Wednesday 16 December 2009
Thursday 10 December 2009
THE GENERAL COMPARISSON BETWEEN FINNISH AND TANZANIAN HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM:
Definition:
Higher Education is any education beyond the secondary level; especially, education provided by a college or university. Higher education courses are those leading to the award of associate degree, bachelor's degree, graduate certificate, graduate diploma, master's degree or doctoral degree. Some courses leading to the award of a diploma or advanced diploma may also be accredited as higher education. In the following Pages I will generally discuss the comparison between higher education in Finland (Europe) and Tanzania (East Africa).I will point out the education system in Higher education institutes by considering number of universities and colleges in each country, stages in higher education, Admission to Higher Educations, Health and Social services, Students expenses and Financial aid and finally governance and administration of higher education in these two countries.
Because this topic is really wide which can be covered by writing more than one hundred pages, I will skip some details and some sub-topic which these universities have in common.
Number of Universities and Colleges:
While there are about 20 Universities and 29 polytechnics in Finland that comprise the higher education system, there are 8 public universities, 22 private universities and university colleges, and 15 additional public Institutions of Higher Education (these include 6 professional institutes, 2 institutes of technology, a wildlife college and a business college) in Tanzania.
Stages in Higher Education:
Stages of studies in Finland:
Non-University level:
Non Universities level in Finland it is consists of polytechnics Education which now is known as Universities of Applied Science. It divided into two cycles, first cycle and second cycle.
The first cycle of polytechnic degree consists of 180, 210 or 240 credits (3 to 4 years of full-time study) depending on the field of study. The degree title names indicate the field of study, e.g. Bachelor of Engineering or Bachelor of Health Care. Studies leading to the degree provide the student with broad overall knowledge and skills with relevant theoretical background for working as expert in the field, knowledge and skills needed to follow and advance developments in the field, knowledge and skills needed for continuous learning, adequate language and communication skills and knowledge and skills required in the field internationally. This cycle of polytechnic degree comprises basic and professional studies, elective studies, a practical training period and a Bachelor's thesis or a final project.
The second cycle polytechnic degree consists of 60 or 90 credits (1 or 1.5 years of full-time study). The degree titles indicate the field of study, e.g. Master of Culture and Arts or Master of Business Administration. Eligibility is given by a relevant first cycle degree with at least 3 years of relevant work or artistic experience. Studies leading to the degree provide the student with broad and advanced knowledge and skills for developing the professional field as well as the theoretical skills for working in demanding expert and leadership positions in the field, deep understanding of the field, its relation to work and society at large as well as the knowledge and skills needed to follow and analyze both theoretical and professional developments in the field, capacity for life-long learning and continuous development of one's expertise, good language and communication skills required in working life and knowledge and skills required to function and communicate in the field internationally. The second cycle polytechnic degree comprises advanced professional studies, elective studies, and a final thesis or a final project.
University level;
In the Finnish degree education system the first degree is a three-year bachelor’s degree (180 ECTS credits). This program usually include studies in one main subject (major) and in one or more subsidiary subjects (minors), except for clearly professional degree programmes which have a different, more profession-specific structure. The basic degree consists of three stages: basic studies, subject studies and advanced level studies. The advanced level studies involve independent research and a final paper, ie thesis.
The second university degree in Finland is a two-year master’s degree (total of 300 ECTS credits, including bachelor’s degree). It takes two years to study for the master’s degree after the bachelor’s degree, or a total of five years. The amount of time taken to complete licentiate and doctoral degrees varies greatly even though planning work is based on the assumption that a licentiate degree would take two or three years and a doctorate about four years after completion of a master’s degree.
The third university degree is doctoral programmes which a student can apply after the completion of a relevant second-cycle degree. The aim of doctoral studies is to provide the student with in-depth knowledge of his/her field of research and capabilities to produce new scientific knowledge independently. A pre-doctoral degree (licentiate) in two years may be taken before the Doctor's Degree programme. Studies for the Doctor's degree take approximately four years of full-time study beyond a second-cycle degree or two years of full-time study beyond a pre-doctoral degree. Students admitted to doctoral studies must complete a certain number of courses, show independent and critical thinking in their field of research and write a doctoral dissertation to be defended in public.
Stages of studies in Tanzania:
Non-university level:
In the last decade, the number of technical, vocational, and professional schools in Tanzania has increased substantially. They are the responsibility of the relevant Government Ministry under which they fall. The schools which award Certificates, Diplomas, Advanced Diplomas and Postgraduate Diplomas are categorized according to the type of programs they offered. Diploma programmes, which last for two years, require Form VI and work experience. Certificates require two to three years' study. The Technician's Certificate requires two years of study. The Full Technician's Certificate requires three years of study. Advanced Diploma programmes, which last for three years, require Form VI certificate and work experience.
University level studies:
First stage: Undergraduate level:
This is a first phase of University Education in Tanzania which leads to a Bachelor's Degree. It usually lasts for three years, except in Pharmacy, Nursing, Veterinary Science and Engineering, which take four years, and Medicine, which takes five years. At the Open University courses generally last for six years.
University level second stage: Graduate level:
A graduate level takes to two years of study which leads to a Master's Degree. Postgraduate Diplomas require a Bachelor's Degree for admission and, generally, one year of study.
University level third stage: Postgraduate level:
A minimum of a further two years' original research and submission of a thesis lead to a PhD.
Teacher education in Tanzania:
Training of pre-primary and primary/basic school teachers
The Grade C Certificate entitles the holders to teach in the first two grades of primary education. The Grade B Certificate is obtained by promotion or by successfully completing a four-year course at a teacher training college after grade 7. The Grade A Certificate is obtained on successful completion of a two-year course for students who have passed the CGE "O" levels at division II level and entitles the holder to teach in all seven grades of primary education.
Training of secondary school teachers
A minimum of two-year Diploma of Education at a Teacher Training College after passing the ACSE is required to teach at lower secondary level. Teachers for upper secondary level should hold a Bachelor of Education or a Postgraduate Diploma in Education. Opportunities for in-service training have increased with the creation of village-based teacher training programmes.
Non-traditional studies:
Distance higher education;
Tanzanian distance education is offered by the Open University of Tanzania which opened in 1993 in Dar-es-Salaam. It provides courses in Law, Science, Arts, Education and other disciplines which leading to Bachelors, Masters and PhD degrees. Distance teacher training programmes for untrained teachers have been developed.
