Transcript Evaluation by SAQA

I contacted the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) with regard to evaluating my college transcript, and they sent me an email attachment explaining the process.

After reading it, however, the following things were not clear to me: (1) What are the total fees if one chooses the 15-day processing option? (2) Is a personal check in U.S. currency acceptable as payment of these fees? (3) In addition to a college transcript, are there any other documents that need to be submitted?

If anyone knows the answers to these questions, I would be most grateful to be informed of same.

Thanks!

Michael

 

Can anyone help with this? SAQA was extremely slow in replying to my initial inquiry, and they have not replied at all to my follow-up questions, which are the same ones I have asked here.

 

I have no experience with SAQA and transcripts. The UZ Dept Dean and the Faculty Senate required evidence that my masters degrees were accredited. I faxed copies of the diplomas and pertinent info from accreditor websites to the dean. That sufficed. As far as I know, SAQA was not involved and would only get involved were my prior work unaccredited.

 

South Africa

Friend,

After several frustrating years dealing with Unisa (U - South Africa), the best I can recommend is "tons" of patience with any South African agency, including SAQA.


What is saved in tuition, is lost in gray hairs....

 

Bill,

The SA school I'm dealing with requests that all international students have their transcripts evaluated by SAQA. Further, the International Office could not find Excelsior College listed in the Internationakl Handbook/Association of Universities. Thanks to help from this forum, I was able tro provide them with evidence that Excelsior was indeed listed and was fully accredited by a recognized U.S accreditor, and is thus a legitimate school. However, they still request that I have my transcript evaluated by SAQA.

I'll mention that I faxed my transcript to the head of the relevant department at the school and answered some questions he had about it.

I don't really mind having SAQA evaluate the transcript; I'm just frustrated that they are taking so long to answer my specific questions that I need answered in order to proceed.


Haggai,

Thanks!

 

Hi Michael - I'm sorry you're having such difficulties. When I applied to UOVS my transcripts were examined by SAQA but the school took care of everything, I didn't have to deal directly with SAQA myself. I submitted a set of official transcripts to the school along with a copy of my diploma(s) as specified by the school admission process. I included a cover letter that pointed out, among other things, that the transcipts clearly state the degree earned. While the cost was covered by the admissions fee (I suppose), I've found that the easiest way to handle these financial transactions is by credit card. That way you don't need to worry about currency conversion issues and you get a nice record of the transaction in your monthly statement. The whole thing took about a month in my case. Best of luck with your application.
Jack

 

Jack,

Thanks.

I don't have a credit card, but would a bank debit card work?

 

Dag!

I, too, needed to have my transcripts evaluated by SAQA. The only real problem I had was understanding some of their terms; some of their documents have no equal in the USA (my locale), which makes evaluating their necessity or utility difficult. I resolved this problem the same way I resolve most, by profligacy (I purchased a handful of each document they offered <g>). Did you not find their brochure (http://www.saqa.org.za/docs/brochures/eq_evaluation.pdf) helpful?

N.B. The only other problem I had was that they failed to complete the assessment within the specified time period (hint). To be fair, I took an Ohio University CCE at almost the same time I submitted my transcripts to SAQA for evaluation, and OU failed to grade my exam on time, too. <g>

Here are MY answers to your previous questions (which are hopefully the same as those you could obtain from SAQA (www.saqa.org.za):

(1) What are the total fees if one chooses the 15-day processing option?
I had my evaluation done approximately one year ago. The following is from the cover letter I sent to SAQA:
N.B. I chose the "Five Day Prioritization".
N.B. Your milage may vary.

2) Is a personal check in U.S. currency acceptable as payment of these fees?
From the brochure (see PDF file link, above):

i.e., send a "teller's check" or a "Certified Check". You can buy a "teller's check" from any bank that sells them (they go by several euphemism, but they are NOT money orders), but only your bank can issue a certified check (i.e. certify (guarantee) your personal check). Note that few if any banks still issue Certified Checks (certification is easy to forge, thereby making it largely worthless), and that a Teller's Check is likely to cost more than a money order, but not a great deal more.

