IS MAKERERE PROGRAMME MERGER FEASIBLE?
Jul 29, 2008
SILENCE! Grumbling and later a scuffle ensue, as undergraduate students storm one of the lecture rooms for evening tuition. A few of them cannot have seats due to congestion.
BY CONAN BUSINGE
SILENCE! Grumbling and later a scuffle ensue, as undergraduate students storm one of the lecture rooms for evening tuition. A few of them cannot have seats due to congestion.
This is Makerere University, whose evening and day programmes are soon to be shelved into the evening shift!
According to sources, the University’s Council now thinks it is the best way to cut down costs. They want all students to study in the evening. “What an ambitious venture,†gasps an Arts student.
The evening programme started as a small money-making venture, to supplement academic staff earnings. But it seems to be eating away the whole university, for the sake of financing the operations of the institution.
Prof. Mahmood Mamdani wrote: “The assumption was that day-time courses with government-sponsored students would be taught by core staff, but evening courses with private students would be taught by part-time and temporary staff under the supervision of coordinators and assistant coordinators.â€
According to their coordinators, Organisational Studies and Development Studies had no core staff in 2003/04; the entire staff was part-time. Urban Planning was mostly run by part-time staff. Later, the trend changed and the same lecturers for day programme would also handle the evening students. They would be paid extra money from the private wing.
However, lecturers say the limited space and congestion will strain the facilities. Courses like B.A Social Sciences and B.A Arts have over 1,500 students. Under the new arrangement, lecturers would be paid once, unlike previously when they would earn money for teaching private students and also salaries for teaching government-sponsored students.
“This cannot work. How do you tell us to teach all students in the evening? It is not practical. I’m very sure that it will not work,†says the academic staff’s chief, Dr. Augustus Nuwagaba.
The introduction of evening programmes and distance education programmes was also to cater for the working class. Because of this, there has been an enormous increase in the students enrolling for programmes at Makerere. By 1991, Makerere had a total enrollment of 5,597 undergraduate students, but by 2006, it had grown to 17,019 undergraduates.
The students’ chief, Robert Rutaro, says: “Most of the day programmes are still capable of attending the afternoon shifts. There is no need to shift them to evening. It is unreasonable! We will fight it.â€
The university has about 32,000 students on both government and private sponsored programmes to-date. The fees-paying evening programme has been contributing about 43% of its income to the central administration of the university, a source said.
However, a source in management of the university says that “shifting all students to evening is just in plans. It will take time and that there is no need to panic.â€
Efforts to reach the university’s council chairperson, Matthew Rukikaire and the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Livingstone Luboobi on the planned move were futile.
SILENCE! Grumbling and later a scuffle ensue, as undergraduate students storm one of the lecture rooms for evening tuition. A few of them cannot have seats due to congestion.
This is Makerere University, whose evening and day programmes are soon to be shelved into the evening shift!
According to sources, the University’s Council now thinks it is the best way to cut down costs. They want all students to study in the evening. “What an ambitious venture,†gasps an Arts student.
The evening programme started as a small money-making venture, to supplement academic staff earnings. But it seems to be eating away the whole university, for the sake of financing the operations of the institution.
Prof. Mahmood Mamdani wrote: “The assumption was that day-time courses with government-sponsored students would be taught by core staff, but evening courses with private students would be taught by part-time and temporary staff under the supervision of coordinators and assistant coordinators.â€
According to their coordinators, Organisational Studies and Development Studies had no core staff in 2003/04; the entire staff was part-time. Urban Planning was mostly run by part-time staff. Later, the trend changed and the same lecturers for day programme would also handle the evening students. They would be paid extra money from the private wing.
However, lecturers say the limited space and congestion will strain the facilities. Courses like B.A Social Sciences and B.A Arts have over 1,500 students. Under the new arrangement, lecturers would be paid once, unlike previously when they would earn money for teaching private students and also salaries for teaching government-sponsored students.
“This cannot work. How do you tell us to teach all students in the evening? It is not practical. I’m very sure that it will not work,†says the academic staff’s chief, Dr. Augustus Nuwagaba.
The introduction of evening programmes and distance education programmes was also to cater for the working class. Because of this, there has been an enormous increase in the students enrolling for programmes at Makerere. By 1991, Makerere had a total enrollment of 5,597 undergraduate students, but by 2006, it had grown to 17,019 undergraduates.
The students’ chief, Robert Rutaro, says: “Most of the day programmes are still capable of attending the afternoon shifts. There is no need to shift them to evening. It is unreasonable! We will fight it.â€
The university has about 32,000 students on both government and private sponsored programmes to-date. The fees-paying evening programme has been contributing about 43% of its income to the central administration of the university, a source said.
However, a source in management of the university says that “shifting all students to evening is just in plans. It will take time and that there is no need to panic.â€
Efforts to reach the university’s council chairperson, Matthew Rukikaire and the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Livingstone Luboobi on the planned move were futile.