Software for students

UCT pays for a number of software packages to be used under site licences. This means that you are allowed to use the software for as long as you are a student and that you’ll need to remove it once you leave UCT.  In addition to site licensed software, the Downloads page offers other useful free software.

You are entitled to a number of site-licensed software packages which include research support software (such as EndNote and Nvivo), Statistical and computational software (such as Statistica, MATLAB and SPSS), productivity software (Microsoft 365), accessibility software (Read&Write) and more.

Standard software is also loaded onto computers in the student computing labs. Some faculties pay for specialised software to be made available in their labs so that students have access to it for specific courses. MATLAB, in the Science faculty, is one such example.

As a registered student, you are allowed to install Microsoft 365 on up to 5 personal devices.

You also have access to Microsoft Azure for Students, a cloud based platform which offers users a host of remote computing products and services. By using the service, you can host your projects in the cloud and use the many tools available to build and develop.

How to get software

1. Visit the Downloads page.
2. Select the operating system you use.
3. Select the type of software you are looking for.
4. Select the application you want and install it.