Education in Uganda
Structure of the Ugandan Education System
The existing structure of the education system in Uganda has been in force since the early 1960s. It consists of seven years of primary education followed by the lower secondary cycle of four years and the upper secondary cycle of two years, after which there are three to five years of university studies.
On successful completion of the primary school cycle, one can either join lower secondary school or take a three-year craft course in a technical school. However, only about 40% of the primary school graduates are absorbed into the secondary cycle, which implies that there are fewer schools than available students, presenting an investment opportunity to private investors.
Successful students completing lower secondary education have four possible outlets:
- Upper secondary school (Advanced Level);
- Technical institutes for a 2-3 year advanced craft course;
- Primary Teacher College (PTC) for a 2 year course; and
- Government’s Department Training Colleges (DTCs).
Graduates of upper secondary have several options depending on their performance in advanced level examinations. They can join: –
- University on private or government sponsorship;
- Institute of Teacher Education, Kyambogo (ITEK);
- A National Teacher’s College for a 2 year course;
- A College of Commerce;
- A Technical College;
- Uganda Polytechnic, Kyambogo (UPK);
- Any of 3 existing public universities on private or government sponsorship
- Private Universities, a number of which have recently sprung up.
- Department Training Colleges.
The important feature of the country’s educational structure is its flexibility in permitting one to exercise their discretion in choosing a course of study, especially after completing upper secondary education.
Description of the Education System in Uganda
The Educational system in Uganda consists of pre-primary, primary, secondary and post secondary or tertiary education.
Pre-primary Education
The demand for pre-primary education is still low and only about 10 percent of the total school going children pass through pre-primary schools. There has so far been lack of government control over this sector resulting into questionable trends regarding the content and quality of the curriculum, teaching methods, facilities, age of entry, quality of teachers and school charges to mention but a few.
Primary Education
The demand for primary education has radically increased with the introduction in 1997 of free primary education for four children in every family. This saw school enrolment increase from 2 million pupils in 1986 to over 6 millions pupils by 1999. There are variations however, between urban and rural areas with the former having more permanent schools and better teaching and instructional materials than the latter.
Secondary Education
This sector has witnessed a growth of over 20 percent in the number of government-aided secondary schools over the last 10 years and a 15% increase in the number of registered private secondary schools the same period. Still the sector is yet to attain the necessary capacity to cope with the large number of primary school leavers.
Post Secondary Education
Between 9,000 and 12,000 students per year qualify to join post-secondary education. However, only about 25 percent of these are absorbed in post-secondary institutions. Makerere University is Uganda’s leading institution of higher learning, accounting for 95 percent of the total University enrolments. The remaining 5 percent are shared between six other Universities at Mbarara, Ndejje, Nkumba, Mbale, Martyrs and Bugema (see Appendix 1). The enrolments into tertiary institutions over the last 10 years increased by over 90 percent while the number of tertiary institutions increased by 1.8 percent in the same period. This indicates that there is need for more institutions at tertiary level to absorb the high numbers of students.