Abstract:
South Africa’s large racial gap in enrolment in tertiary education can be attributed to the
widely varying quality of primary and secondary education rather than to the low incomes of
most black and coloured households. Thus, easing credit constraints for prospective tertiary
students via increased financial aid is expected to have a limited impact on African and
coloured enrolment. Instead, policymakers should focus on improving educational quality at
schools attended by children from low-income households.
