Tertiary Education

Since 2014, we have been involved in three areas of tertiary education/vocational training providing sponsorship to one student from each of our secondary schools, once they have completed their O Levels (S4). Across the board, head teachers, teachers and students see nursing and midwifery as an extremely good option to secure a worthwhile rewarding career, with very good future prospects either within the government or private sector, both at home in Uganda and in Africa as a whole. Thus, this is their preferred option. It must be noted that it is the most expensive.

Teacher training and the teaching profession are also seen to give good future careers, but not as good as medicine. Presently government policy from the MoES (Ministry of Education and Sports) does still allow P7/PLE pupils to apply to go to teacher training college but the reality is that their applications are ignored as there are enough O Level (S4) applicants to fill the vacancies at the Primary Training Colleges (PTCs) each year. It is expected, in the future, that the government will only allow secondary school candidates to apply, but that is not official policy yet. It is also presumed to be slightly “infra dig” to apply to become a primary school teacher if you have completed O levels, (USE), though we do wonder how many young students regret not taking the opportunity to go on to a teaching career, especially if HvSMF is sponsoring them. This is the cheapest option.

As for vocational training, in the minds of young aspirational O level (USE) candidates, courses such as plumbing etc. are seen to be beneath them. But after their results are known, or their parents realise they are unable to fund their children through A Level, those same students may have to follow a lesser career path. Vocational skills are very much needed as Uganda develops, though it is not seen to be the career of choice

One point to note is that, once O levels have been completed, there is a shortage of students eligible or wanting the various courses offered to them. This is because their O level results are such that they are able to continue to A level and few drop out between O and A level. The grades required for nursing, and to a lesser degree PTC, are very close to the grades required to go on to A Level, so the group of candidates across our secondary schools, that still have an interest with these initiatives, is small.  This small group must also still have the correct grades to apply.  Our head teachers are getting better at preparing their students for interviews when applying for sponsorships.