. Access to higher education was partly affected by expensive tuition fees that were charged by universities and inadequate facilities for example infrastructure to increase enrolments in medical programmes, student accommodation in previously disadvantaged universities etc. The last university established in the country was in 1982 (30 years ago) and it was the University of Venda. . The throughput rate in higher education institutions remained a serious challenge and this was partly caused by poor quality of Grade 12 results. Access should be accompanied by success and the 1.5 million target of headcount enrolments by 2030 would not be achieved without improved matric pass rate. . The basic education system needed to be fixed in order to have improved results in universities. . Universities' reserves were meant for the institutions' strategic projects and not for operational purposes and funding of poor students. Good organisations need to have reserves. . It was noted that if the 1% levy contribution was channelled to NSFAS, the Public Service SETA would not exist and skills development in the public sector would be detrimental. . University of Johannesburg (UJ) used its reserves to expand access and R150 million was used for bursaries to address the challenge of NSFAS shortfall. The University further used part of its reserves together with government funding to establish its Soweto Campus. . There was a need to build a post-school education and training (PSET) system that would cater for 70% participation rate of youth of between 20-30 years old. Government should devise an equivalent plan for academics that would match the new expanded PSET system. There was a need to build more FET colleges in rural areas to expand access. UJ set a target for admission of students from poor rural schools. UJ reserved 10% of 12 000 spaces available for first year entering for students coming from impoverished schools. It was proposed that other institutions begin to categorise admission targets in order to broaden access for students with potential. They also cautioned against free for all admission which would have unintended consequences. . Universities needed to re-examine themselves, inter-institutional articulation blockages should be addressed. The Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) and Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) had good examples of articulation of FET colleges students. The current admission policy that required FET students to qualify with 70% to access higher education while matriculants were admitted with 50% should be reviewed. . The Committee was seriously concerned with financial exclusion of poor students and the current matirc pass rate. Universities that required upfront payment from poor students were doing injustice to the system. Withholding of results because students owed was a serious concern. The NC(V) curriculum should be reviewed and the mixing of Grade 12 with Grade 9 learners to be looked into. . Fee free education was already implemented in FET colleges and it could be implemented in universities as well. Certification rate in FET colleges was very poor owing to poor pass rates in maths, science and English. Additional funding was required in FET colleges to provide adequate academic support. There was a need for a national facility to train FET college lecturers since there was a dire shortage of qualified lecturers in FET colleges. Late release of results and leakage of examination papers remained a serious concern. . Articulation from FET colleges to universities remained a serious challenge. The admission requirements for NC(V) students was not the same with Grade 12 learners. The throughput rate of FET colleges remained a serious concern including the NC(V) pass rate which was 16% in 2011. There was need for a policy that would cater for the training needs of drop-outs. Unlike universities, FET colleges did not have a structure like HESA where colleges' principals could have a platform to discuss their challenges and share good practices. There was a need to establish such a structure for FET colleges. Universities and FET colleges should develop a platform where all the challenges experienced by both sectors were addressed. . Government needed to invest more funding in improving facilities in higher education and training institutions. FET colleges in rural areas did not have sufficient facilities as compared with the ones in urban areas. Student housing in FET colleges remained a serious challenge. The system was still urban biased in terms of better infrastructure and resources. It was proposed that infrastructure audit be conducted at FET colleges. . The current disjuncture in basic education and post school education sector was a concern and there was need for the Committee to discuss this matter and propose a way forward. The inter-institutional articulation should be addressed by the Department and HESA. Universities and FET colleges should play a critical role in rural development. E-learning should be considered as an alternative to improve access to higher education. . A strong partnership between FET colleges and industries was very important for FET students to obtain work placement opportunities easier. . The skills grant for SETAs had been gazetted and SETAs had a very important role of assisting learners to gain experiential learning in their industries. SETAs should consult with their partner industries on placement of FET graduates. . It was proposed that the Department should develop FET information management system.