There are three Universities and a University of Technology in and around Cape Town.

The University of Cape Town and the University of the Western Cape are located within Cape Town. The University of Stellenbosch , also known as Maties, is situated in the beautiful town of Stellenbosch just 50kms outside of Cape Town. The Cape University of Technology is a practical orientated University and is also located within Cape Town.

The University of Cape Town and the University of Stellenbosch are both big institutions with 21 500 students and 22 500 students respectively (2006). Both are highly recommended and respected universities in South Africa and abroad. They both have exchange agreements with tertiary education institutions in other parts of the world. As a foreign student you can therefore obtain credits when studying certain subjects there that are also recognised by your university.

The University of Cape Town is a campus university where all the faculties are situated on one central location. The same applies for University of the Western Cape. However University of Cape Town is located at the foot of Table Mountain and therefore has amazing views over the city. It is also closer located to the Cape Town City centre. University of the Western Cape is located approximately 15km from the city centre (near two industrial areas) and accommodation in that area is limited.

Maties has a spreaded campus throughout the town of Stellenbosch. So living in Stellenbosch it can happen that you might live next to your faculty on the one side, and a nice pub on the other. It is a very popular university with good credentials and also has an awesome nightlife. It has a good international office which specialises in catering for the specific needs of foreign students. But keep in mind that it’s located 50kms outside Cape Town.

The University of the Western Cape is not as popular with foreign students as the above two universities, but is still a very good university.

The Cape University of Technology is also not as popular as the first two universities, but also provides study programmes for foreign students. It is located close to the city centre and could therefore be attractive to some international students.