Programme: BCom extended programme

Kindly take note of the disclaimer regarding qualifications and degree names.
Code Faculty Department
07139923 Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences Department: Economic and Management Sciences Dean's Office
Credits Duration NQF level
Minimum duration of study: 4 years Total credits: 88 NQF level:  07

Programme information

The programme is aimed at the training of students in the Economic and Management Sciences who do not meet the prescribed admission requirements for a BCom degree.

This is the ideal starting point for students who are interested in studying towards BCom degrees in Management or Financial sciences. Students must apply during October of their first year to transfer to the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences (Hatfield Campus). Placement in BCom (Accounting Sciences) and BCom (Investment Management) cannot be guaranteed as these are selection programmes where numbers are limited. All modules must be passed in the first year to transfer to any of the BCom programmes.

The first year is presented on the Mamelodi Campus.

Admission requirements

Important information for all prospective students for 2022

  • The admission requirements apply to students who apply for admission to the University of Pretoria with a National Senior Certificate (NSC) and Independent Examination Board (IEB) qualifications.
  • Applicants with qualifications other than the abovementioned should refer to:
    • Brochure: Undergraduate Programme Information 2022: Qualifications other than the NSC and IEB, available at click here.
  • Citizens from countries other than South Africa (applicants who are not South African citizens) should also refer to:
  • School of Tomorrow (SOT), Accelerated Christian Education (ACE) and General Education Development Test (GED): The University of Pretoria no longer accepts qualifications awarded by these institutions.
  • National Certificate (Vocational) (NCV) Level 4: The University of Pretoria may consider NCV candidates, provided they meet the exemption for bachelor’s status criteria and the programme requirements.

Transferring students

A transferring student is a student who, at the time of application for a degree programme at the University of Pretoria (UP) –

  • is a registered student at another tertiary institution, or was previously registered at another tertiary institution and did not complete the programme enrolled for at that institution, and is not currently enrolled at a tertiary institution, or has completed studies at another tertiary institution, but is not currently enrolled at a tertiary institution, or has started with tertiary studies at UP, then moved to another tertiary institution and wants to be readmitted at UP.

A transferring student will be considered for admission based on

  • an NSC or equivalent qualification with exemption to bachelor’s or diploma studies (whichever is applicable); and meeting the minimum faculty-specific subject requirements at NSC or tertiary level; or having completed a higher certificate at a tertiary institution with faculty-specific subjects/modules passed (equal to or more than 50%), as well as complying with faculty rules on admission;
  • previous academic performance (must have passed all modules registered for up to the closing date of application ) or as per faculty regulation/promotion requirements;
  • a certificate of good conduct.

Note: Students who have been dismissed at the previous institution due to poor academic performance, will not be considered for admission to UP.

Returning students

A returning student is a student who, at the time of application for a degree programme –

  • is a registered student at UP, and wants to transfer to another degree at UP, or was previously registered at UP and did not complete the programme enrolled for, and did not enrol at another tertiary institution in the meantime (including students who applied for leave of absence), or has completed studies at UP, but is not currently enrolled or was not enrolled at another tertiary institution after graduation.

A returning student will be considered for admission based on

  • an NSC or equivalent qualification with exemption to bachelor’s or diploma studies (whichever is applicable); and meeting the minimum faculty-specific subject requirements at NSC or tertiary level; or previous academic performance (should have a cumulative weighted average of at least 50% for the programme enrolled for);
  • having applied for and was granted leave of absence.

Note: Students who have been excluded/dismissed from a faculty due to poor academic performance may be considered for admission to another programme at UP.  The Admissions Committee may consider such students if they were not dismissed more than twice. Only ONE transfer between UP faculties will be allowed, and a maximum of two (2) transfers within a faculty.

