Inscape Education Group (Inscape): Courses, Prospectus and Applications for 2027

Inscape Education Group is one of South Africa's longest-running private design schools. It began in 1981 as the Inscape Study Centre in Illovo, Johannesburg, founded by Harry Edmonds and Cherry Whitehead, offering part-time interior design classes. Graphic design followed in 1986, along with a Cape Town branch, and over the next decades the college added computer-aided design training, three-year diplomas (from 1997), a Pretoria hub (1998), DHET registration (2000), its first Bachelor of Design accreditation (2006), distance learning and a Durban hub (2011), and its first BA Honours graduates (2019). In 2021 RMB Corvest took a 49% stake and a Stellenbosch hub opened, and in 2022 the group rebranded as Inscape Education Group. It describes itself as the first multi-disciplinary design institution in the country and is a member of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation network, which shows in its focus on sustainable and circular design.

Inscape is registered with the Department of Higher Education and Training as a private higher education institution (registration number 2000/HE07/002) under the Higher Education Act of 1997.

Learning hubs

- Pretoria (central hub, Waterkloof Glen, next to the Menlyn Maine precinct), which offers the widest range of specialisations
- Midrand (Halfway Gardens, between Johannesburg and Pretoria)
- Cape Town (De Waterkant)
- Umhlanga (Umhlanga Ridge, KwaZulu-Natal)
- Stellenbosch (Bosman's Crossing) and the Stellenbosch School of Business and Innovation in Technopark
- Distance Learning, for students anywhere in the country

Qualifications

- Higher Certificates (1 year): Architectural Technology, Design Techniques, Fashion Design, Interior Decorating and Entrepreneurship. Several are also offered by distance.
- Diplomas (3 years): Graphic Design and Interior Design.
- Bachelor's degrees (3 years): Bachelor of Design specialising in Graphic Design, Fashion Design or Ideation Design, Bachelor of Design in Interior Design, and Bachelor of Arts in Digital Marketing and Communication (contact or distance).
- Further studies: Advanced Diploma in User Experience Design and Bachelor of Arts Honours in Design (contact or distance).
- Skills training: one-year Fundamental courses by distance in graphic design, UX design, digital marketing, architectural design, fashion design and interior design, with no entry requirements.

The Higher Certificate in Architectural Technology holds SACAP validation, which allows graduates to register as candidate architectural draughtspersons.

How teaching works

Inscape describes its programmes as up to 90% practical, taught by lecturers who work in industry. Contact classes run in studio-based hubs with workshops, material libraries and design software. Distance students study online with digital study guides, live support and resources such as ProQuest, LinkedIn Learning and Grammarly. Each hub has a principal, an academic manager and support staff, and students can get help on courses, accommodation and student life through WhatsApp brand ambassadors.

Fees and funding

Fees are published in annual contact and distance fee guides. Each programme has a tuition fee and a study pack that includes software (such as Adobe Creative Cloud and Microsoft Office), textbooks, stationery and, for many courses, a drawing tablet. A R1 000 non-refundable pre-verification fee applies when you apply. For 2027, paying by 30 September 2026 earns early-bird rates, and you can pay upfront or through a 10% deposit and 11 monthly instalments. Inscape partners with Student Hero to help students compare study loan options, and it runs a scholarship programme.

How to apply

Choose a course on inscape.ac, click through to the online enrolment portal and pay the pre-verification fee. The Pretoria hub can be reached on 012 346 2189, and open days and campus tours are held at each hub.

Useful documents (official PDFs):
- IEG0518 2027 Contact Fees Guide 1.4: https://www.inscape.ac/app/uploads/2026/04/IEG0518-2027-Contact-Fees-Guide-1.4.pdf
- IEG0518 2026 2027 Distance Fees Guide 1.4: https://www.inscape.ac/app/uploads/2026/04/IEG0518-2026-2027-Distance-Fees-Guide-1.4.pdf
- BA Hons: https://www.inscape.ac/app/uploads/2024/07/BA-Hons.pdf
- AD DIP UX: https://www.inscape.ac/app/uploads/2024/07/AD-DIP-UX.pdf
- Inscape Bachelor of Arts in Digital Marketing and Communication: https://www.inscape.ac/app/uploads/2024/10/Inscape-Bachelor-of-Arts-in-Digital-Marketing-and-Communication.pdf
- BDES Fashion Design: https://www.inscape.ac/app/uploads/2024/10/BDES-Fashion-Design.pdf
- Bachelor of Design specialising in Graphic Design: https://www.inscape.ac/app/uploads/2024/10/Bachelor-of-Design-specialising-in-Graphic-Design.pdf
- BDES ID: https://www.inscape.ac/app/uploads/2024/11/BDES-ID.pdf
- Bachelor of Design specialising in Ideation Design: https://www.inscape.ac/app/uploads/2024/09/Bachelor-of-Design-specialising-in-Ideation-Design.pdf
- Diploma in Graphic Design: https://www.inscape.ac/app/uploads/2024/10/Diploma-in-Graphic-Design.pdf
- DIP ID: https://www.inscape.ac/app/uploads/2024/11/DIP-ID.pdf
- HCERT AT V13 22 Jan compressed: https://www.inscape.ac/app/uploads/2024/11/HCERT-AT_V13_22-Jan_compressed.pdf