3) In addition to a college transcript, are there any other documents that need to be submitted?
Quoting again from the cover letter I sent to SAQA:

Note that I was interested in pursuing studies on a par with those I was pursuing in the USA, hence I thought that a complete itemization of my undergraduate education was in order. If I already had a bachelor's degree and was pursuing graduate-level studies, I might (???) have been less thorough in my documentation.

Considering the distance involved, your 'need for speed', and the cost of sending additional documents to South Africa, I think it is best to send every think they might need, as well as every thing they might find useful.

Best regards,
Richard Kanarek

 

Good advice, Richard. I drove myself crazy firing off documentation to one SA university (over and over again) plus dealing with SAQA (over and over again). SAQA is actually not an acronym. It's a Xhosa word (saqa) meaning Kafkaesque.

What eventually happened? The uni I was dealing with then began imposing more and more bizarre documentation requests, with which I did my best to comply. Then they got Asmalized (forced merger resulting in sheer utter bosbefok chaos). At that point oom Janko decided life was way too damn short for any more of this. Then--I get whiny e-mails from Naaijouself-Universiteit wondering why I wasn't starting on my dissertation. Mind, I had never been admitted as far as I knew. AAAAAAAAGGGGHHHH!

So then I approached another fine South Efrican university. They immediately said they would deal with SAQA and that considering my prior schools there would be no problem whatever. And there were no problems!

My advice supplementary to Richard's--get assurances right off the bat and get results (admission, thesis/diss approval, etc) in writing.

 

Thanks very much, Richard, and Unc!

I'd still like to know: Can I use my bank debit card to pay the fees?

And, Unc, which university was it where there were no problems?

 

I knew you'd ask, and I won't tell.

I decided a long time ago that I would not discuss by name any programme I'm in, partly to protect my privacy and partly out of superstition along the "count no man happy until he's dead" line. I apologize for being frustrating, but I assure you that there are reasonable SA universities--and that it's usually pretty obvious right away whether you're dealing with a bureaucratomaniac or not. I e-mailed or called almost every one, omitting the very top-rank ones as forlorn hopes (I'm not that smart).

Also, it does NOT hurt to say that you looked at UNISA, were turned off by its storied bureaucracy, and are looking for an academically first-rank SA uni that won't snow you with paperwork.* Remember, any uni anywhere is selling you something and needs customers to make a go of it.

If you're interested in a research master's or doc, a lot will depend on the attitude of your would-be supervisor and the head of the faculty in question.

As far as payment, the school I'm working with will do absolutely nothing but bank wires at $35 a throw. No credit cards, no cheques, nothing. This is expensive but uncomplicated once I got it across to the bank in my very small town that SA was a country and not just an area or something. My posties are still not sure on that!

*I have no firsthand dealings with UNISA, but its soviet-style paperwork is a cliche of conventional wisdom. True? Another question entirely.

 

Unc,

No need to apologize; I understand your position. I was just curious, anyway. I've contacted many of them; most have been very helpful. A few I have not heard from at all.

 

Well, I'm still hoping someone can/will answer my question as to whether or not I could use my bank debit card, instead of a credit card, to pay the fees.

Also, I don't understand what they're talking about in their brochure with regard to the following:

Quote: "How Should Payment be Made?
# Crossed postal orders in favour of SAQA.
# A crossed cheque in favour of SAQA, only if bank guaranteed.
# A direct deposit into Standard Bank Account No 010516433, Branch No 010045 (Pretoria). A copy of the deposit slip, reflecting clearly the name of the qualification holder and the stamp of the branch where the deposit was made, must be attached to the application."

Can anyone explain these?

