Higher Education in Sudan
Incredibly, there have been more than seventy colleges and universities in Sudan, twenty-six of which are presently members of the Association of African Universities. With the illiteracy rate so high, and with so many younger children educationally disadvantaged, it seems highly unlikely that all these schools of higher education in Sudan would even have students. Yet, the reality is they are graduating so many students that there are not adequate jobs for these graduates in the sectors for which they are trained. And due to the redundancy of many institutes, in 2009, the official number of schools of higher education was thirty-three.
Historically, universities served to voice political opinions and to effect change in Sudan, which is the main reason for so many institutes in a country suffering from such high illiteracy rates. But one of the results of the last twenty years of conflict is the shortage of qualified or available professors, as many fled Sudan. In addition, entrance requirements were lowered, and the university programs and the status of degrees experienced severe degradation. Further, the open mindedness of university life changed. As new policies came into effect, both professors and students lost their voices, and the exchange of intellectual ideas was silenced.
Experts agree that to bring back the level of an university education to international standards, and to try and return the campuses to their former open environments, serious change was required. Also, to combat the issues addressed above, in 2007, the Federal Ministry of General Education and the National Council for Strategic Planning drafted a five year plan that outlined specific goals for all levels of education to be completed by the end of 2011.
Following are seven key points that pertain directly to higher education in Sudan.
- Train teachers for higher education institutes.
- Ensure that universities and colleges are strategically placed throughout the country so that all residents, regardless of class have access to educational programs.
- In order to rebuild the country and encourage economic stability and sustainability, scientific research and the requisites of building new economies should be the focus of university programs.
- Admission requirements should be reviewed in an attempt to better match graduating students with the needs of the economy or required labor market. In other words, universities need to graduate students whose field of studies have job openings instead of the reverse where students go without work and much-needed sectors operate without workers.
- Technological infrastructures to be established in universities, colleges and institutes of higher education.
- In compliance with the Millennium Development Goals set out for Sudan, ensure that seventy percent of the student population has access to higher education by 2015. The rate should include a proportional number of both females and males.
- Students should also have access to vocational schools as part of the structure of higher education in Sudan.
Other areas which community leaders believe are important are:
- the need for student unions to remain violent-free in their quests to effect change,
- to involve their communities and make the residents aware of issues,
- and to ensure that university life is lived to the fullest with an open exchange of ideas.
By involving the community, resources such as research and scientific equipment, books, and dilapidated buildings can be upgraded and restored. Plus, it is recognized that extra-curricular activities are just as important as classes and students need to be on campus which is another reason for everyone to be involved in helping to rebuild school resources.
Finally, because there are no jobs, students apply to complete graduate work, but there are few resources available to meet the demands and rigors of graduate programs. If the undergraduate programs are already pulled thin, then the system is even weaker at the graduate level where more students are trying to enter programs. To move forward, this concern needs to be addressed, as higher education in Sudan needs to be the link between the old Sudan and the new way of Sudanese life which includes peace and a stable economy.