The Department of Basic Education has released the final timetable for the 2026 National Senior Certificate (NSC) examinations, with written tests set to run from Tuesday, 13 October to Thursday, 26 November across the country, including the Cape Flats.
The schedule, published on the Western Cape Government website and first reported by IOL, shows that some practical and school-based assessments begin earlier, while three non-examination days break the main session in early November.
Grade 12 learners at schools in Mitchells Plain, Khayelitsha, Athlone and the wider Cape Town metro will face their first major hurdle on 1 September, when the Life Orientation Common Assessment Task (CAT) is written.
That internal component carries compulsory weighting, and the date applies nationally according to the timetable verified by Cape Flats News.
Computer Applications Technology Paper 1 Practical and Information Technology Paper 1 Practical open the main written period on 13 October, the department confirmed.
Performing Arts and Visual Arts and Design assessments are also slated outside the central written window, with practical submission and exhibition dates set by individual schools in consultation with district offices.
“Follow all examination rules strictly. Arrive early at your centres with your admission letter and valid ID. Stay calm, read questions carefully, and manage your time well. Believe in the hard work you have put in,” said KwaZulu-Natal Education MEC Sipho Hlomuka in a statement published earlier this week.
The Western Cape Education Department has not issued a separate advisory at this stage, but district officials confirmed the identical timetable applies to all public schools and registered independent examination centres in the province.
Morning sessions begin at 09:00 and afternoon sessions at 14:00, with the heaviest concentration of high-enrolment subjects — including Mathematics, Mathematical Literacy, Physical Sciences and Life Sciences — spread across the seven-week stretch.
The built-in non-examination days fall on 3, 4 and 5 November, giving learners a three-day breather before the final push.
Computer Applications Technology and Information Technology practical rewrites, together with other concluding papers, land on 26 November, the final day.
Education analyst and former district curriculum adviser Thembeka Ndlovu, who works with schools in the Cape Flats, said the earlier start for LO CAT often catches families off guard.
“That task is not a trial run; it’s the real mark that goes to the certificate. Every year we see learners underestimate it,” she told Cape Flats News by phone.
For many households in areas like Hanover Park, Manenberg and Langa, the timetable release signals the last lap of a pressured year, with university and TVET college admissions depending on these results.
Learners can download the full timetable from the Western Cape Government website or obtain a printed copy from their school’s exam secretary.
The first set of results for subjects assessed outside the main written session will be collated shortly after the final paper on 26 November, with the full national results expected to be released in January 2027.