Postgraduate applicants: NWU has received a high volume of applications for 2026 and is carefully reviewing each one to ensure a fair selection process. If your status shows Application Verified, please note that the faculty is still finalising decisions, and you can rest assured that you will receive official communication by 31 January 2026.
Get started with your master’s-degree and doctoral studies
Welcome to the Master’s-Degree and Doctoral Studies Hub at the NWU – a dedicated one-stop website to help you explore options, meet requirements and start on your postgraduate journey.
Considering M and D studies?
Are you preparing to embark on a master's degree or doctoral journey? These postgraduate programmes are designed to challenge you intellectually and empower you to make a significant contribution to your field of study.
Explore our master’s-degree and doctoral (PhD) qualifications
At NWU, you can follow different pathways to complete your postgraduate qualification, depending on your field of study, career goals, and personal interests
How to apply for master’s-degree and doctoral (PhD) studies
Support for every applicant – whether you are a current NWU student, an alumnus, a first-time applicant, or an international student.
Application approved? See the roadmap to your research journey as an M or D student
Registration
- Selecting a supervisor:
Selecting a supervisor is a critical step in your research journey; it's a partnership that will greatly influence your success. The supervisor agreement, which will be detailed in the Higher-Degrees Manual (HDM), formalises this relationship and ensures clarity on expectations.
Study onboarding
- Higher-degree academic lifecycle forms
- Manual for higher-degree studies
- Academic rules and policies
- Register for an ORCiD (a researcher-identifier platform)
Proposal development
- Introduction to the research-proposal process:
Your research proposal serves as the blueprint for your study. It is a crucial document that outlines the problem you intend to investigate, your research questions, and the methods you will employ to answer them.
Ethics and use of AI
Doing the research
- The NWU is currently developing a training bank that will provide step-by-step academic guidance.
- Postgraduate Support Centre
- Writing Centre – academic writing support
Finalise your study
A higher-degrees system is currently under development (release estimated to be in the second semester of 2026) and will notify you of updates and track your progress throughout your postgraduate journey (for example, documents required for submission).
Examination
A higher-degrees system is currently under development (release estimated to be in the second semester of 2026) and will support the examination process.
It is important to familiarise yourself with the General Academic Rules (A Rules)
Graduation
A higher-degrees system is currently under development (release estimated to be in the second semester of 2026) and will aid in determining your readiness for graduation.
Graduation dates and livestream links are communicated by the Ceremonies Department.
Congratulations NWU alumnus!
- Remain active in the future of the NWU
- Join the NWU Convocation and be part of the decision-making process at the NWU!
Support
Wellness support
We support students in times of need and help them achieve optimal wellness in all areas of life, including emotional, social, and physical well-being.
Postgraduate Support Centre
We offer a range of training initiatives and support to help NWU postgraduate students enhance their research and academic writing skills and provide additional research-related tools, skills and strategies to ensure that they finish their degrees in good time.
