Every kind of college a Pretoria learner can actually enrol at — public TVET campuses, DHET-registered private colleges and QCTO-accredited providers — with the register you can check each one on before you pay a cent.
Last updated: 16 September 2026
Pretoria has ten public TVET college campuses run by Tshwane North and Tshwane South, a small number of DHET-registered private colleges, and a larger group of QCTO-accredited skills development providers offering occupational qualifications. Which one you choose depends on your field, your marks and how you plan to pay.
| Question | Short answer |
|---|---|
| Public TVET campuses in Tshwane | 10, across Tshwane North (6) and Tshwane South (4) |
| Where to check a private college | The DHET Register of Private Colleges, updated 18 May 2026 |
| Where to check an occupational provider | The QCTO database of accredited skills development providers |
| Who NSFAS funds | Students at public universities and public TVET colleges only |
| Wheelset Academy campuses | Hatfield, Pretoria and Kempton Park, Johannesburg |
| Wheelset qualification levels | NQF 4 to NQF 6 occupational certificates |
| Wheelset registration fee | R3,000 to R5,000 once-off, then monthly instalments |
| Next intake | Wheelset Academy enrols throughout the year — contact the campus for the next start date |
Most people searching for colleges in Pretoria already know roughly what they want to study and are really asking who offers it nearby. Start here, then check the full table underneath.
Look for a provider accredited for the trade qualification and able to prepare you for a trade test, not only for short skills programmes. Wheelset Academy runs these as QCTO occupational qualifications at the Hatfield campus with practical work at the Kameeldrift yard.
The occupational health and safety route runs Assistant, Officer and Practitioner. If you are already working on site, the Officer qualification is usually the right entry point rather than a one-day safety course.
Ask whether the qualification is registered on the NQF or is a vendor certificate. Both have value, but only the first is a qualification an employer can verify on the national framework.
ECD practitioners need a registered qualification to work in a registered centre. Check the NQF level on the offer letter before you enrol, because centres are asked for it during registration.
The lists you will find elsewhere mix high schools, private academies and universities together. This table separates them by what they are legally registered as, because that is what determines whether your certificate is worth anything.
| Institution | Campus or suburb | Type | Accreditation you can check | Main fields |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wheelset Academy | Hatfield, Pretoria | QCTO SDP | QCTO 07-QCTO/SDP130324103201, TETA 21-1321, CETA ACC/22/07/00030 | Trades, OHS, IT, ECD, training and development, machine operating |
| Tshwane North TVET College | Pretoria CBD | Public TVET | DHET public college | Engineering, business studies |
| Tshwane North TVET College | Mamelodi East | Public TVET | DHET public college | Engineering, business studies |
| Tshwane North TVET College | Rosslyn | Public TVET | DHET public college | Engineering, automotive |
| Tshwane North TVET College | Soshanguve South | Public TVET | DHET public college | Engineering, business studies |
| Tshwane North TVET College | Soshanguve North | Public TVET | DHET public college | Engineering, business studies |
| Tshwane North TVET College | Temba, Hammanskraal | Public TVET | DHET public college | Engineering, business studies |
| Tshwane South TVET College | Pretoria West | Public TVET | DHET public college | Engineering |
| Tshwane South TVET College | Atteridgeville | Public TVET | DHET public college | Engineering, business studies |
| Tshwane South TVET College | Centurion | Public TVET | DHET public college | Business studies, hospitality |
| Tshwane South TVET College | Odi, Mabopane | Public TVET | DHET public college | Engineering, business studies |
| Curro Holdings | Kameeldrift, Pretoria | Private college | 2018/FE07/054 | General further education |
| Proearth | Centurion | Private college | 2023/FE07/005 | General further education |
| Project Literacy Education Centres | Arcadia, Pretoria | Private college | 2024/FE07/004 | Adult and further education |
Public campus details from the colleges' own websites (tnc.edu.za and tsc.edu.za). Private college entries and registration numbers from the Department of Higher Education and Training Register of Private Colleges, updated 18 May 2026. The register is the live list — if a provider is not on it, treat this table as out of date rather than treating the provider as registered.
Wheelset Academy is a QCTO-accredited skills development provider offering occupational qualifications from NQF 4 to NQF 6. Theory happens at the Hatfield campus in Pretoria; practical training for the machine and trade qualifications happens at the Kameeldrift training yard outside the city.
Hatfield campus: 353 Festival Street, Hatfield, 0028 · WhatsApp 078 365 9579Occupational qualifications through the QCTO, transport and logistics training through TETA, and construction qualifications through CETA. Every number is published, not described.
A once-off registration fee, then monthly instalments across the programme, plus a portfolio of evidence fee. Paying the full amount upfront earns a discount.
If you need a licence or a certificate in days rather than months, the machine operator and safety short courses run from the same group at a separate site.
Tshwane has two public TVET colleges between them running ten campuses. They are the cheapest legitimate route into engineering, business and hospitality study, and the only colleges in Pretoria that NSFAS funds. The trade-off is that intakes are fixed, places are limited and you apply months ahead.
| Campus | Address | College |
|---|---|---|
| Pretoria | 420 Helen Joseph Street, Pretoria | Tshwane North |
| Mamelodi | 19403 Serapeng Road, Mamelodi East | Tshwane North |
| Rosslyn | Ernest Oppenheimer Street, Rosslyn | Tshwane North |
| Soshanguve South | 1973 Phirima Road, Block G, Soshanguve | Tshwane North |
| Soshanguve North | 3165 College Road, Block L, Soshanguve | Tshwane North |
| Temba | 3744 Jubilee Road, Temba | Tshwane North |
| Pretoria West | 150 Industrial Road, Pretoria West, 0002 | Tshwane South |
| Atteridgeville | 5 Khoza Street, Atteridgeville, 0008 | Tshwane South |
| Centurion | College Street, Zwartkop, Lyttelton, 0157 | Tshwane South |
| Odi | 5454 Lucas Mangope Road, Mabopane Unit M, 0190 | Tshwane South |
TVET qualifications are mostly NATED report 191 programmes, known as N1 to N6, and NC(V) programmes at NQF 2 to 4. They are not the same thing as an occupational qualification, which is assessed through an external assessment set by the QCTO rather than by the college itself.
