The 2025 online application for grades 1 and 8 for Gauteng education has officially opened
Gauteng department of education
Diepsloot residents came out in numbers at the Diepsloot Youth Centre on Thursday to kick off the 2025 online application for grades one and eight pupils.
The online application went live in the morning and will be open until midnight on 12 August.
Some parents spoke to City Press about their experiences with the applications.
Lebogang Phiri said she was there to apply for her child, who will attend grade one next year. She said that she woke up early because she thought it would be crowded.
READ: Gauteng’s online school applications for 2025: Here’s what parents must be aware of
Phiri continued:
The process was quicker than I expected, and the assistants were welcoming and checked our documents in case we had missing documents. We were also offered tea while we waited.
Phiri said she chose three schools for her child and would not mind which school her child attended, but believes that her child will get into her preferred schools as she applied early.
However, one guardian left the centre disappointed, as she was not helped.
Nombulelo Mathanjana was there to apply for her grandchild but was told she could not apply as the child was born in November and would be eligible to be in Grade One in 2026. She said she was disappointed because she felt she wasted her time and was also cold. Said Mathanjana:
I will go to the school that I want my grandchild to go to. My grandchild will be disappointed that she will be in preschool again because she knows her friends are going to primary school.
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Gauteng Education MEC Matome Chiloane was part of the application process and told the media that there are over 100 000 applications in the system.
On Tuesday, he urged parents and guardians to avoid changing their contact details as they would receive SMS notifications regarding their applications.
According to Chiloane, there were no system issues or delays during the process.
He said that parents could apply from their homes or at work, and added that parents could also apply at schools or any of the 80 centres across the 15 school districts in the province.
Chiloane said:
Parents are coming in and will be coming throughout the day, but later we expect more of them as some are still at work. This is one of the 80 centres where parents can come and apply for their children. But they can also go to a school or to a district office.
Chiloane was able to assist one parent, Palesa Sibeko, who said she felt honoured to be helped by the MEC. Like most parents, Sibeko said she arrived early at the youth centre as she was also going to work after her application.
“I applied for three schools for my son, who is currently in Grade seven. He will decide which one he wants,” she said.
Zamokuhle Ndawonde
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