Victoria University, an affiliate of the prestigious Buckingham University is a new university that is set to open its doors to students in Uganda in September. East African Business Week's Paul Tentena spoke to the Vice Chancellor Professor Martin O'Hara about the university's agenda and plans. Below are the Excerpts;
Give me a brief background of Victoria University?
Victoria University received its provisional operating license from the National Council for Higher Education on the 17th December, 2010. The University is located on Kira Road approximately opposite the National Museum.
How ready are you so far?
All lecture theatres are equipped with comfortable study chairs and digital projection facilities. Internet access is provided through LAN and wireless connections.
A modern reference library and computing laboratories have been established. All our degree students will receive a free laptop, free internet access and a free book-pack to ensure that they can take best advantage of their study opportunity. We are working with partner universities in the UK to bring British degrees to Africa and to ensure that all Victoria programmes are benchmarked to international standards and global best practice.
The sponsor of Victoria University is Edulink Holdings which is also developing a new medical clinic - the Victoria Medical Centre - at the Campus. The clinic developed in partnership with John Hopkins University Hospital based in the USA. Edulink Holdings is a subsidiary company of Edulink Consultants which operates in the UK and the Middle East.
Who are you Professor Martin O'Hara?
I have extensive experience when it comes to universities in Africa. I have been a Vice-Rector Academic at the National University of Rwanda and Vice-Chancellor of Kabarak University in Kenya.
I have about 8 years working for the University of Malawi, where I was elected twice as Chair of the Malawi Group of Professional Engineers. I am a geologist and chartered civil engineer, with a PhD from University of Exeter in Natural Hazards Research in Tropical Environments.
I worked in universities in the UK including the University of Hull, University College Scarborough and the University of Plymouth. Before becoming an academician, I worked in the civil and mining engineering industry in the UK and for the Geological Survey of Jamaica in the Caribbean.
What new ideas are you offering?
In September this year we will offer degrees in, BSc in Business and Management, BSc in Business and Management with Information Systems, BSc in Accounting and Financial Management, BSc in Computing, BSc in Public Health, Bachelor of Nursing Science. These degrees are supported by a Degree Preparatory Programme which is designed to bridge the gap between school and university so that our students are equipped with the skills they need to best maximize their learning potential.
In addition, we offer an International Foundation Programme leading to University of Buckingham certification. This is especially suitable for students coming from countries like Kenya where the School Leaving Certificate does not qualify school leavers to enter a standard British three year honours degree programme.
In 2012, we will introduce an exciting range of new undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, several of which will be breaking new ground in terms of career and graduate prospects. In January 2012, we will take a second intake into our degree programmes and will also offer part-time opportunities to study for a degree.
In Uganda currently, students have been known to be more of theorists than practical when it comes to dealing with reality and jobs. How is your University going to address this?
Because we are providing British degrees, we are committed to an outcomes-driven curricula in which the emphasis is upon what students do - by taking a student-centred approach to learning, we make sure that students actively engage in their learning process.
Our students will not simply receive and record information in the classroom - we used to call this the "talk and chalk: approach in Rwanda. Instead our students will be required to develop their knowledge, understanding and skills through active research, participation in group activities and challenging assignments that are designed to develop a comprehensive range of employability skills.
Our programmes emphasize the importance of students developing a wide range of employability skills, including understanding and awareness of the role of the entrepreneur and the opportunities to apply one's knowledge in a commercial environment.
What student capacity can the university handle and, in what courses?
The University plans to grow rapidly: the Kira Road campus will accommodate up to about 2,500 students but we are already looking for further accommodation to support the programmes we intend to introduce in engineering, petroleum science and technology.
Any other further comments regarding the Education sector in Uganda?
The main development challenge facing countries in Africa is one of capacity. This creates many bottlenecks in the development process but mostly the underlying problems come back to there not being enough graduates with modern up-do-date knowledge and a full range of graduate skills.
This is where Victoria can help - most of our programmes come straight from western practice with up-to-date curricula and modern approaches to teaching, learning and assessment. Our graduates will have the up-to-date knowledge and the comprehensive skill sets that are most required by industry and businesses in the region.
Our approach will be business-oriented from the outset. Our students will learn how to behave and react in business environments and develop a professional understanding of the world of work.
Governments, working together with the business, industrial and services sectors of national economies have an important role to play in terms of opening up access to and widening participation in higher education.
Universities like Victoria can develop the expertise, programmes etc. that will spur economic growth but, traditionally, too many able people are not able to benefit, basically because they need to be in work and cannot afford the cost and time involved istudying even when taken on a part-time basis. However, employers can facilitate training at this level by working with us to develop more customer-friendly modes of study such as in-service training and, my particular favorite, day release in which the employer is released for one day a week to upgrade their qualifications.
Another area where government can provide a lead is to develop a professional culture which places short course training - continuing professional development or CPD courses - at the centre of business life.
Subscribe to this comment's feed
