Discover the Faculty of Military Science
Stellenbosch University's (SU) Faculty of Military Science is the collocatred with the South African Military Academy. The Faculty of Military Science provides a service to the Department of Defence (DoD) by providing professional military education to primarily, but not exclusively, candidate and commissioned officers of the DoD.
Faculty of Military Science Divisions
The Faculty of Military Science, co-located with the South African Military Academy in Saldanha, forms the academic heart of officer development within the South African National Defence Force (SANDF). Together, the Faculty and the Academy constitute a unique partnership between a leading South African university and the Department of Defence, dedicated to cultivating intellectually grounded, technologically proficient, and operationally effective military leaders.
The Faculty of Military Science (FMS) is sub-divided into Divisions that house the academy programmes. The divisions are:
- Division for Security and Africa Studies
- Division for Defence Management, Organisation and Human Resource Sciences
- Division for Defence Science and Technology
The FMS through these divisions, is responsible for delivering accredited higher education programmes—most notably the Bachelor of Military Science (BMil) degree and a range of postgraduate qualifications—designed to enhance the professional, analytical, and strategic competencies of commissioned and selected non-commissioned officers. Through specialised disciplines such as Military Geography, Computer Information Systems, Technology, Nautical Science, Aeronautics, and Military Psychology, the Faculty provides a rigorous academic foundation that supports informed decision-making, critical reasoning, and lifelong professional development across all SANDF services.
The South African Military Academy, functioning alongside the FMS, provides the military, leadership, physical development, and character-building environment essential for shaping officers who are not only academically proficient but also militarily capable and ethically grounded. The Academy instils the leadership qualities, discipline, and professional ethos required of commissioned and non-commissioned officers entrusted with command responsibilities in complex operational settings.
Together, the Faculty of Military Science and the Military Academy fulfil a shared mandate:
to prepare and develop SANDF officers—both commissioned and non-commissioned—through a balanced integration of university-level education and military leadership training.
Their combined efforts ensure the production of well-educated, adaptive, and mission-ready leaders who can navigate the evolving challenges of modern defence, contribute meaningfully to joint operations, and support the strategic objectives of the SANDF and the broader national security framework.