The rate at which graduates are failing to fit in the job market is a sign that something is amiss in the education system of Uganda, and that has to be addressed as quickly as possible.

This is what Ritah Namisango, the principal public relations officer of Makerere University said on Friday on the opening day of the inaugural New Vision Education Expo.

The three-day expo is happening at the Uganda Institute of Information and Communications Technology (UICT) in Nakawa, Kampala.

Namisango said that years ago, most universities were only concerned with graduating students without paying little attention to their future.

She said graduates were not availed with opportunities to gain practical working experience, which she called a mistake.

Speaking to New Vision at the expo, Namisango said the problem of unemployment among youth will be addressed through introducing courses that have elements of a mindset change. 

She said changing students’ mindset will help them critically think about issues they have been facing so that they can find better solutions to them. 

This, she said, will only be achieved by getting education development experts on board to provide career guidance, especially in academics and other opportunities beyond. 

“We have assembled a team of experts and staff to provide information to prospective students about the academic courses, career guidance, and opportunities at Makerere University," she said. 

Several other university administrators at the expo have said the youth in Uganda need a mindset change if they are to enjoy the benefits of experiential learning. This will in turn help alleviate the problem of unemployment among young people in the country.  

Last week, Makerere University vice-chancellor Barnabas Nawangwe, while addressing commissioners from the Education Policy Review Commission (EPRC), stated that the university plans to introduce a course on mindset change. 

According to him, university students hardly implement what they learn because they lack the capacity to reason, and thus, introducing the course would foster deeper thinking about their leaning environment.