Several projects are available in our Department to be undertaken by students in 2026 at different levels. This list will update with time, so please check it from time to time or contact any staff members to enquiry about projects on offer that might not be included in the following list.

MSc projects offered in 2026

A/Prof Sarah Blyth Dr Julia Healy	CHARACTERISING THE OPTICAL PROPERTIES OF A2626 GALAXIES
Prof Paul Groot (SARChI)	Modelling system parameters of Galactic Compact binaries
Prof Paul Groot (SARChI)	Where are the black hole – white dwarf binaries?
Prof Paul Groot (SARChI)	Fast optical and radio transients in the Nearby Universe
Prof Paul Groot (SARChI)	The SALT ReSAC Instrumentation project
Dr Lucia Marchetti	Investigating Background Radio Sources in MeerLIRGs
Dr Zara Randriamanakoto	SC2RG Survey: investigating blue stellar clumps in a sample of Collisional Ring Galaxies
Dr Zara Randriamanakoto	A systematic search for remnant radio galaxies
Dr Sarah White	The most-powerful radio-galaxies in the Universe
Dr Moses Mogotsi	Feedback in SUNBIRD Galaxy Interactions
Dr Moses Mogotsi	Multi-wavelength studies of Star formation and Gas Kinematics in Nearby Galaxies
David Buckley	Erupting Dwarf Nova discovered by MASTER

PhD projects offered in 2026

Prof Paul Groot (SARChI)	Breaking the 1 Hz barrier: fast optical transients and variables
Prof Paul Groot (SARChI)	The interior physics of pulsating variables
Assoc. Prof. Sarah Blyth	The gas depletion timescale of star-forming galaxies over cosmic time
Dr Lucia Marchetti	MeerKAT(+) and Euclid Team up: Exploring the galaxy-halo connection at cosmic noon
Zara Randriamanakoto	SC2RG Survey: investigating blue stellar clumps in a sample of Collisional Ring Galaxies

This list of projects also includes several projects eligible for SARAO scholarships. Please check with the prospective supervisor if the project of your choice qualifies for such support. 

Moreover, a number of the MSc and PhD projects offered could be based at the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO), as a number of our academic staff have joint affiliations at UCT Astronomy and the SAAO. For a full list of projects offered at SAAO, but that could be based at UCT, please see the SAAO website. 

Application process

If you are interested in any of the projects listed above, please do the following:

• contact the academic staff member of the project you are interested in and send them a copy of your CV and recent transcripts;

• discuss the research with them to determine if you have the required qualifications, skills and abilities to undertake the project. You may contact as many potential supervisors as you like;

• if the academic staff member agrees to supervise you, discuss details about registration and funding. 

Postgraduate funding

Most of the postgraduate research projects are funded by scholarships from the National Research Foundation (NRF) or the South African Radio Astronomical Observatory (SARAO).

If you require NRF or SARAO funding, you must ensure that you qualify for this support. To do so you can check the relevant documents reported here.

These are the primary mechanisms we have to provide you with a bursary, so you must read these documents carefully.

Completing the NRF application will take time. You must complete your discussions with your potential supervisor(s) well before the deadline to give you time to complete the application by the deadline.

Applications for NRF and SARAO bursaries need to be made through the NRF application portal. 

To access the NRF application portal you will need to register using your ORCID. Instructions on how to obtain an ORCID are reported on the NRF portal or here.

Please note that applications submitted through the NRF portal without an agreement with the prospective supervisor will not be accepted. Once you have submitted your application, you will need to send the ID of your application to your prospective supervisor.

Application deadline:

Please consult this UCT page for a comprehensive lists of deadlines for the various bursaries on offer.
No application will be accepted after the deadline.

Postgraduate Registration

Details of the registration process at UCT can be found on the Faculty of Science web page.