Engineering and no MBChB. The NBT is recommended, not required. This is Rhodes’ general Faculty of Science admission requirement, not a Geology-specific published figure - you are admitted to the BSc and choose your major once you arrive. Life Orientation is not scored, but you need at least 50% in it.
Source: View the official page (ru.ac.za) (opens the official page)
SPU APS 30
Raw-confirmed 2026-10-04 against SPU’s own 2026 Undergraduate Prospectus (the 2027 edition is only published as an online viewer that could not be read) - APS and levels match; confirm the 2027 prospectus before relying on a cut-off. From SPU’s Faculty of Natural & Applied Sciences programme page. We could not confirm the 2027 application closing date (only a stale 2021 date was found on SPU’s applications page).
Source: View the official page (spu.ac.za) (opens the official page)
Stellenbosch aggregate 65 %
Every Stellenbosch programme is a selection programme. The figures shown are the published minimum requirements - the actual selection threshold is usually higher. Mathematics of 60% or 70% is required depending on which first-year Mathematics module you take.
Source: View the official page (files.su.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake
TUT APS 21 points
Raw-confirmed 2026-10-04 against TUT’s 2026 faculty prospectus: APS and subject levels match. New row, from the user-supplied Science Faculty Prospectus (qualification code DPGE26, the current one - an older DPGE19 code is being phased out). Applicants scoring 21-23 take an academic proficiency test (worth 20% of the final admission score); 24+ is admitted directly. From TUT’s 2027 First-Year Course Information and General Information PDFs. Applications opened 1 April 2026 (fee R240).
Source: View the official page (tut.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake
UCT Science Faculty Points Score 660 out of 800 (band a)
Band A (guaranteed offer) is an FPS of 660. Band B (likely offer) is a WPS of 640 - the WPS adds a 0-10% disadvantage factor that we cannot work out from your marks, so we only check you against Band A. Band C (550) applies to redress categories only. All Science majors share these entry bands (Mathematics 70%+, Physical Sciences 60%+; NBTs in Mathematics, AL and QL must be written but do not affect admission). Admission is to the BSc and a major is chosen once you are in; selected students may be counselled onto the four-year Extended Degree Programme.
Source: View the official page (uct.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake
UJ APS 30 points
Read from the 2027 UJ Undergraduate Prospectus, programme code B2L24Q. Physical Science level 4 (50%+), or 5 (60%+) when Chemistry 1A or Physics 1A/S1 is part of the programme. English level 5 (60%+). Technical Mathematics and Technical Science are not accepted for Faculty of Science degrees.
Source: View the official page (uj.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake
UJ APS 30 points
Read from the 2027 UJ Undergraduate Prospectus, programme code B2L25Q. Physical Science level 4 (50%+), or 5 (60%+) when Chemistry 1A or Physics 1A/S1 is part of the programme. English level 5 (60%+). Technical Mathematics and Technical Science are not accepted for Faculty of Science degrees.
Source: View the official page (uj.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake
UJ APS 31 points
Read from the 2027 UJ Undergraduate Prospectus, programme code B2P81Q. Physical Science level 4 (50%+), or 5 (60%+) when Chemistry 1A or Physics 1A/S1 is part of the programme. English level 5 (60%+). Technical Mathematics and Technical Science are not accepted for Faculty of Science degrees.
Source: View the official page (uj.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake
UJ APS 31 points
Read from the 2027 UJ Undergraduate Prospectus, programme code B2P82Q. Physical Science level 4 (50%+), or 5 (60%+) when Chemistry 1A or Physics 1A/S1 is part of the programme. English level 5 (60%+). Technical Mathematics and Technical Science are not accepted for Faculty of Science degrees.
Source: View the official page (uj.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake
UJ APS 31 points
Read from the 2027 UJ Undergraduate Prospectus, programme code B2P83Q. Physical Science level 4 (50%+), or 5 (60%+) when Chemistry 1A or Physics 1A/S1 is part of the programme. English level 5 (60%+). Technical Mathematics and Technical Science are not accepted for Faculty of Science degrees.
Source: View the official page (uj.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake
UKZN APS 30 points out of 48
Read 2026-10-04 from the table in the Study@UKZN 2026 brochure (CAO code KN-W-BSG); published APS range 48-30. This comes from the Study@UKZN 2026 brochure, the most recent official source we could find. UKZN had not published a 2027 table when we checked, so treat these as 2026 figures pending a 2027 update. Applications go through the CAO.
Source: View the official page (studyatukzn.ukzn.ac.za) (opens the official page)
UL APS 26 points
Raw-read 2026-10-04 from UL’s own 2027 Undergraduate Prospectus faculty tables (images of the table, since the PDF’s text layer cannot be read reliably). UL says meeting the minimum APS does not guarantee admission. No 2027 closing date appears in the prospectus - see the dates page.
Source: View the official page (ul.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake
UP APS 34 points
The UP tables group Chemistry, Physics, Geology and similar BSc streams together at this level. Most UP closing dates are 30 June; Veterinary Science closes 31 May. Grade 12 applicants apply with their final Grade 11 results.
Source: View the official page (drupalwebprod-files.up.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake
UP APS 34 points
From the user-supplied Natural & Agricultural Sciences 2027 Faculty Yearbook. Most UP closing dates are 30 June; Veterinary Science closes 31 May. Grade 12 applicants apply with their final Grade 11 results.
Source: View the official page (drupalwebprod-files.up.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake
UFS AP score 30 points out of 49
Read 2026-10-04 from the table on the faculty’s page in the UFS 2027 Undergraduate Prospectus (page images). Plan codes BC433521-BC433540.
Source: View the official page (ufs.ac.za) (opens the official page)
UWC weighted points 33 points out of 65
Raw-read 2026-10-04 from UWC’s own 2026 programme rules (the "Program Overview" PDF on the programme page, Calendar 2026). UWC points are its own weighted score (see the calculator note).
Source: View the official page (uwc.ac.za) (opens the official page)
Wits APS 42 points
Read from the live 2027 course-finder page on 2026-10-04. Applications close 30 September 2026.
Source: View the official page (wits.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake
Univen APS 35
Raw-read 2026-10-04 from Univen’s 2027 Undergraduate Prospectus (April 2026), faculty programme tables. The prospectus text for this row is ambiguous on which of Mathematics and Physical Sciences needs level 5 - check with Univen. Online applications are free and run 1 May - 30 September 2026.
Source: View the official page (univen.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake
Put your subjects in once and we’ll check them against every programme above – scored each university’s own way.