 

Dear Michael:

I must confess that your obsession with your debit card does not resonate with me in the least. It seems to me -- and it seemed to me, when I was in your position -- that it would be far better, easier, and less trouble for all concerned to trudge down to one's local bank, purchase a teller's check/certified check, and be done with it. Sure, it will cost you an extra few bucks, but wouldn't you feel good knowing you supported your local economy?

Since I'm sure I haven't dissuaded you, and since I'm sure you're as obsessed with SAQA's payment rules as you ever were (and, btw, they make little pills for just this sort of problem now-a-days; NOT THE PURPLE ONES! <g>), I shall attempt to answer your question.


"A crossed cheque in favour of SAQA, only if bank guaranteed."
Googling the term "crossed cheque" yielded results such as the following: http://glossary.axone.ch/ViewTerm_test.cfm?TID=633, http://www.deutsche-bank.de/lexikon/2141_ENG_HTML.html. It would seem that a "crossed cheque" would be a commie (i.e., non-American <g>) version of a standard, non-double-endorsed, non-"Pay to Cash", American check. While my research in support of this conclusion has not been extensive, my supposition seems to be supported by my personal experience: I sent SAQA a Teller's Check (i.e., a bank guaranteed, standard American (bank) check), and it was accepted without issue.

Once again, I'm inclined to think that your check options are restricted to the largely obsolete "Certified Check", and the still available, if not readily available, "Teller's Check".

"Crossed postal orders in favour of SAQA."
"No money orders."
These two stipulations together would appear to suggest that they will accept a SA postal money order (and perhaps a US postal money order), but not other money orders. Rather than waste the time of SAQA's staff with tedious e-mails, I just sent them a Teller's Check. (I live in NYC, but my bank (www.firstib.com) is in Indiana, so obtaining a certified check would have involved a delay. This assumes that FirstIB issues certified checks, whcih many banks no longer do.)

"A direct deposit into Standard Bank Account No 010516433, Branch No 010045 (Pretoria). A copy of the deposit slip, reflecting clearly the name of the qualification holder and the stamp of the branch where the deposit was made, must be attached to the application."
While this option is intended, presumably, for petitioners with ready access to an SA bank, it is entirely possible that your American bank could wire the payment directly into SAQA's bank account. My bank's fee for wiring money internationally is $50 (as I recall), and I have no idea whether the SA bank would levee a charge for receiving the wire. My opinion is that paying by this means is not only lunatic, but it is also fraught with opportunities for errors. Not only are you depending upon SAQA to discover your payment in their bank account, but you are also depending upon both your bank and the SA bank to not screw up. Sure, your payment might go through okay, but I wouldn't try it.

When I was a prospective SAQA customer, I assumed that they did not mention accepting Visa (or debit cards, or PayPal, or chattel) because they did not accept Visa (ditto). If you'd like to make sure what your payment options are -- and, somehow, I get the feeling you'd like to -- you can e-mail them and ask. I don't recall SAQA ever failing to reply to an email.

Cordially,
Richard Kanarek

 

Richard,

First, I appreciate your reply and the further information, but I don't appreciate the tone of part of your response. I don't equate obsession with trying to get a straight answer. I've emailed SAQA with the same questions several times; regarding the debit card, they still haven't told me whether or not I could use it. I've also asked that question several times here, after someone mentioned that I could use a credit card. Since I don't have the latter, I thought it was reasonable to ask about the debit card.

SAQA has been helpful and courteous, but I think there is somewhat of a problem with the difference between their terminology and ours, which is no one's fault.

I don't mind paying a few extra bucks for currency conversion, but I thought if I could use a debit card in the same way a credit card could be used, that would be the best way to go.

If you don't know the difference between obsession and clarification, maybe I could suggest a dictionary--and perhaps a Valium to help with the consternation I have seemingly caused you.

 

Dear Michael,

Regarding your recent post:
"First, I appreciate your reply and the further information,..."
You're welcome!


"... but I don't appreciate the tone of part of your response."
License to be curmudgeonly is life's recompense to the elderly. I have earned my bitterness and resentment, and I intend to relish them. <g>


"I don't equate obsession with trying to get a straight answer."
That's because you've refused my medical advice!


