21 Best Physical Therapy schools 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 Physical Therapy. A graph of 213K citations received by 13.1K academic papers made by 21 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 Physical Therapy

#1 in Africa

#162 in the World

Founded: 1874

2. University of the Witwatersrand

South Africa | Johannesburg

For Physical Therapy

#3 in Africa

#392 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 34%
Founded: 1922

3. University of Stellenbosch

South Africa | Stellenbosch

For Physical Therapy

#4 in Africa

#415 in the World

Founded: 1918

4. University of Pretoria

South Africa | Pretoria

For Physical Therapy

#5 in Africa

#579 in the World

Enrollment: 48,174
Founded: 1908

5. University of KwaZulu-Natal

South Africa | Durban

For Physical Therapy

#7 in Africa

#681 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 63%
Founded: 2004

6. North-West University

South Africa | Potchefstroom

For Physical Therapy

#12 in Africa

#914 in the World

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

7. University of the Free State

South Africa | Bloemfontein

For Physical Therapy

#18 in Africa

#1222 in the World

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

8. University of the Western Cape

South Africa | Bellville

For Physical Therapy

#21 in Africa

#1274 in the World

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

9. University of Johannesburg

South Africa | Johannesburg

For Physical Therapy

#27 in Africa

#1402 in the World

Enrollment: 49,910
Founded: 2005

10. Rhodes University

South Africa | Makhanda

For Physical Therapy

#39 in Africa

#1672 in the World

Enrollment: 8,200
Founded: 1904

11. University of Limpopo

South Africa | Mankweng

For Physical Therapy

#41 in Africa

#1741 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 45%
Founded: 1959

12. Tshwane University of Technology

South Africa | Pretoria

For Physical Therapy

#48 in Africa

#1986 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 89%
Founded: 2003

13. Durban University of Technology

South Africa | Durban

For Physical Therapy

#52 in Africa

#2077 in the World

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

14. University of South Africa

South Africa | Pretoria

For Physical Therapy

#53 in Africa

#2124 in the World

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

15. Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University

South Africa | Pretoria

For Physical Therapy

#56 in Africa

#2294 in the World

Enrollment: 5,000
Founded: 2014

16. Nelson Mandela University

South Africa | Port Elizabeth

For Physical Therapy

#58 in Africa

#2332 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 57%
Founded: 2005

17. University of Zululand

South Africa | Kwadlangezwa

For Physical Therapy

#64 in Africa

#2451 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 45%
Founded: 1960

18. Cape Peninsula University of Technology

South Africa | Cape Town

For Physical Therapy

#74 in Africa

#2736 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 91%
Founded: 2005

19. University of Fort Hare

South Africa | Alice

For Physical Therapy

#76 in Africa

#2824 in the World

Founded: 1916

20. Vaal University of Technology

South Africa | Vanderbijlpark

For Physical Therapy

#78 in Africa

#2857 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 90%
Founded: 1966

21. University of Venda

South Africa | Thohoyandou

For Physical Therapy

#111 in Africa

#3403 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 72%
Founded: 1982

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