Higher education
18 Nov 2010
On this page
- Short description of the higher education system
- Types of degrees
- Quality assurance and accreditation
- Recent reforms
Short description of the higher education system
Since 2000, when Ethiopia had only two universities and nine colleges, the number of higher education institutions in the country has expanded greatly. At present there are 22 universities, 26 regional teacher training colleges and approximately 60 accredited private post-secondary institutions (of which only one is recognized as a university). Over 200,000 students are currently enrolled in public universities and approximately 70,000 students are enrolled in private higher education.
Types of degrees
Institutes, colleges and polytechnics mainly offer one to three-year professionally oriented programmes leading to a Diploma degree. Four-year bachelor’s degree programmes are offered by the universities (although courses in the technical sciences, law and pharmacy take five years, and programmes in medicine and veterinary science take six).
Master’s degree programmes take two or three years to complete. The majority of master’s programmes are offered by Addis Abeba University, although in 2008 a few other universities announced that they would start offering master’s programmes as well.
Founded in 1950, Addis Abeba University is the only university in Ethiopia that offers PhD programmes. Master’s degree holders must complete their PhD programme within five years after initial PhD enrolment, while candidates who are admitted to a PhD course upon completion of their bachelor’s degree are required to complete the PhD programme within seven years.
Quality assurance and accreditation
The public universities are directly supervised by the Ministry of Education. The private colleges are supervised by national, regional and sub-regional education offices. Private institutions must be accredited by the education offices, the Office of Investment and – in the case of medical courses – the Ministry of Health.
The Higher Education Relevance and Quality Agency (HERQA) is responsible for evaluating the quality (relevance and fitness for purpose) of all higher education institutions in the country. All public and private higher education institutions in Ethiopia must be accredited by the Ministry of Education, based on HERQA’s recommendations.
Recent reforms
Throughout the past decade, the Ethiopian government has implemented reforms to broaden access to higher education, partly by establishing additional universities; these efforts are expected to continue in the coming years. Whilst Ethiopia has seen a rapid 300% increase in higher education enrolment in recent years, the number of qualified professors has not kept pace with this growth. The country is suffering from a brain drain of academic staff.
Quality assurance and the development of an appropriate and sustained infrastructure are therefore much needed, and international agencies are helping the government in this area. Furthermore, a new government policy has brought about a shift away from fully subsidized higher education to a cost recovery scheme, although it is likely to take several years before the government will receive return funds from this measure.
