For higher education institutions

Widen access without widening risk.

CE App is your turnkey, SAQA-aligned partner for Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) for Access and Entrance Exam delivery. We provide the system, the training, the assessments, the moderation, and the reports. You decide who you admit.

Why RPL for Access

A pathway grounded in policy.

South African qualification policy doesn't just permit alternative access — it requires it. SAQA (2019) is explicit: every NQF-registered qualification must include provision for alternative entry-level requirements so that candidates can be admitted through RPL.

For colleges, this is both an obligation and an opportunity. The reality remains that just over one-third of South Africans hold matric. RPL for Access is how you identify the capable, motivated learner who took a different path — without compromising quality.

Qualifications and part qualifications registered on the NQF must include provision for alternative entry-level requirements so that candidates can be admitted to study towards the qualification through RPL. SAQA, 2019
Our approach

A developmental model, not a deficit one.

CE App's RPL for Access process is rooted in inclusivity, developmental assessment, and the recognition of informal and non-formal learning. We focus on what the candidate can do and has learned — not on what formal qualifications they may lack.

Equity & Redress

Promoting fair access and addressing historical exclusion in higher education.

Developmental Focus

Results guide candidates toward suitable learning pathways — never used to exclude.

Validity & Reliability

Every assessment meets SAQA and HPCSA standards for fairness, validity, and consistency.

Transparency

Open communication of processes and outcomes to both your institution and the candidate.

Ethical Practice

Non-diagnostic, educationally purposed assessments conducted under informed consent.

The process

Nine steps. One platform.

Each candidate moves through nine clearly defined steps. An online management platform replaces the months-long manual process with consistency, audit trails, and rapid turnaround.

01

Understand the context

Discovery conversation about the candidate's background, prior learning, and goals.

02

Investigate suitability

Determine whether RPLA is the right pathway given the qualification's level descriptors.

03

Share particulars

Candidate and institution receive full details of the process, requirements, and timing.

04

Collect & validate evidence

Registration, biographical data, Study Readiness Questionnaire, Competency Assessment Measure, evidence upload, motivation letter.

05

Assessment

Optional competency-based interview at the institution. Timed online assessments in cognitive ability, English, and Mathematics.

06

External moderation

All assessments and decisions undergo external moderation and validation by CE App.

07

Reporting

Full narrative report to the institution. Abbreviated result report plus developmental SRQ report to the candidate.

08

Feedback

Your institution reviews results, makes the admission decision, and communicates with the candidate.

09

Data reporting

Required data flows to relevant authorities. Historic results remain accessible for internal reporting.

What's included

Everything your institution needs, at no cost to you.

The full service is provided to the educational institution at no fee. Candidates pay a nominal amount — negotiated per partnership — to cover administration, assessment, moderation, and reporting.

Compliance

Operating inside the regulatory frame.

CE App's RPL for Access service adheres to the national regulatory and quality assurance framework for South African higher education.

SAQA

National Policy for the Implementation of RPL (2019, original 2013). Defines RPL principles, processes, and quality criteria.

CHE

Council on Higher Education Policy on RPL, CAT and Assessment (2016). Establishes implementation standards.

NQF Act

National Qualifications Framework Act, No. 67 of 2008. The overarching legal framework for alternative access.

HPCSA

Health Professions Act 56 of 1974. Governs the ethical and professional use of psychological assessments.

POPIA & GDPR

Candidate data is encrypted, consent-based, and retained only as long as necessary for verification and audit.

Policy Watch

SAQA's National RPL Framework is in development (2025–2030 Strategic Plan). CE App continuously monitors developments to ensure compliance.

Coming soon

A new and improved CE App RPL platform is on the way.

We are rebuilding the CE App RPL Management System from the ground up — faster, more accessible, integrated with the upcoming Career Explorer, Match, and Learn modules, and designed around what we've learned from a decade of partnerships.

New partner institutions joining now will move directly onto the new platform when it launches. Existing partners will be migrated with continuity of historic data.

Getting started

What we need to start a conversation.

Email admin@ceapp.co.za →

Pricing is negotiated per partnership. Candidates carry the fee.