CPUT and dental council’s accreditation clash shatters students’ graduation dreams

The dream of graduation has turned into a nightmare for 42 dental technology students at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT).

Trapped in the crossfire between their institution and the South African Dental Technicians Council (SADTC), these students are watching their professional futures evaporate as a three-year dispute over accreditation and “hazardous” facilities reaches a breaking point.

The human cost of this administrative deadlock is stark. Students have been unable to study properly since June 2025, leading to the cancellation of NSFAS funding for many, who now face the double blow of academic delays and mounting debt. On 8 April 2026, the frustration boiled over into fresh protests at the Bellville campus, bringing university shuttles to a halt as students fought to force a resolution.

On 6 April 2026, Daily Maverick reported that students had been caught up in a long and frustrating battle between their university and SADTC over course accreditation, the final practical exit-level examination, laboratory issues and registration with the council.

FOR CONTEXT

Students face graduation delays and uncertain futures amid CPUT and dental council conflict

April 6, 2026

Job offer withdrawn

For final-year students, the timing of this collapse is devastating. Graduation season has arrived, but for those in the dental programme, there are no gowns or certificates, only uncertainty.

“They are telling us about compliance certificates; they are telling us about the fire department, the SADTC, DHET, and all random excuses. It has gotten to a point where we are begging the institution to at least give us labs to work in… I am a final-year student. I’m supposed to be graduating this April. Last year, I got a job opportunity because the lab owner was fond of my work, and he told me that once I graduate, I can work with him. Now, come April, I still won’t graduate. That means that I’ve lost out on that job opportunity,” said a final-year student who asked to remain anonymous.

Another student, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said the cohort felt isolated. “They just want to host their graduation, but nothing is happening. People feel like we are destroying their education, but they do not understand our matter.”

Brewing tension

At the heart of the “war” is a breakdown in communication between the university and the regulatory council. The SADTC mandates concurrent council registration for student graduation and joint oversight of practical exams, conditions that CPUT struggles to meet due to its statutory and institutional graduation framework.

In a sharp letter dated 31 March 2026, SADTC President Peter Owen delivered a crushing blow to Vice-Chancellor Professor Chris Nhlapo, saying, “The dental technology programme at CPUT remains unaccredited by Council until such time as these conditions precedent are met, and therefore the programme cannot continue until such time as these conditions are met.”

The blow came after Nhlapo expressed shock at the move to not accredit the course, noting that “no previous correspondence regarding full suspension was ever communicated to CPUT”. He maintained that the university was merely awaiting compliance approval for its new Tygervalley site.

CPUT spokesperson Lauren Kansley has framed the issue as an overreach by the regulator that could lead to a national oral health emergency. She maintains that the programme remains accredited by the Council on Higher Education, regardless of the SADTC’s stance. She said the unresolved issue between the Universities of Technology (Durban University of Technology, Tshwane University of Technology and CPUT) and SADTC is a precursor to a possible oral health emergency in the country.

“Despite the SADTC’s claims that they have ‘suspended’ the programme, we want to be clear that Dental Technology remains an accredited programme by the Council on Higher Education. SADTC is responsible for ensuring the standards of the programme are upheld and should endorse students once they graduate so that they may be employed. They have refused to do the latter... The university has stressed that this is not the function of the oversight stakeholder, and we have now escalated this matter to the ministerial level... We are fully compliant and competent to administer the dental technicians course.”

Council won’t budge

However, the SADTC remains unmoved. Owen countered that “a university cannot offer a professional degree programme unless that programme has been approved by the regulatory authority for that profession”.

As the university and the council exchange accusations, the 42 students remain the primary victims. While CPUT says that an “action plan” is in place, the reality on the ground is frightening for students.

Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) spokesperson Phaphama Tshisikhawe told Daily Maverick that the Diploma in Dental Technology programme at TUT is accredited by the SADTC.

“Students enrolled in the programme are registered as student dental technicians with the SADTC, and upon successful completion of the diploma, graduates are eligible to register as qualified dental technicians with the council,” said Tshisikhawe.

Daily Maverick asked Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) spokesperson Matshepo Seedat for clarity on the ministerial intervention, but no response had been received by the time of publication. DM