In Finland, universities offer Open University education, continuing professional education, and adult education funded by the labour administration in addition to degree education.
Lifelong higher education
There are over 300 institutions in Tanzania which offering specialist training at post-Form IV (or Form VI) level, leading to Certificates or Diplomas at semi-professional level in a wide variety of disciplines.
In Finland University studies and degrees have been developed to enable people to participate flexibly in education according to their life situations. Many fields offer Master's programmes and graduate-entry education tailored to different needs in working life.
Study Flexibility
While in Tanzania, students must study all courses provided in given semester according to the prospector of the university and guidance from Tanzania Commission of Universities (TCU) with no or very small ability of choosing course given in that semester or year in other program and departments, Finnish students are using Personal Study Plan (PSP). PSP consists of plans on what to study, how to study and a timetable for your studies. It is same as an action plan, a document in which you express your objectives for the studies. The PSP form consists of two parts: a timetable scheduling studies and a degree structure picturing the study modules a student has to complete in order to get a diploma. The idea of the PSP form is to help students to plan and schedule their studies and at the same time to help them make sure that they are doing all the courses required.
Admissions to Higher Education:
Admission;
In Tanzania, The minimum entrance requirements for University and institutions of higher learning under direct entry are: Certificate of Secondary Education Examination (C.S.E.E.) or equivalent, with passes in five approved subjects obtained prior to the sitting of the Advanced Certificate of Secondary Education Examination (A.C.S.E.E.) or equivalent; as well as two principal level passes (in appropriate subjects) at the same sitting with total points not below 5 based on the following scale: A=5; B=4; C=3; D=2; E=1; S=0.5; F=0. Or two principal level passes (in appropriate subjects) not at the same sitting provided they are both grade C or higher.
In Finland, The Finnish matriculation examination provides general eligibility for university education admission. The same eligibility is also provided by the International Baccalaureate (IB), European Baccalaureate (EB) and Reifeprüfung examinations. According to Finnish education rules, international applicants may be admitted if their qualification gives eligibility for corresponding university studies in that country. Finland has ratified the European Convention on the Equivalence of Diplomas Leading to Admission to Universities and its Protocol, and signed the Nordic Convention on Admission to Universities. The scope of the Bachelor’s degree is a minimum of 180 credits
In both Tanzania and Finland an academic year starts on September of each year. In Tanzania, an academic year consists of two semesters. The first semester starts on September to the end of January. The second semester is usually starts on March to June/July. The schedule of the semester may differ from one university to another. To some reasons, semester studies may not starts on time to some universities. The Finnish academic year also consist of two semesters where by the first semester starts on September until December. Unlike in Tanzania, Finish academic semester consists of two periods, each period is 8 weeks, so many courses are just last for one period but some of them last for two periods (one semester).
Health/social provisions:
Health and social provisions are the services provided by the government to improve the lives of their people. This might include health care, insurance, subsidized housing, and food.
Heath and social services in Tanzania universities is provided almost for all universities. The only difference is that the quality of these services in Tanzania is not as good as it is in Finland. For example, the dispensary of university of Joensuu has most of necessary medicine as well as doctor(s).But; a dispensary of Tumaini University in Tanzania has only some basic medicines and a nurse. Food and housing are provided by the private and government vendor and organizations.
Students Expenses and Financial Aid:
In Finland, the Finnish students are entitled to students’ financial aid, which is intended to provide an income to financially needy students whose parents are not under obligation to finance their studies and who are not eligible for aid under some other provisions. The qualification to get this aid is that a student must have gained admission to higher education, be studying full time, and be in need of financial assistance.
The financial aid for the Finnish University students covers study grants, housing supplements and government guarantees for student loans. Study grant and housing supplement are government-financed benefits with monthly payments. The study grant is subject to tax. Student loans are granted by banks operating in Finland. Repayment normally begins after the studies have ended. Because the loan is guaranteed by the state, no other security is required.
Finnish University students can also get financial help with studies that take place outside Finland, provided that they correspond to Finnish studies that would be covered by the student financial aid provisions or alternatively form a part of a Finnish degree programme. A study grant, a housing supplement and a government guarantee for student loans are available for studies abroad.
For university students in Tanzania, financial to cover school fee, stationeries, meal and accommodation is organized by Higher Education Students’ Loans Board (HESLB) which established under Act No. 9 of 2004 and commenced operations in July, 2005. Among other things, the Board has been entrusted by the Government with the responsibility to disseminate loans to students pursuing Advanced Diplomas and degree studies at accredited higher education institutions in and outside the country and to collect repayment for all loans issued to students since 1994, so as to make the scheme successful and sustainable.
According to the Act, eligible and needy Tanzanian students who secure admission in higher education institutions to pursue academic programmes that lead to the attainment of Advanced Diplomas or Degrees, may seek loans from the Higher Education Students’ Loan Board (HESLB) to meet part of, or all, costs of their education. This stipulation is cost- sharing between government and Parents/students in the provision of higher education in the country. Cost – sharing in higher education is construed to mean a shift in shouldering at least part of the costs of education from the Government of Republic of Tanzania, which has invariably been the main financier, to the beneficiaries. Also to be eligible to get loans from HESLB, good performance with previous studies with division 1&2 for direct entry from Advanced Certificate Secondary Education Examination (ACSEE) and total pass of B in other diploma.
Finance and Resources:
Funding and Resources in Finland:
The appropriations granted by the Ministry of Education for university activities consist of core funding, performance-based funding and project funding. Core-funding is intended for instruction and research. Direct government funding covers about 64% of university budgets.
In addition to the Ministry of Education, important sources of financing are the Academy of Finland, the Technology Development Centre Tekes, business enterprises, the EU and other public bodies. Most external funding is targeted to research. The Academy is responsible for the evaluation of research. Universities also have income from commercial services, such as continuing professional education.
Funding and Resources in Tanzania:
In Tanzania public institutions are greatly depends on the government for financial support. Non-university institutions usually charge fees, which are not paid by the student directly but by the sponsoring authority, usually a government ministry or parastatal. Besides collecting fees, these institutions also receive a subsidy from the government. The size of the subsidy often depends on the negotiation skills of the parent, ministry or parastatal because government funding of universities is guided by any clear and consistent formula from HESLB.
