The National Council for Higher Education (NCHE) in Uganda has released a list of expired programs in various institutions following the upgrade that was announced on May 20, 2023.

In a circular released by the NCHE, students who had enrolled in the courses or completed them will face limitations in their academic pursuits.

It further indicated that students who have graduated from expired programs or spent more than two years enrolled on the course will be required to obtain and follow the prescribed procedures outlined by the NCHE, the Ministry of Education and Sports, and the university itself in order to seek approval for their courses.

For Makerere University, NCHE listed master of instructural design and technology,  Bachelor of youth development work, Master of science in disaster risk management, Bachelor of science in tourism and hospitality management, and Bachelor of science in forestry, among others.

At Gulu University, some of the courses that have been listed as expired include the postgraduate diploma in project planning and management, the Master of Arts in Public Administration and Management, the Bachelor of Science in Education—Economics, Bachelor of Applied Sciences—Chemistry, among others.

For Kyambogo University, NCHE listed Bachelor of Education (Foundation of Teacher Education) teacher education, Diploma in Education Primary Education (distance education), and Diploma in Music and Theater Art, among others.

According to the circular, Cavendish, IUIU, KIU, Busitema, Bishop Steward Mbarara, Bishop Barham, Ankole Western, and Avance International Universities, among others, all have courses listed as expired.

Dr. Simba Ssali Kayunga, a Makerere University Don, said much as the policy is good, it is likely to attract legal issues.

He says students are most likely to petition the court to protest the policy.

“This is a good policy; however, students are likely to go to court, and universities will incur a lot of expenses,” he said.

The University Don guided that institutions will need to negotiate with NCHE in order to harmonize the challenges that may come with the new policy.

Patrick Lumumba, a lecturer at the school of social science at Makerere University, said that it is part of the universities’ policies to revise courses and have some merged.

“Universities constantly revise courses; some courses have already been merged, and the Vice Chancellor has been talking about the issue of revising these courses. For instance, the courses that were offered in the 1990s are not the courses being taken today. So the policy has been there, and there’s nothing new,” he said.

Jane Nabeta, a student at Cavendish University pursuing a Bachelor of Laws, said that as students, they will consider advancing their academic courses in other countries that have not implemented the policy.

“Someone can advance from somewhere else, like other countries where the policy has not been applied,” she said.