Important faculty-specific information on undergraduate programmes for 2022

  • The closing date is an administrative admission guideline for non-selection programmes. Once a non-selection programme is full  and has reached the institutional targets, then that programme will be closed for further admissions, irrespective of the closing date. However, if the institutional targets have not been met by the closing date, then that programme will remain open for admissions until the institutional targets are met.
  • The following persons will be considered for admission: Candidates who have a certificate that is deemed by the University to be equivalent to the required National Senior Certificate (NSC) with university endorsement; candidates who are graduates from another tertiary institution or have been granted the status of a graduate of such an institution, and candidates who are graduates of another faculty at the University of Pretoria.
  • Life Orientation is excluded when calculating the APS.
  • All modules will be presented in English, as English is the language of tuition, communication and correspondence.

University of Pretoria website: click here

Minimum requirements

Achievement level

English Home Language or English First Additional Language

Mathematics

APS

NSC/IEB

NSC/IEB

4

3

26

Additional requirements

General Academic Regulations G1 to G15 apply to a bachelor's degree.

  1. A student may not take more than the prescribed number of modules per semester unless permission has been obtained from the Dean.
  2. A module that has already been passed may only be repeated with the approval of the Dean.
  3. It remains the student's responsibility to ascertain, prior to registration, whether all the modules he/she intends taking can be accommodated in the class, test and examination timetables.
  4. The Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences supports an outcomes-based education system and places a high premium on the development of specific academic competences. Class attendance of all modules and for the full duration of all programmes is therefore compulsory for all students.
  5. The Dean has the right of authorisation regarding matters not provided for in the General Academic Regulations or the Faculty regulations.

Other programme-specific information

  • Students who wish to continue with a BCom (Economics) degree programme need to register for WTW 144 after completing WTW 135.
  • Students who wish to continue with BCom (Econometrics) degree programme need to have obtained a level 4 or higher in Grade 12 Mathematics and will need to register for WTW 135 and WTW 143.
  • Students who wish to continue with a BCom (Investment Management) degree programme need to register for WTW 135.
  • Students who want to do any other BCom degree programme register for BAM 133, STK 133 and STK 143 and must meet the minimum requirements set out in the EMS Transfer Guide as published on the EMS Website on an annual basis, to transfer to their BCom degree of choice. 
  • Only students who have obtained a level 4 in Grade 12 Mathematics can register for WST 133 and WST 143 and these modules are required for students wishing to continue with a BCom (Econometrics) degree programme. These modules are also available as electives for students who wish to transfer to the BCom (Economics) degree programme.

Selection from the second academic year onwards, to be discussed with the Student Administration of the Faculty and will follow the guidance in the EMS Transfer Guide. The following gives an overview of credits awarded for modules completed at the Mamelodi Campus when successful BCom Extended programme students transfer to BCom degree programmes on the Hatfield Campus:

  • AIM 111 and AIM 121 – as currently presented on the Hatfield Campus.
  • STK 133 and STK 143 – equivalent to STK 110.
  • STK 133 and STK 143 will give BCom students admission to STK 120 and its equivalent to STK 110.
  • WST 133 and WST 143 is equivalent to STK 110.
  • WST 133 and WST 143 will give BCom students admission to either WST 153 or STK 120.
  • Students must register for STK 121 in the first semester of the second year.
  • FRK 133 and FRK 143 – equivalent to FRK 111.
  • OBS 133 and OBS 143 – equivalent to OBS 114.
  • Students wishing to do a BCom degree focussed on Accounting are strongly advised to enrol for FRK 111 in the first semester of their second year.

It is the responsibility of students to ensure before registration, that their curricula comply with all the requirements of the applicable regulations.

Promotion to next study year

According to General Academic Regulation G3 students have to comply with certain requirements as set by the Faculty Board.

  1. In order to register for the next year of study a student must pass at least 60% of the official credits listed for a year level of study for a three-year programme.
  2. A student will be deemed to be in the second, third or a more senior year once he or she enrols for any module in any of these levels of study.
  3. If a student has passed less than the required minimum of at least 60% of the official credits listed for a year level, he/she will not be readmitted to the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Such a student may apply in writing to the EMS Appeals Committee to be readmitted conditionally – with the proviso that the Appeals Committee may set further conditions with regard to the student's academic progress. The Committee may deny a student's application for readmission.
  4. If a student has been readmitted conditionally, his/her academic progress will be monitored after the first semester examinations to determine whether he/she has complied with the requirements set by the EMS Appeals Committee. If not, his/her studies will be suspended.
  5. A student whose studies have been suspended because of his/her poor academic performance has the right to appeal against the decision of the EMS Faculty Appeals Committee.
  6. A student may be refused admission to the examination, or promotion to a subsequent year of study or promotion in a module (if applicable) if he/ she fails to fulfil the attendance requirements. Class attendance in all modules and for the full duration of all programmes is compulsory for all students.