Private institutions are entirely self-financing. Their main sources of funds are student fees, donations, endowments, and self-generated income. Because the income base of many Tanzanian families is weak, students in these private institutions tend to come from well-to-do families within Tanzania or from outside the country. Nowadays, private universities students who are eligible for loan and have seek for it, receive a loan to covers part or all expenses for school fees, stationeries, meal and accommodation.
Governance and Administration:
In Finland all universities are state-owned and subordinate to the Ministry of Education, which is responsible for preparing university matters which are in the government remit and for appropriate administration and steering of universities. The main emphasis is on providing quality higher educational opportunities, while encouraging scientific research of international standards. Statistic shows that there are no existing private Universities in Finland.
All public universities in Tanzania are under the supervision of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education (MSTHE). The public universities are semi-autonomous and manage their own affairs under the Vice-Chancellor, who is appointed by the President of Tanzania. Their running costs are subsidised by the government. Private universities are established under charters and are privately funded. The government supports private universities by sponsoring students to accredited private medical universities for MD courses and through Higher Education Students Loans Board (HESLB) for other course programmes. Universities in all higher learning institutions in Tanzania are eligible for material or financial assistance from the Tanzania Education Authority. Other higher learning institutions are supervised by the National Council for Technical Education (NACTE) - vide the NACTE Act No.9 of 1997 - and under other relevant ministries. All universities are supervised by the Tanzania Commission for Universities (TCU). The main emphasis is to provide opportunities for and conduct training, research, and consultancy in the areas and field in and outside the country.
Another issue relating to governance is the question of participation of stakeholders in decision-making. Workers’ participation is a well-established practice in public organizations in Tanzania. It is part of the country’s socialist legacy. In most of Universities in Tanzania, student representation is extended even to sensitive organs like the examination committees, which sometimes handle appeals on examination results.
Therefore, there are some difference between Finnish and Tanzania Higher education as analyzed above. Ministry of Higher education and Vocational Training with other Tanzania Higher education stakeholders have to rethink and find the way of improving the higher education in Tanzania. Tanzania can became high in PISA raking if some serious measures will be taken in education field.
References:
http://www.tcu.or.tz/student_loan.html
http://www.oamk.fi/english/applicants/guide/studying_expenses/
http://www.tamk.fi/en/WWWTAMKEN/finnish_education_system.html
http://www.canadian-universities.net/World_Universities/Finland.html
http://www.euroeducation.net/prof/finco.htm
http://www.moe.go.tz/education.html
http://www.ostamyy.com/Universities/Tanzania.htm
http://www.university-directory.eu/Tanzania/Tanzania.html
http://www.hse.fi/EN/education/msc/other/psp/
http://www.oecd.org/pages/0,3417,en_32252351_32235731_1_1_1_1_1,00.html
Note:
All the above websites were accessed in a period of between December 1, 2009 and December 10, 2009.
Higher Education is any education beyond the secondary level; especially, education provided by a college or university. Higher education courses are those leading to the award of associate degree, bachelor's degree, graduate certificate, graduate diploma, master's degree or doctoral degree. Some courses leading to the award of a diploma or advanced diploma may also be accredited as higher education. In the following Pages I will generally discuss the comparison between higher education in Finland (Europe) and Tanzania (East Africa).I will point out the education system in Higher education institutes by considering number of universities and colleges in each country, stages in higher education, Admission to Higher Educations, Health and Social services, Students expenses and Financial aid and finally governance and administration of higher education in these two countries.
Because this topic is really wide which can be covered by writing more than one hundred pages, I will skip some details and some sub-topic which these universities have in common.
Number of Universities and Colleges:
While there are about 20 Universities and 29 polytechnics in Finland that comprise the higher education system, there are 8 public universities, 22 private universities and university colleges, and 15 additional public Institutions of Higher Education (these include 6 professional institutes, 2 institutes of technology, a wildlife college and a business college) in Tanzania.
Stages in Higher Education:
Stages of studies in Finland:
Non-University level:
Non Universities level in Finland it is consists of polytechnics Education which now is known as Universities of Applied Science. It divided into two cycles, first cycle and second cycle.
The first cycle of polytechnic degree consists of 180, 210 or 240 credits (3 to 4 years of full-time study) depending on the field of study. The degree title names indicate the field of study, e.g. Bachelor of Engineering or Bachelor of Health Care. Studies leading to the degree provide the student with broad overall knowledge and skills with relevant theoretical background for working as expert in the field, knowledge and skills needed to follow and advance developments in the field, knowledge and skills needed for continuous learning, adequate language and communication skills and knowledge and skills required in the field internationally. This cycle of polytechnic degree comprises basic and professional studies, elective studies, a practical training period and a Bachelor's thesis or a final project.
The second cycle polytechnic degree consists of 60 or 90 credits (1 or 1.5 years of full-time study). The degree titles indicate the field of study, e.g. Master of Culture and Arts or Master of Business Administration. Eligibility is given by a relevant first cycle degree with at least 3 years of relevant work or artistic experience. Studies leading to the degree provide the student with broad and advanced knowledge and skills for developing the professional field as well as the theoretical skills for working in demanding expert and leadership positions in the field, deep understanding of the field, its relation to work and society at large as well as the knowledge and skills needed to follow and analyze both theoretical and professional developments in the field, capacity for life-long learning and continuous development of one's expertise, good language and communication skills required in working life and knowledge and skills required to function and communicate in the field internationally. The second cycle polytechnic degree comprises advanced professional studies, elective studies, and a final thesis or a final project.
University level;
In the Finnish degree education system the first degree is a three-year bachelor’s degree (180 ECTS credits). This program usually include studies in one main subject (major) and in one or more subsidiary subjects (minors), except for clearly professional degree programmes which have a different, more profession-specific structure. The basic degree consists of three stages: basic studies, subject studies and advanced level studies. The advanced level studies involve independent research and a final paper, ie thesis.
The second university degree in Finland is a two-year master’s degree (total of 300 ECTS credits, including bachelor’s degree). It takes two years to study for the master’s degree after the bachelor’s degree, or a total of five years. The amount of time taken to complete licentiate and doctoral degrees varies greatly even though planning work is based on the assumption that a licentiate degree would take two or three years and a doctorate about four years after completion of a master’s degree.
