Disappointing Experience with SAQA's Evaluation Process

I app**** for the evaluation of my foreign qualification with the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) in April 2023. After a long wait, I received a response on the 13th of May 2024, stating that my institution was not accredited by a recognized accrediting agency in the United States of America. Consequently, they could not issue a certificate of evaluation.

Finding this hard to believe, I contacted the registrar at my university directly. To my surprise, I learned that SAQA had never reached out to verify my institution’s credentials. The registrar confirmed that the university is, in fact, accredited in the USA and even provided a draft letter to clarify this to SAQA.

Adding to my frustration, SAQA has given me 90 days to appeal their decision, but I am required to pay an additional fee to do so. This seems highly unreasonable, especially since SAQA did not even take the basic step of contacting the university to verify the information.

I find SAQA's lack of thoroughness and the additional financial burden placed on applicants to be unacceptable. This process has been a significant inconvenience and has caused unnecessary stress and expense.SAQA application ***