"I've emailed SAQA with the same questions several times; regarding the debit card, they still haven't told me whether or not I could use it."
"SAQA has been helpful and courteous, but I think there is somewhat of a problem with the difference between their terminology and ours, which is no one's fault."
It bears keeping in mind that we are dealing with people 8,000 miles away, living on an entirely different continent, under entirely different circumstances. People with a radically different propriospect.

Wait until you call your SA college (assuming you ever enroll, and that you happen to call them). I was almost ready to prescribe myself one of those little, non-purple pills when I was asked, in this order, my first name, my last name, and my initials. (I assume most SA'ers have more than the American standard two or three names. Either that, or they need some pills, too.)

If you haven't received a direct answer to your debit card query by now, you probably wont. Take a deep breath, count to ten, and then march on!


"I've also asked that question several times here, after someone mentioned that I could use a credit card."
Zen proverb: It is better to have no teacher at all than a teacher who knows only as much as you do.


"I don't mind paying a few extra bucks for currency conversion, but I thought if I could use a debit card in the same way a credit card could be used, that would be the best way to go."
I would assume (see Zen proverb, above) that paying by debit card would incur the same currency charge as paying by check; in both cases you are paying by transfering funds (presumably USDs) from your checking account to theirs. I do not, however, know this as a fact.

I have, on several occasions, paid various TSA (www.tsa.ac.za/welcome.htm) fees with my Visa CHARGE card. I can attest that the Visa charge card was a mutually convenient means of remitting payment. (Visa pays foreign charges in local currency.)


Cordially,
Richard Kanarek

 

I wonder why a debit card would be a problem. In 02 , when there was such a possibility, I entered Unizul via SATS. I paid with my debit/Visa card. Since then I've twice used the debit card to pay tuition and/or annual registration fees through SATS to Unizul.

 

Michael - I'm not trying to produce any "tone" but I'd like to suggest that if you present yourself to your personal banker (wherever you might have an account) and describe the situation, they will solve this problem for you. It might be a bank check, it might be a wire transfer, it might be some other piece of financial mysticism. In any case, this is an easily solvable problem (I've done it myself) and it becomes much, much more easily solved in the presence of a good banker. In my own last transaction, I looked at the daily conversion rate (USD/ZARands), added 5% to cover a margin of error, and wrote a check. There was no problem.
Go to the bank.
Jack

 

Thanks again, Richard, Bill, and Jack; I very much appreciate your replies!

To Richard -- no hard feelings, especially if you're elderly.

 

Michael,

1) Absolutely no hard feelings on this end, either. Best of luck with your studies, and keep us (or at least me) informed!

2) Am I elderly? I was approximately 278 years old this morning! (N.B. I measure my life span in dog years, for reasons which would be obvious if you knew anything at all about the sort of life I am living. <g>) This evening, I took a three hour calculus exam. I think I am now somewhere around 500!


Bill,

You seem to be proposing that, since one educational institution in SA accepted a debit/credit card, all must. I confess I am not swayed.

Here in America, credit & debit card are, as you might have noticed, "slightly" popular. Never the less, (afaik) my favorite electron tube purveyor accepts neither. Nor does Stienmetz Electronics, the supplier I'm using as an example, have a web site. The lovely lady who runs it expects you to convey your order by phone or mail. She then types out your invoice on a real type write, and sends you your order exactly as she has been doing for the last upteen decades. If an American business can steadfastly (and wonderfully) refuse to leap upon our trailing edge of technology, there is little reason to suppose that all SA institutions have joined their leading edge of technology.

If SAQA did not state in their brochure that they accept debit/credit cards, and if they do not say that they accept debit/credit cards when they were directly asked, I think we must at least consider the possibility that they don't. <g>


Jack,

I really have no reply for you. I'm only writing to say howdy! <g>


Cordially,
Richard Kanarek