The third university degree is doctoral programmes which a student can apply after the completion of a relevant second-cycle degree. The aim of doctoral studies is to provide the student with in-depth knowledge of his/her field of research and capabilities to produce new scientific knowledge independently. A pre-doctoral degree (licentiate) in two years may be taken before the Doctor's Degree programme. Studies for the Doctor's degree take approximately four years of full-time study beyond a second-cycle degree or two years of full-time study beyond a pre-doctoral degree. Students admitted to doctoral studies must complete a certain number of courses, show independent and critical thinking in their field of research and write a doctoral dissertation to be defended in public.
Stages of studies in Tanzania:
Non-university level:
In the last decade, the number of technical, vocational, and professional schools in Tanzania has increased substantially. They are the responsibility of the relevant Government Ministry under which they fall. The schools which award Certificates, Diplomas, Advanced Diplomas and Postgraduate Diplomas are categorized according to the type of programs they offered. Diploma programmes, which last for two years, require Form VI and work experience. Certificates require two to three years' study. The Technician's Certificate requires two years of study. The Full Technician's Certificate requires three years of study. Advanced Diploma programmes, which last for three years, require Form VI certificate and work experience.
University level studies:
First stage: Undergraduate level:
This is a first phase of University Education in Tanzania which leads to a Bachelor's Degree. It usually lasts for three years, except in Pharmacy, Nursing, Veterinary Science and Engineering, which take four years, and Medicine, which takes five years. At the Open University courses generally last for six years.
University level second stage: Graduate level:
A graduate level takes to two years of study which leads to a Master's Degree. Postgraduate Diplomas require a Bachelor's Degree for admission and, generally, one year of study.
University level third stage: Postgraduate level:
A minimum of a further two years' original research and submission of a thesis lead to a PhD.
Teacher education in Tanzania:
Training of pre-primary and primary/basic school teachers
The Grade C Certificate entitles the holders to teach in the first two grades of primary education. The Grade B Certificate is obtained by promotion or by successfully completing a four-year course at a teacher training college after grade 7. The Grade A Certificate is obtained on successful completion of a two-year course for students who have passed the CGE "O" levels at division II level and entitles the holder to teach in all seven grades of primary education.
Training of secondary school teachers
A minimum of two-year Diploma of Education at a Teacher Training College after passing the ACSE is required to teach at lower secondary level. Teachers for upper secondary level should hold a Bachelor of Education or a Postgraduate Diploma in Education. Opportunities for in-service training have increased with the creation of village-based teacher training programmes.
Non-traditional studies:
Distance higher education;
Tanzanian distance education is offered by the Open University of Tanzania which opened in 1993 in Dar-es-Salaam. It provides courses in Law, Science, Arts, Education and other disciplines which leading to Bachelors, Masters and PhD degrees. Distance teacher training programmes for untrained teachers have been developed.
In Finland, universities offer Open University education, continuing professional education, and adult education funded by the labour administration in addition to degree education.
Lifelong higher education
There are over 300 institutions in Tanzania which offering specialist training at post-Form IV (or Form VI) level, leading to Certificates or Diplomas at semi-professional level in a wide variety of disciplines.
In Finland University studies and degrees have been developed to enable people to participate flexibly in education according to their life situations. Many fields offer Master's programmes and graduate-entry education tailored to different needs in working life.
Study Flexibility
While in Tanzania, students must study all courses provided in given semester according to the prospector of the university and guidance from Tanzania Commission of Universities (TCU) with no or very small ability of choosing course given in that semester or year in other program and departments, Finnish students are using Personal Study Plan (PSP). PSP consists of plans on what to study, how to study and a timetable for your studies. It is same as an action plan, a document in which you express your objectives for the studies. The PSP form consists of two parts: a timetable scheduling studies and a degree structure picturing the study modules a student has to complete in order to get a diploma. The idea of the PSP form is to help students to plan and schedule their studies and at the same time to help them make sure that they are doing all the courses required.
Admissions to Higher Education:
Admission;
In Tanzania, The minimum entrance requirements for University and institutions of higher learning under direct entry are: Certificate of Secondary Education Examination (C.S.E.E.) or equivalent, with passes in five approved subjects obtained prior to the sitting of the Advanced Certificate of Secondary Education Examination (A.C.S.E.E.) or equivalent; as well as two principal level passes (in appropriate subjects) at the same sitting with total points not below 5 based on the following scale: A=5; B=4; C=3; D=2; E=1; S=0.5; F=0. Or two principal level passes (in appropriate subjects) not at the same sitting provided they are both grade C or higher.
In Finland, The Finnish matriculation examination provides general eligibility for university education admission. The same eligibility is also provided by the International Baccalaureate (IB), European Baccalaureate (EB) and Reifeprüfung examinations. According to Finnish education rules, international applicants may be admitted if their qualification gives eligibility for corresponding university studies in that country. Finland has ratified the European Convention on the Equivalence of Diplomas Leading to Admission to Universities and its Protocol, and signed the Nordic Convention on Admission to Universities. The scope of the Bachelor’s degree is a minimum of 180 credits
In both Tanzania and Finland an academic year starts on September of each year. In Tanzania, an academic year consists of two semesters. The first semester starts on September to the end of January. The second semester is usually starts on March to June/July. The schedule of the semester may differ from one university to another. To some reasons, semester studies may not starts on time to some universities. The Finnish academic year also consist of two semesters where by the first semester starts on September until December. Unlike in Tanzania, Finish academic semester consists of two periods, each period is 8 weeks, so many courses are just last for one period but some of them last for two periods (one semester).
Health/social provisions:
Health and social provisions are the services provided by the government to improve the lives of their people. This might include health care, insurance, subsidized housing, and food.
Heath and social services in Tanzania universities is provided almost for all universities. The only difference is that the quality of these services in Tanzania is not as good as it is in Finland. For example, the dispensary of university of Joensuu has most of necessary medicine as well as doctor(s).But; a dispensary of Tumaini University in Tanzania has only some basic medicines and a nurse. Food and housing are provided by the private and government vendor and organizations.
