Why more South Africans are winning places at top American universities

Stephen Grootes speaks to Brad Latilla-Campbell, Country Manager at Crimson Education about the growing number of South African students gaining admission to top US universities and the role Crimson Education is playing in that pipeline.

Listen to the interview in the audio player below.

A growing number of South African students are securing early acceptance to some of the most prestigious universities in the United States, a sign that local applicants are becoming more strategic and competitive in the global admissions race.

Education advisers say interest in studying in America remains strong, despite global political tensions and the threat of conflict involving the US.

Many successful candidates apply through early decision programmes, where acceptance rates at private universities can be significantly higher than during regular admissions rounds.

Students admitted early this year gained places at institutions including University of Pennsylvania and other top-tier campuses such as Harvard and Columbia.

But high grades alone are not enough to get you accepted into an Ivy League school. Admissions officers increasingly seek applicants who demonstrate real-world impact.

Examples of standout achievements include:

• launching financial literacy initiatives for disadvantaged youth
• promoting girls’ participation in STEM and coding
• leading community upliftment projects
• excelling in sport at national level
• publishing research or placing in international competitions

Speaking to Stephen Grootes on The Money Show, Brad Latilla-Campbell, Country Manager at Crimson Education says these schools only accept the best of the best in an array of fields from academia to sport and leadership abilities.

"For anyone coming from anywhere around the world, it's tough to get into those universities...and their acceptance rates are generally below 5%, 4% these days and getting more competitive every year."

- Brad Latilla-Campbell, Country Manager - Crimson Education 

"You're looking at students who are not only achieving in the classroom, but probably need to have some other feathers in their cap as well outside the classroom to be able to get into those top schools."

- Brad Latilla-Campbell, Country Manager - Crimson Education 

"It's not necessarily the number of A's that you get, but it does actually matter for American universities what marks you're getting. We're seeing kids getting into these top schools, but their averages are 90%, 92%, 95%, as opposed to getting 7,8,9, 10 A's.

- Brad Latilla-Campbell, Country Manager - Crimson Education 

Scroll to the top of the article to listen to the full interview.