education 9 May 2026 Daily Monitor (Uganda)
Over 7,000 students enroll in Uganda's Higher Education Access Programme
More than 7,000 students, with 44% being female, have enrolled in Uganda's Higher Education Access Programme (HEAC), providing a second chance for those who didn't meet traditional university entry requirements. The program is designed to increase access to higher education, particularly for marginalized youth and women, and has shown success in boosting STEM enrollment and graduate employability. Source: https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/national/over-7-000-enrol-for-higher-education-access-programme-after-failing-to-join-university-5452568
The National Council for Higher Education (NCHE) in Uganda reports that over 7,000 students have enrolled in the Higher Education Access Programme (HEAC). This one-year bridging program serves as an alternative pathway for individuals who narrowly missed direct entry requirements for degree and diploma courses at Ugandan universities and other higher education institutions.
According to NCHE Executive Director Prof. Mary Okwakol, the HEAC program is crucial for fostering equity and inclusion. It provides a vital second chance for rural youth and young women who might otherwise be excluded from higher education. The program aims to equip students with the necessary qualifications to pursue their desired fields of study, even if they initially fell short of the required grades.
Institutions implementing the HEAC initiative have reported a total enrollment of 7,155 students, with a significant 44% being female. The program is reportedly effective in increasing enrollment in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. Evaluations indicate that HEAC graduates perform comparably, and sometimes better than, students admitted through traditional routes and exhibit high employability shortly after completion.
A delegation from Zimbabwe, including representatives from their Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education and several universities, recently visited Uganda to benchmark the HEAC program. They sought to understand its curriculum, delivery methods, student support, and gender-responsive strategies, with the goal of adapting similar models in Zimbabwe.
Despite its successes, the NCHE highlighted funding as a significant challenge. Financial constraints limit access to the program for many qualified individuals and can hinder successful graduates from progressing to degree or diploma studies. Prof. Okwakol also acknowledged the support provided by the FAWE-MasterCard partnership for economically disadvantaged but bright students.