Students Expenses and Financial Aid:
In Finland, the Finnish students are entitled to students’ financial aid, which is intended to provide an income to financially needy students whose parents are not under obligation to finance their studies and who are not eligible for aid under some other provisions. The qualification to get this aid is that a student must have gained admission to higher education, be studying full time, and be in need of financial assistance.
The financial aid for the Finnish University students covers study grants, housing supplements and government guarantees for student loans. Study grant and housing supplement are government-financed benefits with monthly payments. The study grant is subject to tax. Student loans are granted by banks operating in Finland. Repayment normally begins after the studies have ended. Because the loan is guaranteed by the state, no other security is required.
Finnish University students can also get financial help with studies that take place outside Finland, provided that they correspond to Finnish studies that would be covered by the student financial aid provisions or alternatively form a part of a Finnish degree programme. A study grant, a housing supplement and a government guarantee for student loans are available for studies abroad.
For university students in Tanzania, financial to cover school fee, stationeries, meal and accommodation is organized by Higher Education Students’ Loans Board (HESLB) which established under Act No. 9 of 2004 and commenced operations in July, 2005. Among other things, the Board has been entrusted by the Government with the responsibility to disseminate loans to students pursuing Advanced Diplomas and degree studies at accredited higher education institutions in and outside the country and to collect repayment for all loans issued to students since 1994, so as to make the scheme successful and sustainable.
According to the Act, eligible and needy Tanzanian students who secure admission in higher education institutions to pursue academic programmes that lead to the attainment of Advanced Diplomas or Degrees, may seek loans from the Higher Education Students’ Loan Board (HESLB) to meet part of, or all, costs of their education. This stipulation is cost- sharing between government and Parents/students in the provision of higher education in the country. Cost – sharing in higher education is construed to mean a shift in shouldering at least part of the costs of education from the Government of Republic of Tanzania, which has invariably been the main financier, to the beneficiaries. Also to be eligible to get loans from HESLB, good performance with previous studies with division 1&2 for direct entry from Advanced Certificate Secondary Education Examination (ACSEE) and total pass of B in other diploma.
Finance and Resources:
Funding and Resources in Finland:
The appropriations granted by the Ministry of Education for university activities consist of core funding, performance-based funding and project funding. Core-funding is intended for instruction and research. Direct government funding covers about 64% of university budgets.
In addition to the Ministry of Education, important sources of financing are the Academy of Finland, the Technology Development Centre Tekes, business enterprises, the EU and other public bodies. Most external funding is targeted to research. The Academy is responsible for the evaluation of research. Universities also have income from commercial services, such as continuing professional education.
Funding and Resources in Tanzania:
In Tanzania public institutions are greatly depends on the government for financial support. Non-university institutions usually charge fees, which are not paid by the student directly but by the sponsoring authority, usually a government ministry or parastatal. Besides collecting fees, these institutions also receive a subsidy from the government. The size of the subsidy often depends on the negotiation skills of the parent, ministry or parastatal because government funding of universities is guided by any clear and consistent formula from HESLB.
Private institutions are entirely self-financing. Their main sources of funds are student fees, donations, endowments, and self-generated income. Because the income base of many Tanzanian families is weak, students in these private institutions tend to come from well-to-do families within Tanzania or from outside the country. Nowadays, private universities students who are eligible for loan and have seek for it, receive a loan to covers part or all expenses for school fees, stationeries, meal and accommodation.
Governance and Administration:
In Finland all universities are state-owned and subordinate to the Ministry of Education, which is responsible for preparing university matters which are in the government remit and for appropriate administration and steering of universities. The main emphasis is on providing quality higher educational opportunities, while encouraging scientific research of international standards. Statistic shows that there are no existing private Universities in Finland.
All public universities in Tanzania are under the supervision of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education (MSTHE). The public universities are semi-autonomous and manage their own affairs under the Vice-Chancellor, who is appointed by the President of Tanzania. Their running costs are subsidised by the government. Private universities are established under charters and are privately funded. The government supports private universities by sponsoring students to accredited private medical universities for MD courses and through Higher Education Students Loans Board (HESLB) for other course programmes. Universities in all higher learning institutions in Tanzania are eligible for material or financial assistance from the Tanzania Education Authority. Other higher learning institutions are supervised by the National Council for Technical Education (NACTE) - vide the NACTE Act No.9 of 1997 - and under other relevant ministries. All universities are supervised by the Tanzania Commission for Universities (TCU). The main emphasis is to provide opportunities for and conduct training, research, and consultancy in the areas and field in and outside the country.
Another issue relating to governance is the question of participation of stakeholders in decision-making. Workers’ participation is a well-established practice in public organizations in Tanzania. It is part of the country’s socialist legacy. In most of Universities in Tanzania, student representation is extended even to sensitive organs like the examination committees, which sometimes handle appeals on examination results.
Therefore, there are some difference between Finnish and Tanzania Higher education as analyzed above. Ministry of Higher education and Vocational Training with other Tanzania Higher education stakeholders have to rethink and find the way of improving the higher education in Tanzania. Tanzania can became high in PISA raking if some serious measures will be taken in education field.
References:
http://www.tcu.or.tz/student_loan.html
http://www.oamk.fi/english/applicants/guide/studying_expenses/
http://www.tamk.fi/en/WWWTAMKEN/finnish_education_system.html
http://www.canadian-universities.net/World_Universities/Finland.html
http://www.euroeducation.net/prof/finco.htm
http://www.moe.go.tz/education.html
http://www.ostamyy.com/Universities/Tanzania.htm
http://www.university-directory.eu/Tanzania/Tanzania.html
http://www.hse.fi/EN/education/msc/other/psp/
http://www.oecd.org/pages/0,3417,en_32252351_32235731_1_1_1_1_1,00.html
Note:
All the above websites were accessed in a period of between December 1, 2009 and December 10, 2009.
Sunday 1 November 2009
some special events for 3 months in Finland
It has been long time without seen you and keep in touch, I ‘am very sorry to not be able to write to you frequently but telling you the truth I have been so much busy for last two months. There have been so many things happen and I feel like I have changed (both physically and mentally) so much since i met you all, never to mention I really miss you all. But it’s ok since sometimes we have to get apart to make things work out. What i mean to say is that unless we are not far apart, we really don’t know the real meaning of that thing and always to be with yourself so close. Being far away from you so long, now i really want to be back with you all. Also I wish to meet new first year students.
