South Africa’s Matriculants Secure 87.3% Pass Rate in 2024, Free State and KZN Among Top Achievers

• The National Senior Certificate (NSC) class of 2024 achieved a pass rate of 87.3%, an increase from last year
• The Free State province led the way with 91%, while KZN achieved 89.5% and Gauteng secured 88.4%
• KZN's students also stole the show when it came to Bachelor Passes and distinctions

JOHANNESBURG- The class of 2024’s matriculants have a lot to celebrate.

The National Senior Certificate (NSC) class of 2024 achieved a pass rate of 87.3%, a marked increase from last year when the Class of 2023 achieved 82.9%.

Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube made the announcement at the Mosaiek Lifestyle Centre, Fairland, Johannesburg. Earlier in the day, the IEB results were released, with the Class of 2024 achieving a 98.47% pass rate.

Free State leads the way

The minister noted that every province achieved above 84%, with each province improving on last year's results.

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The Free State led the way with a 91% pass rate, followed by KZN with 89.5%. Gauteng came in third with 88.4%, followed by the North West (87.5%), Western Cape (86.6%), and Limpopo (85.1%). Mpumalanga came in seventh with 84.9%, Eastern Cape was eighth with 84.98%, and the Northern Cape earned an 84.2% pass rate. The Northern Cape was the most improved province, up 8.3% from last year.

NSC witnesses increase in Bachelor Passes

According to the minister, 47.8% of matric candidates qualified for admission to Bachelor studies, a 6.9% increase from last year.

“I am pleased to announce that nearly half of our learners achieved a Bachelor pass,” she said.

KZN was the top-performing province, securing over 84,000 Bachelor Passes. Gauteng had over 66,000, while the Eastern achieved over 45,000. The minister also noted that female learners achieved more Bachelor Passes than male learners.

The Class of 2024 also achieved over 319,000 distinctions, an improvement from last year. Every province also increased their number of distinctions. Once more, KZN was number one, followed by the Western Cape and then Gauteng when it came to distinctions.

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The results were officially released despite an investigation launched by the Hawks and Security Service after reports of a leak.

Matric results to be announced on 14 January

Briefly News reported that 2024 National Senior Certificate exams will be released on 14 January 2025.

The results will also be published in the newspaper, along with various online platforms, despite a court battle to prevent this.

Numerous provincial departments have also announced that matriculants can access their results on an online platform.

Source: Briefly News