Hundreds of distressed former students of Kayiwa International University students who got stranded after the National Council for Higher Education (NCHE) shut down their university for the breach of minimum operating standards, have their hope restored after Victoria University (VU) administration accepted to admit them for continuation of their studies.
The decision by VU administration follows a request from a section of Kayiwa International University students asking to join and re-start or complete their studies, at a subsidized and flexible fees payment plan, which the Victoria University administration granted.
According to the Vice Chancellor of Victoria University Prof. Lawrence Muganga, all Students from the troubled university who were on diploma and degree programmes, will be allowed to join Victoria University on a bursary as long as they meet the required minimum standards for university education, and as set by the laws, under the National Council for Higher Education.
At the beginning of last month, NCHE announced that it closed the Namirembe-based Kayiwa International University save for the fact that it illegally continued to operate and award degrees. Kayiwa International University, is owned by Pastor Simeone Kayiwa, who is the lead pastor at Namirembe Christian Fellowship Church, in Kampala.
The NCHE also declared that all documents that had been issued to graduates on the graduation ceremony were void and could not be used to seek jobs anywhere in the world.
Apart from the bursary offer, Prof. Muganga said the students will also be supported in securing laptops, at a subsidized rate, which they can pay off in installments for the entire period they will be at the university.
“Victoria University is open for whoever wants to join it, as long as he or she meets the set admission guidelines we have set; as guided by the National Council for Higher Education. We also appreciate the fact that some of these students’ parents have already incurred a loss, by repeating their academic programmes (courses). Based on this, we will offer a bursary to all the students, from Kayiwa International University, who choose to join us.”
However, Prof. Muganga said students who joined Kayiwa International University after revocation of its licence, will have to re-start their academic programmes.
According to Cyrus Mugenyi, an official from NCHE, the institution was given a letter of accreditation in 2015 on promise to adhere to all the set standards, which they failed to do prompting the Council, as the regulatory body, to withdraw their licence in 2019.
In 2017, Mugenyi says the same Council issued a warning of its plans to revoke their licence but there was no improvement as all the guidance given were ignored prompting NCHE to revoke the university’s licence in 2019. He explained that even before the closure, the NCHE held a series of meetings with the Kayiwa International University management, but the two parties failed to reach a consensus.
On August 23, 2019, during the 52nd sitting of the NCHE, it was resolved to revoke the operating licence of Kayiwa International University. Unfortunately, the university went ahead to enrol more students to join it.