As I sent sms to most of you when I was leaving, 01/18/2009, it was wonderful trip which took about 24hrs to get here (Finland-Joensuu). I was really lucky since I didn’t get any problem on my way. Everything worked out as was planed, I get in Joensuu around 12pm (midnight) and I found 4 people were waiting for me including Matti, Merja, Barun (as most of you already might have known him) and one guy from Kenya. I was so much happy to get here fine. One interesting thing was that although it was midnight, there was still light like a day. I was amazed to see sun still at around 11pm at night and sun already coming out already at 5am again, so no darkness. I know it sounds strange but its truth. It was wonderful, although it was summer; the temperature was still low that I had to wear my pullover most of time.
Here are some of things I have been doing from the first day I came here in Finland. The second week of August, I attended Summer School Course in class of Prof. Paul De Bra , about Platforms for Stories-based Learning in Future Schools. It was great time for me to meet many friends from different countries all over the world. The Joensuu University, Department of computer science and statistics was the host of the whole event; they organized good social program and other Finnish traditional things like sauna and some Finnish games like Mökkyl. We also had some other sports like football, basketball, volleyball etc.
The third week of August I was cycling around the Joensuu , its really beautifully small city. I was going to about 10-25 km far from home and coming back each day. It helped me to know different places as well as how to read map and going any place. At beginning it was problem for me since I couldn’t be able to read map (bad geography background ;)). The forth week I spent most of time in Joensuu centre and university campus to make everything ready before starting my classes on 01 September. It was bit hard and bored time for me since there were no many friends to talk like in Tanzania.
So, on September 1, it was the first day of orientation week, it was great time for me to meet more than 600 international students from different countries around the world but most of them were from EU (European Union) countries. I felt bad because we were only 4 black students, one from Nigeria, and another from Somalia and another one from Cameroon. New good life with many fiends started with so many parties every weekend and some of weekdays. There were also barbecue parties commonly called BBQ, sports and games as well.
My classes began on 07/09/2009 and I started to take 3 classes, Object Oriented Programming (OOP), scientific methodology and Design and Analysis of Algorithms (DAA). After one week, I figured out that I was overloaded with classes. My intention was to understand OOP from scratch so I decided to drop DAA to reserve more time for OOP. Normally, a semester here divided into two periods, each period with 8 weeks. So, many courses are just last for one period but some of them last for two periods (one semester). I had so many exercises per week so time for parties and sports starts to decrease and spent most of my time in studies. I managed to understand basic concept in OOP which made me to feel more comfortable in Java oops. I finished with these classes last week after the first period of the semester to end. I have good understanding of OOP java now, m so much happy for that. Don’t worry, when I will come, we will arrange for how to make it clear for all of us.
This week I have started some other classes which are requirement engineering, Pattern Recognition, Image Analysis and Finnish Education system and Organization. I’m not sure if I will be able to take all these classes because my plan is also to take third years classes at Tumaini online. Finnish Education system and Organization is a course in Education department so I liked to take this class so as to get some information about Finnish system of education. My plan is to write an article which will tell something about difference between African and European students and I will use Tanzania and Finland as case studies. I will use daily experiences to get to this difference so I will use Ethnography research method.
Another great information I would like to share with you (not official) is that I was talking with Prof.Matti at begin of this week and he said to me that he has got wonderful research about *IT in developing countries which will be sponsored by Finnish government. He was so much happy because its really rear to get this kind of research, he said. The research will start on January 2010 and will run for 3 years, so he will be back in Tanzania Tumaini University specific in September 2010 as head of program but that time there will be another teacher from US who will do most of administration works, Matti will be giving classes but he will use most of time for his research. I think that’s great, isn’t? ;). I think second year student will get more advantage from this wonderful professor. But also, he will be instructing us (third year students) for the next semester in the BSc.Thesis online. Note; this is not official, so don’t take it into public.
So, now here is autumn, and it has been snowing a little bit, I was so much excited to see the first snow. The funny thing is that when I was wondering for 3cm snow and ice on the ground, others were just like there was nothing and asked me to wait for really snow which can be more than 30cm (rula) depth from the ground. . Damn, I can’t wait for that crazy time. When I came it was really green and beautiful but now there is no green any more or may be just on some portion of the land. All leaves are falling from the tree and it’s getting colder and colder everyday. Now when I’m writing this sentence its +1 but last week it gets to -3, Its really cold but it will get to -11 and more on December according to statistics. But you can just imagine how the situation now is with comparison to Tz; it’s already too much cold for me.
I have been in different place in and outside Joensuu. I went to Koli national Park, which is 70km from Joensuu city and we were hiking in the forest for one day. It wasn’t really interesting for me because I expected to see many animals that day but I didn’t see even the single animal. It’s funny that there are many rabbits near to where I’m living but in Koli I didn’t see even a rabbit. I know its sound strange for you but that was the situation and national park here. I know the next question will be “what I saw then” but even me its hard to answer it, at some point I thought that our guide was taking us to some places where finally we will see some animals, but we ended up in good view on small hill in the forest. Then when I came back I supposed to find out what does national park means and I got the following results. So, national park doesn’t mean only animal reservation. I was mshamba, wasn’t I?
After Koli national park I went in Estonia’s capital (Tallinn), its one of the beautiful city with old but good buildings. So, it was three day trip and we started the journey at 10am and at 6:30 we were in Helsinki (Finland capital), then we went direct into the big ferry (meli) big than ever I have seen in my life. From Helsink to Tallinn is about 3hrs in ferry, but we had to sleep in ferry that day. All the night we were just drinking and dancing, it was really beautiful night. Alcohols are cheaper in ferry than in Finland. So, the next morning we were in Tallinn. It was raining throughout the day but it was ok for me because now I have already used to it. So we went through the city and taking some good picture. At evening we had to come back into the ferry and we were back in Helsinki at 11pm and started another long safari back to Joensuu. I really liked this trip because in Tallinn, things are very cheap compared to Finland, good friends I met and nice views in Tallinn.
On 14-16 November, we have planned to have another trip to Stockholm (Swedish capital). I hope it will be even more interesting…lets see, and I’m thinking to celebrate Christmas in German to one of my friend home, but still I’m not sure about it.
