On this page we have listed all top 10 medical schools in South Africa and their estimated fees so that you can plan and compare properly for your 2026 medical studies.
The medical schools listed below, offer the main qualification – Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBChB), which makes you a qualified doctor in South Africa and internationally.
In all the medical schools in South Africa, the MBChB programme takes six years to complete. After graduating with an MBChB degree, you will first need to complete two years of medical internship, followed by another year of community service. After all that 9 years, you will only then be allowed by the Health Professions Council of South Africa to practice as a medical doctor locally and internationally.
It takes a full 9 years before you can legally practise as a doctor—six years to earn your MBChB, then two years of internship, plus one year of community service
Medical school fees vary dramatically, with top universities charging between R60 000 and R85 000 per year, while at the lower end, others charge as little as R30 000 – R45 000 per year
All South African medical schools follow the exact same path—every MBChB programme takes six years, no matter the university
@amu_manda Replying to @princess Just briefly answering questions of how to get into medicine.🤍 I forgot to add Sefako Makgatho University to the list but its part of the universities ro apply to🤍 Please do more thorough research from each univeristy so that you are not misled by the limited information from this video. #medtok #student #uniapplications #howtogetintomedicalschool #fypageシ ♬ More of My Time (Lofi) – Muspace Lofi
Check: High School Subjects Required to Become a Doctor
Qualified doctors have limitless opportunities to serve the nation through:
- working as a doctor in a public or private hospital
- working as a doctor in a community clinic,
- join a doctor’s practice as a doctor,
- open your own practice and become the doctor; you can also hire more doctors to work under you.
- or become an academic and teach other upcoming doctors as a Lecturer or a Professor
Contents
- Medical Schools in South Africa and their 2026 Fees
- 1. University of Cape Town (UCT) Medical School
- 2. University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) Medical School
- 3. Stellenbosch University Medical School
- 4. University of Pretoria (UP) Medical School
- 5. University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) Medical School
- 6. University of the Free State (UFS) Medical School
- 7. Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University (SMU) Medical School
- 8. Nelson Mandela University (NMU) Medical School
- 9. Walter Sisulu University (WSU) Medical School
- 10. University of Limpopo (UL) Medical School
Medical Schools in South Africa and their 2026 Fees
All medical schools in South Africa, together with their fees estimation and application dates:
1. University of Cape Town (UCT) Medical School
- Degree Offered: MBChB (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery)
- Duration: 6 years
- Fees: R60,000 – R85,000 per year (Local)
- Applications Open: 1 May 2025
- Applications Close: 31 August 2025
- Website: www.uct.ac.za
Read: Matric Requirements to Study Medicine at UCT
2. University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) Medical School
- Degree Offered: MBChB (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery)
- Duration: 6 years
- Fees: R55,000 – R80,000 per year (Local)
- Applications Open: 1 April 2025
- Applications Close: 30 June 2025 (Health Sciences), 30 September 2024 (Other faculties)
- Website: www.wits.ac.za
3. Stellenbosch University Medical School
- Degree Offered: MBChB (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery)
- Duration: 6 years
- Fees: R55,000 – R80,000 per year (Local)
- Applications Open: 6 April 2025
- Applications Close: 31 July 2025 (Undergrad)
- Website: www.sun.ac.za
4. University of Pretoria (UP) Medical School
- Degree Offered: MBChB (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery)
- Duration: 6 years
- Fees: R50,000 – R65,000 per year (Local)
- Applications Open: 1 May 2025
- Applications Close: Faculty-specific deadlines
- Website: www.up.ac.za
5. University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) Medical School
- Degree Offered: MBChB (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery)
- Duration: 6 years
- Fees: R50,000 – R70,000 per year (Local)
- Applications Open: 1 April 2025
- Applications Close: November 2024 (Faculty-specific)
- Website: www.ukzn.ac.za
6. University of the Free State (UFS) Medical School
- Degree Offered: MBChB (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery)
- Duration: 6 years
- Fees: R45,000 – R60,000 per year (Local)
- Applications Open: 1 April 2025
- Applications Close: 31 May 2025 (Health Sciences), 30 September 2025 (Other faculties)
- Website: www.ufs.ac.za
7. Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University (SMU) Medical School
- Degree Offered: MBChB (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery)
- Duration: 6 years
- Fees: R40,000 – R60,000 per year (Local)
- Applications Open: 1 April 2025
- Applications Close: 30 September 2025
- Website: www.smu.ac.za
8. Nelson Mandela University (NMU) Medical School
- Degree Offered: MBChB (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery)
- Duration: 6 years
- Fees: R50,000 – R70,000 per year (Local)
- Applications Open: 6 April 2025
- Applications Close: 31 May 2025 (MBChB), 5 August 2025 (Early), 30 September 2024 (Late & International)
- Website: www.mandela.ac.za
9. Walter Sisulu University (WSU) Medical School
- Degree Offered: MBChB (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery)
- Duration: 6 years
- Fees: R30,000 – R45,000 per year (Local)
- Applications Open: May 2025
- Applications Close: 28 September 2025 (Health Sciences), 31 October 2025 (Other faculties)
- Website: www.wsu.ac.za
10. University of Limpopo (UL) Medical School
- Degree Offered: MBChB (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery)
- Duration: 6 years
- Fees: R35,000 – R50,000 per year (Local)
- Applications Open: 1 April 2025
- Applications Close: 30 September 2025
- Website: www.ul.ac.za