Pass with distinction

  1. A degree may be awarded with distinction provided the candidate meets the following criteria:
  1. Completes the degree within three years;
  2. Obtains a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 75%;
  3. Repeated passed modules will not be considered. The initial pass mark of module will be used when calculating the GPA.
  1. A degree will only be awarded with distinction to transferees from other degrees in the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, other faculties and from other universities who still complete their bachelor degrees within three years (including the years registered for the other degree and credits transferred and recognised).
  2. The GPA will be not be rounded up to a whole number.
  3. Exceptional cases will be considered by the Dean.

General information

Application of amended programme regulations
Refer to General Academic Regulation G5.

Minimum credits: 88

Additional information:

  • Students who are aiming to transfer to the BCom Economics and BCom Investment Management should register for WTW 144.
  • Students who are aiming to transfer to the BCom Econometrics should register for WTW 135.

Core modules

  • Module content:

    Find, evaluate, process, manage and present information resources for academic purposes using appropriate technology.

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  • Module content:

    Apply effective search strategies in different technological environments. Demonstrate the ethical and fair use of information resources. Integrate 21st-century communications into the management of academic information.

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  • Module content:

    The number system, decimals, fractions, exponentials and order of operations. Percentages, decimals as fractions and percentages. Equations and formulas, application of equations and formulas. Ratio and proportion. Functions, graphs, application of functions, interpreting graphs. Average rate of change, simple interest, compound interest and inflation. Present value and future value. Depreciation, annuities, sinking funds, investments, mortgages.
    This module is offered in English at the Mamelodi Campus only for the BCom – Extended programme.

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  • Module content:

    The nature and function of accounting; the development of accounting; financial position; financial performance; flow of documents;  the recording process; processing of accounting data; treatment of VAT; elementary statement of comprehensive income (income statement) and statement of financial position (balance sheet).

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  • Module content:

    Accounting systems; introduction to internal control and internal control measures; bank reconciliations; control accounts; adjustments; preparing the financial statements of a sole proprietorship; the accounting framework.

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  • Module content:

    In this module students use different information and time management strategies, build academic vocabulary, revise basic grammar concepts and dictionary skills, examine learning styles, memory  and note-taking techniques, practise academic reading skills and explore basic research and referencing techniques, learn how to use discourse markers and construct definitions, and are introduced to paragraph writing. The work is set in the context of the students’ field of study.

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  • Module content:

    In this module students learn how to interpret and use visual literacy conventions. Students write more advance paragraphs, and also learn how to structure academic writing, how to refine their use of discourse markers and referencing techniques and how to structure their own academic arguments. Students’ writing is expected to be rational, clear and concise. As a final assignment all aspects of the LST 133 and LST 143 modules are combined in a research assignment. In this project, students work in writing teams to produce a chapter on a career and to present an oral presentation of aspects of the chapter. The work is set in the context of the students’ field of study.

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  • Module content:

    Introduction to Business Management as a science, the environment in which the enterprise operates, the field of business, the mission and goals of an enterprise, management and entrepreneurship. The choice of a form of enterprise, the choice of products and/or services, profit and cost planning for different sizes of operating units, the choice of location, the nature of production processes and the layout of the plant or operating unit.

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  • Module content:

    Introduction to and overview of general management, especially regarding the five management tasks, strategic management, contemporary developments and management issues, financial management, marketing, public relations. (Note: For marketing students, marketing is replaced by financial management, and public relations by small business management.)
    Introduction to and overview of the value chain model, management of the input,
    management of the purchasing function, management of the transformation process with specific reference to production and operations management, human resources management, and information management; corporate governance and black economic empowerment (BEE).

