The Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA) has intensified efforts to build the capacity of higher education stakeholders by launching a new initiative aimed at harmonizing quality standards across the East African Community (EAC) and the Africa Centers of Excellence.
Since 2006, IUCEA, in collaboration with national higher education commissions and councils, has been developing policy frameworks to ensure consistent and high-quality higher education in the region such as the Standards and Guidelines for Postgraduate Studies in East Africa. In partnership with the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), IUCEA initiated training workshops for postgraduate supervisors in 2017.
The new EAC Training Programme for Postgraduate Supervisors addresses the crucial role of effective and quality supervision in postgraduate education. The programme targets common supervision challenges, including limited supervisor availability, inadequate feedback, and lack of research grounding. Additionally, it tackles issues faced by students, such as poor concentration, deficient writing skills, and low emotional intelligence, as well as environmental factors like inadequate infrastructure and resources for quality supervision.
“The programme will help empower supervisors with the relevant skills to improve the quality of graduate training and completion rates,” said Prof. Gaspard Banyankimbona, IUCEA Executive Secretary in a speech that was read for him by Prof. Michael Mawa, Chief Principal, Quality Assurance and Qualifications Framework at IUCEA. “It is also our expectation that the training will culminate in the development of modules that will be blueprint for subsequent trainings. We intend to continue to roll out such training to ensure more people benefit,” he said.
The training programme aims to enhance supervisors’ knowledge and skills in postgraduate education, introduce contemporary supervision and mentorship practices, foster continuous professional development among supervisors, improve communication skills to facilitate better student-supervisor interactions and develop standardized training modules for future use.
The participants for this workshop were drawn from the EAC Partner States of Republic of Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Kenya, Republic of South Sudan, United Republic of Tanzania and The Republic of Uganda. Also in the training were participant from the African Centres of Excellence from the Republic of Malawi and Republic of Mozambique. Over three days, participants will explore current trends and challenges in postgraduate supervision, collaboratively develop training modules, and present their drafts for review.
By the end of the training, participants are expected to have a clear understanding of their supervisory roles, possess advanced skills in mentorship and supervision, and be well-versed in various research methodologies.
The training programme promises numerous benefits, including enhanced professional skills, improved institutional quality, alignment with regional and international standards, and valuable networking opportunities. Through this initiative, IUCEA aims to foster a cohesive and high-standard postgraduate education environment across East Africa and beyond.
