Establish a proper procedure to enroll allocated number of students to the science and agriculture faculties according to the available facilities
Posted on January 22nd, 2017
Press Release University Teachers for Social Equality
University Teachers for Social Equity (UTSE) emphasizes that there is a significant shortage in admission to some of the degree programs offered by the government universities when compared to the allocated number of students by the University Grants Commission (UGC). We would like to point out that there had been large number of vacancies in the science faculties and agriculture faculties of the UGC funded universities during the past years and the relevant authorities had not been able to take reliable actions to resolve this issue. The UGC has not yet provided final lists of the selected students who passed GCE (A/L) examinations in 2015 to the many of the science and agriculture faculties within the government university system where the students have the opportunities to follow physical science, biological science, computer science, fisheries and agriculture degree programs.
When we analyze the statistics published by the UGC itself (see the table) it is possible to identify the gravity of this issue and it is noted that this issue is becoming worst. Present and previous ministers responsible for Higher Education have been quoting numbers of university admissions from their publications and have been promising that they have been increasing the number of student admissions to universities. It is evident that those statements are not really truthful and that there is a decrease in admissions of students to many of the degree programs.
Some parties, who are justifying and promoting private universities, supports the argument that the government universities has no sufficient facilities and opportunities to expand the government funded universities in order to increase the number of students. However, the above documents published by UGC reveal that the required number of admissions to government funded universities had not been done by UGC for many years to utilize the facilities and opportunities available within those universities.
As a result of this situation, a significant number of students who are unable to afford the cost of private universities had lost their opportunities for higher education and therefore it had prevented the right and the opportunity of the public for utilizing revenue of tax in an optimal manner. This is a highly critical issue for the innocent children who have no any other way of protecting their future other than going through higher education.
| Academic Year | Colombo | Peradeniya | SriJapura | ||||||
| Intake | Admission | Vacancies | Intake | Admission | Vacancies | Intake | Admission | Vacancies | |
| 2010 | 365 | 348 | 17 | 430 | 364 | 66 | 580 | 444 | 136 |
| 2011 | 365 | 357 | 8 | 430 | 393 | 37 | 475 | 361 | 114 |
| 2012 | 365 | 358 | 7 | 430 | 389 | 41 | 475 | 362 | 113 |
| 2013 | 365 | 357 | 8 | 430 | 338 | 92 | 580 | 578 | 2 |
| 2014 | 365 | 356 | 9 | 430 | 354 | 76 | 580 | 562 | 18 |
| 2015 | 365 | 338 | 27 | 430 | 361 | 69 | 580 | 547 | 33 |
| Academic Year | Jaffna | Ruhuna | Eastern | ||||||
| Intake | Admission | Vacancies | Intake | Admission | Vacancies | Intake | Admission | Vacancies | |
| 2010 | 425 | 125 | 300 | 340 | 261 | 79 | 250 | 87 | 163 |
| 2011 | 340 | 295 | 45 | 250 | 223 | 27 | 300 | 162 | 138 |
| 2012 | 340 | 292 | 48 | 250 | 224 | 26 | 300 | 152 | 148 |
| 2013 | 425 | 206 | 219 | 340 | 243 | 97 | 250 | 208 | 42 |
| 2014 | 425 | 313 | 112 | 340 | 255 | 85 | 250 | 212 | 38 |
| 2015 | 425 | 278 | 147 | 340 | 221 | 119 | 250 | 171 | 79 |
| Academic Year | Rajarata | Sabaragamuwa | Wayaba | ||||||
| Intake | Admission | Vacancies | Intake | Admission | Vacancies | Intake | Admission | Vacancies | |
| 2010 | 195 | 108 | 87 | 100 | 64 | 36 | 200 | 118 | 82 |
| 2011 | 100 | 53 | 47 | 200 | 137 | 63 | |||
| 2012 | 100 | 54 | 46 | 200 | 141 | 59 | |||
| 2013 | 195 | 118 | 77 | 100 | 69 | 31 | 200 | 140 | 60 |
| 2014 | 195 | 88 | 107 | 100 | 74 | 26 | 200 | 163 | 37 |
| 2015 | 195 | 118 | 77 | 200 | 162 | 38 | |||
| Academic Year | Kelaniya | South Eastern | |||||||
| Intake | Admission | Vacancies | Intake | Admission | Vacancies | ||||
| 2010 | 475 | 400 | 75 | 300 | 100 | 200 | |||
| 2011 | 425 | 247 | 178 | 195 | 116 | 79 | |||
| 2012 | 425 | 254 | 171 | 195 | 113 | 82 | |||
| 2013 | 475 | 330 | 145 | 300 | 102 | 198 | |||
| 2014 | 475 | 414 | 61 | 300 | 117 | 183 | |||
| 2015 | 475 | 429 | 46 | 300 | 237 | 63 | |||
This issue has been arisen not only due to the inefficiency of relevant authority (UGC) but also due to the associated activities of releasing of GCE(A/L) examinations by the Department of Examinations. The time taken to release GCE(A/L) results also has contributed to this situation up to some extent.
We, as the University Teachers for Social Equity, firmly request authorities to take necessary actions urgently to establish a proper procedure to enroll allocated number of students to the science and agriculture faculties according to the available facilities and opportunities those faculties without keeping a single vacancy. In addition to that we request to take productive actions to change the traditional method of releasing GCE(A/L) examination results and enrolment system at UGC that cause the students put away from the higher education at government universities. We urge all the parties who appreciate the importance of free education and its protection to come forward in order to get the present system changed for the benefit of our children’s higher education.