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  • Module content:

    Data operations and transformations: Introductory concepts, the role of statistics, various types of data and the number system. Concepts underlying hyperbolic transformations of quantitative data. The relationship between the exponential and logarithmic functions in economic and related problems. Systems of equations in equilibrium. Additional concepts relating to data processing, factorial notation and absolute values.

    Descriptive statistics – Univariate: Sampling and the collection of data, frequency distributions and graphical representations. Descriptive measures of location and dispersion. Correlation and regression: Least squares line, single log, double log and inverse transformations. Report writing and presentation. Identification, use, evaluation and interpretation of statistical computer packages and statistical techniques. 

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  • Module content:

    Optimisation techniques with economic applications: system of linear inequalities, solving of linear programming problems by means of the graphical and extreme point methods. Applications of differentiation and integration in statistic and economic related problems: the limit of a function, continuity, rate of change, the derivative of a function, differentiation rules , higher order derivatives, optimisation techniques, the area under a curve and applications of definite and indefinite integrals in  Economic and Probability applications. Introduction to probability theory. Probability and inference: Theoretical distributions. Sampling distributions. Estimation theory  and hypothesis testing of sampling averages and proportions (one-sample and two-sample cases). Non Parametric tests. Report writing and presentation. Identification, use, evaluation and interpretation of statistical computer packages and statistical techniques. 

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  • Module content:

    Descriptive statistics – Univariate:
    The role of Statistics, various types of data. Sampling, probability and non-probability sampling techniques and the collection of data. Frequency, relative and cumulative distributions and graphical representations. Additional concepts relating to data processing: sigma notation, factorial notation. Descriptive measures of location,dispersion and symmetry. Exploratory data analysis.
    Probability:
    Introductory probability theory and applications. Set theory and probability laws. Introduction to random variables. Assigning probabilities, probability distributions, expected value and variance in general. Specific discrete probability distributions (Uniform, Binomial).  Report writing and presentation. Identification, use, evaluation and interpretation of statistical computer packages and statistical techniques.

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  • Module content:

    Probability and inference:
    Probability theory and theoretical distributions for continuous random variables (Uniform, Normal and t). Sampling distributions (means and proportions). Estimation theory and hypothesis testing of sampling averages and proportions (one- and two-sample cases).
    Optimisation techniques with economic applications:
    Applications of differentiation in statistic and economic related problems. Integration. Applications of integration in statistic and economic related problems. Systems of equations in equilibrium. The area under a curve and applications of definite integrals in Statistics and Economics. Report writing and presentation. Identification, use, evaluation and interpretation of statistical computer packages and statistical techniques.

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  • Module content:

    Real numbers, elementary set notation, exponents and radicals. Algebraic expressions, fractional expressions, linear and quadratic equations, inequalities. Coordinate geometry: lines, circles. Functions: definition, notation, piecewise defined functions, domain and range, graphs, transformations of functions, symmetry, even and odd functions, combining functions, one-to-one functions and inverses, polynomial functions and zeros. Sequences, summation notation, arithmetic, geometric sequences, infinite geometric series, annuities and instalments. Degrees and radians, unit circle, trigonometric functions, fundamental identities, trigonometric graphs, trigonometric identities, double-angle, half-angle formulae, trigonometric equations, applications. Elements of Euclidean geometry.
    This module is offered at the Mamelodi Campus to students from the BSc and BCom Extended programmes.

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The regulations and rules for the degrees published here are subject to change and may be amended after the publication of this information.

The General Academic Regulations (G Regulations) and General Student Rules apply to all faculties and registered students of the University, as well as all prospective students who have accepted an offer of a place at the University of Pretoria. On registering for a programme, the student bears the responsibility of ensuring that they familiarise themselves with the General Academic Regulations applicable to their registration, as well as the relevant faculty-specific and programme-specific regulations and information as stipulated in the relevant yearbook. Ignorance concerning these regulations will not be accepted as an excuse for any transgression, or basis for an exception to any of the aforementioned regulations.

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