JOHANNESBURG - More than 346,000 individual learners have applied for placement in Gauteng’s public schools for the 2027 academic year.
The provincial Department of Education says it received 805,688 Grade 1 and Grade 8 applications during the 2027 online admissions process, which closed at midnight on Friday, 4 September 2026.
Gauteng Education MEC Lebogang Maile revealed the figures on Sunday.
However, Maile says the 805,688 figure does not represent the number of individual learners seeking placement, as parents are allowed to apply to more than one school.
A total of 357,468 parents and guardians registered on the online admissions system, while 346,877 individual learners applied for placement in the two entry grades.
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This includes 169,396 unique Grade 1 learners and 177,481 unique Grade 8 learners.
Maile says the numbers provide a clear picture of the scale of the challenge facing the province.
“These numbers demonstrate the sheer scale of the task before us, but they also reveal the concentration of demand around particular schools and geographical areas.”
With demand clustered around particular schools and communities, available capacity is being placed under increasing strain.
Maile says the closure of the admissions period provides the department with an important picture of the extraordinary demand for public education in Gauteng.
Placement offers are expected to start going out on 15 October, with parents given seven days to accept or decline.
Parents and guardians with outstanding documents must submit or upload certified copies by 12pm on 11 September 2026.