CPUT stands by accommodation criteria amid student housing protests

The Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) has defended its handling of student accommodation, saying it will continue to assist those who meet the required criteria.

This comes after hundreds of students gathered peacefully outside Cape Town City Hall on Thursday night, calling for intervention from President Cyril Ramaphosa over what they describe as a housing crisis.

Some students claim they do not have secure accommodation and have raised concerns about poor living conditions, with allegations that others were evicted from a private residence.

However, CPUT spokesperson Lauren Kansley said most complaints are from students who arrived late without approved housing or who are not meeting academic performance requirements.

She said new National Student Financial Aid Scheme rules require students to pass at least 60% of their course load to qualify for accommodation funding.

"So sometimes that has excluded some students, and of course, they are not happy about that. It is obviously an onus on students as well to be passing, and to do the appropriate applications ahead of time. Why are students arriving at this stage when the academic year has started well over a week ago, and still arriving it's because they assume the institution will help them," Kansley.

Kansley added that while some students have been allocated beds, dissatisfaction with placement does not amount to a lack of accommodation...

"There's a big trend where those who have been placed in private accommodation because they either haven't done their appropriate placements or they didn't get accepted for our own internal residences, is that they will circle back every day to try and up their chances of getting into CPUT-owned residences," said Kansley.