Apart from those trips, I have also managed to make some parties(sherehe) in my flat and invite some of my friends. I made Ugali with cabbage and chicken, and another party I made chapatti with beans. I also had one drinking party in my flat. Ugali and chapatti made me to be so much popular here and find myself to be invited in almost every party which taking place by international students. Crazy!!!
Now I have many friends from different places around the world but mostly from Poland, German, Spain, Lithuania, Russia and Netherlands.
I’m really tired today, and I think will be too much for you to read since you have some other things to do, I heard that this is one of the hard semester for you, but it will be even more harder for me. What we need to do is to have goals and to have faith to those goals. But really we have to work so much hard to be in the same track with European students. I have been writing about this in my blog for those who are follower but I will be writing more and more as possible. And also as I said at the beginning I will write an article which will tell difference between African and European countries/students, so I will discuss a lot about this.
Pictures of all above events are available in Google web album (Picasa ) and I will add you so that you can see my photo soon.
Also you can find most of my photos and updates in facebook if you open your account and you add me as friend by searching (fadhgeor@gmail.com) and then click add ad friend.
Also some of other information are found in my blog”Safari ya Finland” I will also add you soon but if you see delay, just remind me because I can be busy with some other things and forget this.
I will also write my final report about my exchange program and I will discuss advantage, disadvantage and problems of this program which I have experienced. I hope it will help to improve this program for the future.
Thanks very much and good lucky to your studies.
See you soon.
As I sent sms to most of you when I was leaving, 01/18/2009, it was wonderful trip which took about 24hrs to get here (Finland-Joensuu). I was really lucky since I didn’t get any problem on my way. Everything worked out as was planed, I get in Joensuu around 12pm (midnight) and I found 4 people were waiting for me including Matti, Merja, Barun (as most of you already might have known him) and one guy from Kenya. I was so much happy to get here fine. One interesting thing was that although it was midnight, there was still light like a day. I was amazed to see sun still at around 11pm at night and sun already coming out already at 5am again, so no darkness. I know it sounds strange but its truth. It was wonderful, although it was summer; the temperature was still low that I had to wear my pullover most of time.
Here are some of things I have been doing from the first day I came here in Finland. The second week of August, I attended Summer School Course in class of Prof. Paul De Bra , about Platforms for Stories-based Learning in Future Schools. It was great time for me to meet many friends from different countries all over the world. The Joensuu University, Department of computer science and statistics was the host of the whole event; they organized good social program and other Finnish traditional things like sauna and some Finnish games like Mökkyl. We also had some other sports like football, basketball, volleyball etc.
The third week of August I was cycling around the Joensuu , its really beautifully small city. I was going to about 10-25 km far from home and coming back each day. It helped me to know different places as well as how to read map and going any place. At beginning it was problem for me since I couldn’t be able to read map (bad geography background ;)). The forth week I spent most of time in Joensuu centre and university campus to make everything ready before starting my classes on 01 September. It was bit hard and bored time for me since there were no many friends to talk like in Tanzania.
So, on September 1, it was the first day of orientation week, it was great time for me to meet more than 600 international students from different countries around the world but most of them were from EU (European Union) countries. I felt bad because we were only 4 black students, one from Nigeria, and another from Somalia and another one from Cameroon. New good life with many fiends started with so many parties every weekend and some of weekdays. There were also barbecue parties commonly called BBQ, sports and games as well.
My classes began on 07/09/2009 and I started to take 3 classes, Object Oriented Programming (OOP), scientific methodology and Design and Analysis of Algorithms (DAA). After one week, I figured out that I was overloaded with classes. My intention was to understand OOP from scratch so I decided to drop DAA to reserve more time for OOP. Normally, a semester here divided into two periods, each period with 8 weeks. So, many courses are just last for one period but some of them last for two periods (one semester). I had so many exercises per week so time for parties and sports starts to decrease and spent most of my time in studies. I managed to understand basic concept in OOP which made me to feel more comfortable in Java oops. I finished with these classes last week after the first period of the semester to end. I have good understanding of OOP java now, m so much happy for that. Don’t worry, when I will come, we will arrange for how to make it clear for all of us.
This week I have started some other classes which are requirement engineering, Pattern Recognition, Image Analysis and Finnish Education system and Organization. I’m not sure if I will be able to take all these classes because my plan is also to take third years classes at Tumaini online. Finnish Education system and Organization is a course in Education department so I liked to take this class so as to get some information about Finnish system of education. My plan is to write an article which will tell something about difference between African and European students and I will use Tanzania and Finland as case studies. I will use daily experiences to get to this difference so I will use Ethnography research method.
Another great information I would like to share with you (not official) is that I was talking with Prof.Matti at begin of this week and he said to me that he has got wonderful research about *IT in developing countries which will be sponsored by Finnish government. He was so much happy because its really rear to get this kind of research, he said. The research will start on January 2010 and will run for 3 years, so he will be back in Tanzania Tumaini University specific in September 2010 as head of program but that time there will be another teacher from US who will do most of administration works, Matti will be giving classes but he will use most of time for his research. I think that’s great, isn’t? ;). I think second year student will get more advantage from this wonderful professor. But also, he will be instructing us (third year students) for the next semester in the BSc.Thesis online. Note; this is not official, so don’t take it into public.
So, now here is autumn, and it has been snowing a little bit, I was so much excited to see the first snow. The funny thing is that when I was wondering for 3cm snow and ice on the ground, others were just like there was nothing and asked me to wait for really snow which can be more than 30cm (rula) depth from the ground. . Damn, I can’t wait for that crazy time. When I came it was really green and beautiful but now there is no green any more or may be just on some portion of the land. All leaves are falling from the tree and it’s getting colder and colder everyday. Now when I’m writing this sentence its +1 but last week it gets to -3, Its really cold but it will get to -11 and more on December according to statistics. But you can just imagine how the situation now is with comparison to Tz; it’s already too much cold for me.
I have been in different place in and outside Joensuu. I went to Koli national Park, which is 70km from Joensuu city and we were hiking in the forest for one day. It wasn’t really interesting for me because I expected to see many animals that day but I didn’t see even the single animal. It’s funny that there are many rabbits near to where I’m living but in Koli I didn’t see even a rabbit. I know its sound strange for you but that was the situation and national park here. I know the next question will be “what I saw then” but even me its hard to answer it, at some point I thought that our guide was taking us to some places where finally we will see some animals, but we ended up in good view on small hill in the forest. Then when I came back I supposed to find out what does national park means and I got the following results. So, national park doesn’t mean only animal reservation. I was mshamba, wasn’t I?
