Study abroad › United States
Applications go through each university individually (or the Common App), and the visa process has its own fees and steps separate from admission itself.
SEVIS I-901 fee: US$350 for F-1 students, paid before your visa interview and separate from any university application fee.
Visa application (MRV) fee: reported at US$185, unchanged through 2026. A separate US$250 “Visa Integrity Fee” was created by US law for FY2026 and applies broadly to nonimmigrant visa categories including F-1, but as of the most recent reporting we found, it was not yet being collected. This could change at short notice, so confirm the current total on travel.state.gov before you budget.
Broad steps: your university issues the I-20 → you pay the SEVIS fee → you complete the DS-160 form → you interview at a US Embassy or Consulate.
States its equivalent-credentials requirement for South African applicants as the National Senior Certificate (NSC, from 2008 onwards) with 130 credits.
Source: usi.edu (opens the official page)
How to apply: Apply online ($40 fee) (opens the official page)
Contact: usi1apply@usi.edu · +1 812 464 1768
Its country-requirements table (headed “Senior Certificate,” which may be older terminology but matches the NSC’s post-2008 achievement scale) sets: 55% average for its foundation pathway; 60% average (minimum 40% per subject) for direct/accelerated entry; 55% on transferable coursework for direct transfer.
Source: admissions.oregonstate.edu (opens the official page)
How to apply: Apply via OSU’s international applicant portal (not the Common App) (opens the official page)
Contact: intladmit@oregonstate.edu (admissions.oregonstate.edu (opens the official page))
Names the National Senior Certificate directly: minimum grade “B or 70%” for certificates issued since 2008, “C or 60%” for pre-2008 certificates. South African applicants are exempt from the usual English-proficiency requirement.
Source: admissions.uiowa.edu (opens the official page)
How to apply: Apply via the University of Iowa application or Common App ($80 fee) (opens the official page)
Contact: international@uiowa.edu
Names the NSC directly: at least five subjects passed, including English and Maths, with a minimum GPA of 2.50 on the NSC’s 7-point achievement scale.
Source: andrews.edu (opens the official page)
How to apply: Apply online ($30 fee, plus a $100 international student fee) (opens the official page)
Contact: iss@andrews.edu · +1 269 471 6395
Its South Africa-specific page lists which SA certificates it accepts (NSC, Senior Certificate, Senior Certificate with Matriculation Exemption, and several provincial variants) but publishes no numeric minimum average – a separate general English-proficiency requirement still applies.
Source: memphis.edu (opens the official page)
How to apply: Apply via a Tiger Tracks account ($50 fee) (opens the official page)
Contact: admissions@memphis.edu
A handful of examples, not a full list. Some universities require your NSC to be independently evaluated by a service like World Education Services (WES) before they’ll accept it, separately from admission itself.
University of Southern Indiana’s International Merit Scholarships are reported to be worth $500–$3,000 per year, renewed each year, for incoming freshmen with a minimum 3.25 high-school GPA – a separate scholarship application is required. We cross-referenced this against USI’s own international-admissions language rather than reading it directly off a USI scholarships page, so treat the exact figures as reported, not verified, until you confirm them with USI directly.