This is where most people get caught. Three different kinds of institution all call themselves colleges, and they are registered under three different systems.
Registered with the Department of Higher Education and Training to offer further education and training. The registration number looks like 2024/FE07/004, and it appears on the DHET Register of Private Colleges.
Registered to award higher education qualifications such as diplomas and degrees. It sits on a different DHET register with a different number format, and accreditation comes from the Council on Higher Education.
Accredited by the QCTO, or by a SETA, to deliver occupational qualifications and skills programmes. The accreditation number identifies the provider and the specific qualifications it may offer.
A provider can be legitimately accredited as one of these and not the others. That is not a red flag on its own — Wheelset Academy is a QCTO-accredited provider, not a private higher education institution, and says so. The red flag is a provider that will not name which category it falls into or give you its number.
This takes about ten minutes and it is the single most useful thing on this page. Do it for any college in Pretoria, including this one.
If a provider tells you it is "SETA accredited" without naming the SETA or the number, that sentence means nothing. Accreditation is always specific: a body, a number and a list of qualifications.
Published fees move every year, so this page deliberately does not quote other institutions' numbers. What is stable is the shape of the cost, and that is what you should compare when you phone around.
| Cost item | Public TVET college | Private college or QCTO provider |
|---|---|---|
| Registration | Once-off, low, paid at the campus | Once-off, higher, often secures your seat |
| Tuition | Per trimester or semester | Monthly instalments across the programme |
| Assessment | Included in the programme fee | A separate portfolio of evidence fee is common |
| External assessment | Not applicable to N programmes | Payable for QCTO qualifications with an external assessment |
| NSFAS | Yes, if you qualify | No |
| Discounts | Rare | Usually for paying the full amount upfront |
At Wheelset Academy the registration fee is R3,000 to R5,000 depending on the qualification, the portfolio of evidence fee is R2,500, and the balance runs as monthly instalments. Current amounts for every qualification are kept on one page rather than repeated across the site.
Learners travel to the Hatfield campus from across Tshwane, and the reason is almost always transport rather than distance.
Send your name, the qualification you are interested in and your highest school grade. The admissions team replies with entry requirements, the payment plan and the next intake date.
Public and private applications work differently, and missing the public deadline is the most common reason people end up paying more than they needed to.
There are ten public TVET college campuses in Tshwane, run by Tshwane North TVET College and Tshwane South TVET College. On top of that there is a small number of DHET-registered private colleges with Pretoria addresses, and a larger group of QCTO-accredited skills development providers. There is no single number because the three categories are registered separately.
Tshwane North TVET College runs campuses in Pretoria CBD, Mamelodi, Rosslyn, Soshanguve North, Soshanguve South and Temba. Tshwane South TVET College runs Pretoria West, Atteridgeville, Centurion and Odi. Wheelset Academy and other QCTO-accredited providers offer occupational qualifications from campuses across the city, including Hatfield.
Yes. Some are registered with the Department of Higher Education and Training as private colleges, which is what the FE07 registration number signals. Others are accredited by the QCTO as skills development providers. Both are legitimate, but they are different registrations, so ask which one a provider holds before enrolling.
Ask for the accreditation or registration number in writing, then look it up yourself. Private colleges appear on the DHET Register of Private Colleges. Providers of occupational qualifications appear on the QCTO database of accredited skills development providers. Check that the specific qualification you want is inside the provider's approved scope, not only that the provider exists on the list.
No. NSFAS funds students at public universities and public TVET colleges. Private colleges and private skills development providers are not funded by NSFAS, which is why most of them offer monthly payment plans instead. Some learners are funded by an employer, a SETA discretionary grant or a learnership.
It is a qualification registered on the national framework by the QCTO, made up of knowledge, practical skills and workplace components. You finish with an external assessment set outside the college, which is why the certificate carries weight with employers. Wheelset Academy offers these from NQF 4 to NQF 6.
Both Tshwane TVET colleges offer engineering studies, and QCTO-accredited providers offer the trade qualifications for electrician, plumber, welder, boilermaker and bricklayer. The question to ask is whether the provider can take you through to a trade test, or only through the theory portion.
It is recognised if the qualification is registered on the national qualifications framework and the provider was accredited to offer it. That is a fact you can verify on SAQA and the relevant register. A certificate from an unaccredited provider is not recognised, however professional the training was.
Public TVET colleges open and close applications on a fixed annual cycle, so check each college's own site for the current dates. Private providers and QCTO skills development providers accept applications for longer. Wheelset Academy enrols throughout the year rather than on a single annual intake, so contact the Hatfield or Kempton Park campus for the next start date.
A TVET college is a public institution funded by the state, offering mainly N programmes and NC(V) programmes, with NSFAS funding available. A private college is privately owned and registered with DHET, funded by student fees. Neither is automatically better; what matters is the qualification, the accreditation and whether you can attend and afford it.
Often yes. Many occupational qualifications and NC(V) programmes are designed for entry below matric level, and there are foundational programmes for adults returning to study. Entry requirements are set per qualification, so ask for the requirement of the specific qualification rather than a general answer.
QCTO-accredited occupational qualifications from NQF 4 to NQF 6, with a monthly payment plan and a second campus in Kempton Park.