After Koli national park I went in Estonia’s capital (Tallinn), its one of the beautiful city with old but good buildings. So, it was three day trip and we started the journey at 10am and at 6:30 we were in Helsinki (Finland capital), then we went direct into the big ferry (meli) big than ever I have seen in my life. From Helsink to Tallinn is about 3hrs in ferry, but we had to sleep in ferry that day. All the night we were just drinking and dancing, it was really beautiful night. Alcohols are cheaper in ferry than in Finland. So, the next morning we were in Tallinn. It was raining throughout the day but it was ok for me because now I have already used to it. So we went through the city and taking some good picture. At evening we had to come back into the ferry and we were back in Helsinki at 11pm and started another long safari back to Joensuu. I really liked this trip because in Tallinn, things are very cheap compared to Finland, good friends I met and nice views in Tallinn.
On 14-16 November, we have planned to have another trip to Stockholm (Swedish capital). I hope it will be even more interesting…lets see, and I’m thinking to celebrate Christmas in German to one of my friend home, but still I’m not sure about it.
Apart from those trips, I have also managed to make some parties(sherehe) in my flat and invite some of my friends. I made Ugali with cabbage and chicken, and another party I made chapatti with beans. I also had one drinking party in my flat. Ugali and chapatti made me to be so much popular here and find myself to be invited in almost every party which taking place by international students. Crazy!!!
Now I have many friends from different places around the world but mostly from Poland, German, Spain, Lithuania, Russia and Netherlands.
I’m really tired today, and I think will be too much for you to read since you have some other things to do, I heard that this is one of the hard semester for you, but it will be even more harder for me. What we need to do is to have goals and to have faith to those goals. But really we have to work so much hard to be in the same track with European students. I have been writing about this in my blog for those who are follower but I will be writing more and more as possible. And also as I said at the beginning I will write an article which will tell difference between African and European countries/students, so I will discuss a lot about this.
Pictures of all above events are available in Google web album (Picasa ) and I will add you so that you can see my photo soon.
Also you can find most of my photos and updates in facebook if you open your account and you add me as friend by searching (fadhgeor@gmail.com) and then click add ad friend.
Also some of other information are found in my blog”Safari ya Finland” I will also add you soon but if you see delay, just remind me because I can be busy with some other things and forget this.
I will also write my final report about my exchange program and I will discuss advantage, disadvantage and problems of this program which I have experienced. I hope it will help to improve this program for the future.
Thanks very much and good lucky to your studies.
See you soon.
Monday 5 October 2009
Trip to Koli National Park -Finland
So, it was Saturday of 03/10/2009 when we had the trip to visit Koli national park which is 70km from Joensuu City. We left the city near Karelia building (main library) at 10.25am and it was 1hr safari. It was bit cold that day; i don’t remember exactly how much centigrade was.
In the bus i sit next to my friend (Qasim from Pakistan) and made safari to be very short due to many stories we were making in the bus. We were actually talking about difference in traditional in Tanzania and Pakistan. For those don’t know, sex before marriage in Pakistan is strictly not allowed in their land ;), they are eating Chapati and rice as their main food there.
In the bus i sit next to my friend (Qasim from Pakistan) and made safari to be very short due to many stories we were making in the bus. We were actually talking about difference in traditional in Tanzania and Pakistan. For those don’t know, sex before marriage in Pakistan is strictly not allowed in their land ;), they are eating Chapati and rice as their main food there.
So, we arrived in Koli after an hour and starting hiking in the forest. Different from what i was expecting, i found myself getting more and more bored as time was going. This is because i had so much expectation to see many animals there (as it is normal in TZ) but i didn’t see a single animal, even the rabbit which you can see in many forests near to my flat and in the street. So, i was really bored plus the cold. "Why are you such quite?" one of my friends from Poland (Derick) asked. I didn’t really like to tell him that i was bored because all other people were seems to enjoy a lot. i was only one black guy there.
At some point, we went to the highest pick of the mountain, waoo, it was good view. That’s only place i liked in Koli and it was the last place to visit in that big forest. After there we went back to the Koli Hotel about 6minutes walking from the highest pick of the Koli. This is the highest mountain i ever seen in Joensuu.it takes not more than 8minitus to climb from hotel.
After few minutes in Hotel, one of my friends (maija) just asked me to look outside through the very big glass window, waooooooo, it was snowing. i just went outside and see my first snow in my life, heheheee.i spend all time outside but my camera was off because of battery couldn’t took pictures, too bad.....
At 0400 our bus came and we start safari back to Joensuu, so much tired will sleep well today because i'm tired. But i have to attend African party where some of people will come from Helsinki. i should go there though m tired.
When we were in bus back in joensuu, we again starting talking about many things about Pakistan and Tanzania then other countries. First he told me about CIMET program, its sound good. i have to apply for this in my masters degree. Then we talk about population in Pakistan (100m)china (2000m)and others, m not sure about this statistics, i have to find more information.
At 0400 our bus came and we start safari back to Joensuu, so much tired will sleep well today because i'm tired. But i have to attend African party where some of people will come from Helsinki. i should go there though m tired.
When we were in bus back in joensuu, we again starting talking about many things about Pakistan and Tanzania then other countries. First he told me about CIMET program, its sound good. i have to apply for this in my masters degree. Then we talk about population in Pakistan (100m)china (2000m)and others, m not sure about this statistics, i have to find more information.
No sleep, so I went to the party and meet more than 16 African who lives in joensuu and some of them from Helsinki, I had 3 beers only, the party was prepared in one of the flat in Verkkotie Rantakylä.They prepared very good dinner. after some beers people started get drunk and dancing from the African music songs which were from youtube. Every person now is interested to go to the club. they are try to tell me to go back sleep because I was really tire and almost all week I was spend the night in the party. “no I have to join you in the club” 3 beers plus one which Lomanzi gave me started to say in my brain. So we all went to the night club in the centre. Soo many people, good music. This is the best disco I have been in Europe. Around 2pm I was completely tired and I have to go back Rantakyla to sleep.
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