The pass rate, which is inclusive of the progressed learners, is a 3.1 percent improvement from the 75.1 percent achieved in 2017, the minister said on Thursday evening.
However, with the progressed learners excluded, the 2018 NSC overall pass rate stands at 79.4 percent, a 2.9 percent improvement from the 76.5 percent achieved in 2017, she said.
Motshekga said: “For the past eight years, we have noted that the NSC pass rate has consistently been above the previous 70 percent glass ceiling. The class of 2018 must be commended for maintaining this trend. Well done to the class of 2018.”
The group is the fourth largest cohort in the history of basic education to register for any NSC examination in the country.
Out of the 78.2 percent pass rate, some 172,000 of the learners qualify for admission to bachelor degrees’ studies.