University Teachers for Social Equality
January 22, 2017
Coordination 0714458399 0712279246 0716966611
January 22nd, 2017 at 3:36 pm
This is an ASTONISHING REVELATION of DERELICTION OF OUR DUTY to educate our children!
I well aware of the aspiration and desire of Sri Lankan students to gain admission to a university, especially in scienctific fields.
Like most people, I was laboring under the WRONG ILLUSION that there are NO VACANCIES FOR NEW STUDENTS in any year in Sri Lanan students and that ALL POSITIONS are filled every year.
And NOW, this article reveals the SCHOOLING TRUTH that there are many vacancies at every of the National University System!
What a TERRIBLE & CRIMINAL WASTE! ALL those young and eager students TURNED AWAY with an impersonal letter telling them there are NO VACANCIES!
Is this a well orchestrated STRATEGY to create an ARTIFICIAL SHORTAGE and DEVELOP A CASE FOR PRIVATE UNIVERSITIES, perhaps with lessential facilities and lower standards?
Maintaining an efficient National University System and providing a means of gaining a quality education to EACH & EVERY aspiring student who meets the admissions criteria is a SACRED DUTY of the Government. Our National future lies in the hands of these children, our BEST and BRIGHTEST!
Why is this SACRED DUTY not being FULFILLED and taken SERIOUSLY as the HIGHEST of our National Priorities?
FOOTNOTE:
I recently read that in Singapore about 85% of students are guided into Scientific fields while only 15% are in the Humanities. Consequently, the vast majority of Singaporean graduates are employable and get rewarding jobs after graduation.
The situation in Sri Lanka is the d act opposite: the vast majority of our students are in the Humanities, not Science, and are unemployable after graduation from High School and even University. Even Arts university graduates ecome factory workers; what a terrible waste of human talent, that only leads towards creating untold waves of Viplavakarayas!
We must make it a National Priority to REVERSE this ratio of Arts to Science students and university graduates. One of the bottle necks is the lack of a Science Stream after the GCE O/L to prepare the students for the GCE A/L exam in many rural schools. Those schools lack Science, math and English proficient teachers, and are staffed by ‘Arts’ teachers who resentful of the desureablity of their fields in terms of employment, and continue to mis-guide their students into doing the A/L in Arts fields and actively discourage them from transferring to other schools with a Science stream!
I KNOW THIS WELL, for I have PERSONALLY INTERVENED to rescue several of my adopted children from this TRAP that would lead them into permanent poverty, and to help them TRANSFER to schools with Science Streams, and surround them with tuition teachers to bring them upto speed in the Science subjects from which they were diverted away!
The lack of Science Streams, Science Teachers and Science Laboratory facilities at such schools is ANOTHER NATIONAL PROBLEM that we must address as an URGENT PRIORITY!
If we don’t produce SCIENCE EDUCATED WORKERS, Sri Lankans will be condemned to serve serve as workers, seamstresses, nannies and laborers for foreign company owned free trade zone factories. Instead, we should spawn a phalanx of our own energetic and confident entrepreneurs with the necessary knowledge, skills and experience to compete toe-to-toe against the world!
A Quality Science Education is the KEY thst will UNLOCK that DOOR to a bright and prosperous future for our people!
January 22nd, 2017 at 3:37 pm
Oops! Not ” the SCHOOLING TRUTH”, but “the SHOCKING TRUTH”!
January 22nd, 2017 at 4:53 pm
Although I never expected this it is not surprising knowing our country is (and has been) run by crooks.
“Is this a well orchestrated STRATEGY to create an ARTIFICIAL SHORTAGE and DEVELOP A CASE FOR PRIVATE UNIVERSITIES, perhaps with lessential facilities and lower standards?”
– Yes, if we think ( from 2010 to 2015) everything is orchestrated by India , China, USA and we are “Thoththa Babas”, but the writers of the article has correctly given few obvious reasons.
I agree it is TERRIBLE & CRIMINAL WASTE but similar or BIGGER criminal wastes and acts are occuring in almost all possible mechanism of governence but perpetrators in our Dhramadeepa are getting Metta, Karuna , Uppekkha in return and most of us are keen to keep it that way.
It is easy to solve this by having two or 3 rounds of filling of vacancies and as the writers said by speeding up the marking process of A/L exams. I beleive Tamils and Muslims are taking a lot of time to cheat and that is why the delay.
Some students who wants to get inot Medicine and Engineering may be reluctant to do science and agriculture and thus these vacancies may not be getting filled. It also depends on what the job market for each field is.
Another issue may be cheating by University staff in Jaffna university and Tamil student worry same cheating they are doing may be present in the South against them.
My demand
STOP CHEATING BY TAMILS AND MUSLIMS AGAINST SINHALAS mother of all troubles.
January 22nd, 2017 at 5:18 pm
This must be fixed immediately while keeping with equity across various ethnic groups. Ethnic balance within the taxpayer funded university system must represent the national ethnic composition. Otherwise there is no equity.
@Ananda
Although that is true for Singapore’s schools, almost all of them end up becoming doctors, lawyers, etc. with very few actually ending up taking scientific and engineering jobs and entrepreneurship. There is total lack of innovation in Singapore as a result. They plan to overhaul the exam mindset to overcome this problem.
January 22nd, 2017 at 7:38 pm
Dilrook,
Even Singapore can accommodate only a finite number of doctors and lawyers, so there must be other jobs for science-educated Singaporean students who are the majority (85%) as I stated. The point is that students with a grounding in math and science can fit into most of the lucrative knowledge-based work in the modern world, while most, with a few exceptions, of the humanities students are destined to become hewers of wood and drawers of water trapped in poorly paid jobs.