23 Best universities for Aerospace Engineering in South Africa

Updated: February 29, 2024

Ranking by academic field

Below is a list of best universities in South Africa ranked based on their research performance in Aerospace Engineering. A graph of 377K citations received by 19.8K academic papers made by 23 universities in South Africa was used to calculate publications' ratings, which then were adjusted for release dates and added to final scores.

We don't distinguish between undergraduate and graduate programs nor do we adjust for current majors offered. You can find information about granted degrees on a university page but always double-check with the university website.

1. University of Cape Town

South Africa | Cape Town

For Aerospace Engineering

#1 in Africa

#387 in the World

Founded: 1874

2. University of Pretoria

South Africa | Pretoria

For Aerospace Engineering

#2 in Africa

#436 in the World

Enrollment: 48,174
Founded: 1908

3. University of Stellenbosch

South Africa | Stellenbosch

For Aerospace Engineering

#3 in Africa

#489 in the World

Founded: 1918

4. University of the Witwatersrand

South Africa | Johannesburg

For Aerospace Engineering

#4 in Africa

#491 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 34%
Founded: 1922

5. University of KwaZulu-Natal

South Africa | Durban

For Aerospace Engineering

#6 in Africa

#557 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 63%
Founded: 2004

6. University of Johannesburg

South Africa | Johannesburg

For Aerospace Engineering

#19 in Africa

#1094 in the World

Enrollment: 49,910
Founded: 2005

7. North-West University

South Africa | Potchefstroom

For Aerospace Engineering

#21 in Africa

#1128 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 83%
Enrollment: 26,439
Male:Female: 42:58
Founded: 2004

8. Rhodes University

South Africa | Makhanda

For Aerospace Engineering

#32 in Africa

#1474 in the World

Enrollment: 8,200
Founded: 1904

9. Tshwane University of Technology

South Africa | Pretoria

For Aerospace Engineering

#33 in Africa

#1480 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 89%
Founded: 2003

10. University of South Africa

South Africa | Pretoria

For Aerospace Engineering

#36 in Africa

#1502 in the World

Enrollment: 420,000
Male:Female: 36:64
Founded: 1873

11. Cape Peninsula University of Technology

South Africa | Cape Town

For Aerospace Engineering

#37 in Africa

#1510 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 91%
Founded: 2005

12. University of the Free State

South Africa | Bloemfontein

For Aerospace Engineering

#45 in Africa

#1641 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 25%
Enrollment: 37,000
Founded: 1904

13. Nelson Mandela University

South Africa | Port Elizabeth

For Aerospace Engineering

#49 in Africa

#1783 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 57%
Founded: 2005

14. University of the Western Cape

South Africa | Bellville

For Aerospace Engineering

#50 in Africa

#1784 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Enrollment: 24,754
Founded: 1959

15. Durban University of Technology

South Africa | Durban

For Aerospace Engineering

#78 in Africa

#2193 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 75%
Enrollment: 10,213
Founded: 2002

16. University of Limpopo

South Africa | Mankweng

For Aerospace Engineering

#90 in Africa

#2430 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 45%
Founded: 1959

17. University of Fort Hare

South Africa | Alice

For Aerospace Engineering

#104 in Africa

#2739 in the World

Founded: 1916

18. Central University of Technology

South Africa | Bloemfontein

For Aerospace Engineering

#111 in Africa

#2863 in the World

Founded: 1981

19. University of Zululand

South Africa | Kwadlangezwa

For Aerospace Engineering

#123 in Africa

#3135 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 45%
Founded: 1960

20. University of Venda

South Africa | Thohoyandou

For Aerospace Engineering

#125 in Africa

#3176 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 72%
Founded: 1982

21. Vaal University of Technology

South Africa | Vanderbijlpark

For Aerospace Engineering

#127 in Africa

#3243 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 90%
Founded: 1966

22. Mangosuthu University of Technology

South Africa | Durban

For Aerospace Engineering

#156 in Africa

#3794 in the World

Founded: 1979

23. Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University

South Africa | Pretoria

For Aerospace Engineering

#191 in Africa

#4199 in the World

Enrollment: 5,000
Founded: 2014

The best cities to study Aerospace Engineering in South Africa based on the number of universities and their ranks are Cape Town, Pretoria, Stellenbosch, and Johannesburg.