SA University standards are dropping

scotty777 said:
how so? My Wits engineering course is almost exactly the same as UCT's (only difference is I do 1/2 year chem and full year English (report writing) and electric circuits in first year)... So if I do the same course, that has the same material, and pass, thus gaining the same knowledge, then how is it anywhere near possible that my degree is less valuable than UCT's?
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With engineering it's one of the special cases since the degrees are regulated by the ECSA and therefore accredited institutions basically provide the same degrees (undergraduate). But with other degrees such as Comp Sci, there are BIG differences. Another factor as well is the quality of project work and lecturing received, certain institutions are known for graduates having skills and abilities a subject just cannot teach (i.e. passed on by lecturer).
 
UnUnOctium said:
With engineering it's one of the special cases since the degrees are regulated by the ECSA and therefore accredited institutions basically provide the same degrees (undergraduate). But with other degrees such as Comp Sci, there are BIG differences. Another factor as well is the quality of project work and lecturing received, certain institutions are known for graduates having skills and abilities a subject just cannot teach (i.e. passed on by lecturer).
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agreed, I've found that at Wits, they give us the tools to learn, but it all comes down to you taking your own time to learn things and understand them. For circuits, they now giving us a project with only objectives, everything else must be researched by us, and we have to do the hard work, which is a pain, but I've heard that it's valuable as an engineer (where you need to design something crazy, but you have to find out how to do the pieces yourself).

As for Social sciences, yes, each university has massive variations in the quality of the work being lectured to people and the projects been given out... Perhaps a more unified system in needed where there's a board for each faculty whom decides what the syllabus should be, and the quality of the lecturers. I've heard that Wits was on the verge of losing their B-com accreditation and they are now being forced to allocate more quality lecturers and a more stringent syllabus, although I could be wrong here!
 
I heard the same Wits rumour.

I also know that government funding has become more stricter and universities need to prove that students are actually studying. UNISA has implemented a strict rule that if you do not hand in at least one assignment by a due date, then they can your registration. The government uses these assignments as attendance to the university and only pays out based on those active students.
 
cbrunsdonza said:
I heard the same Wits rumour.

I also know that government funding has become more stricter and universities need to prove that students are actually studying. UNISA has implemented a strict rule that if you do not hand in at least one assignment by a due date, then they can your registration. The government uses these assignments as attendance to the university and only pays out based on those active students.
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Ahh...so that explains the rather 'perverse' incentive that universities have in this country. More students = more funding from the government. Universities love harping on about the inability of matric pupils to handle university - which is correct - but they should also take responsibility in admitting students who clearly shouldn't be there. Then again, universities probably get the funding BEFORE the students drop-out, hence universities don't care how many people drop-out because they have obtained what they wanted.

How on earth are some people meant to be concentrating on the material at hand when there are 350+ people in a lecture hall and half of them are talking to to their buddy next to them? The solution, I've found, is too sit near the front as it seemingly attracts the more "serious" students :p
 
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Chris said:
Ahh...so that explains the rather 'perverse' incentive that universities have in this country. More students = more funding from the government. Universities love harping on about the inability of matric pupils to handle university - which is correct - but they should also take responsibility in admitting students who clearly shouldn't be there. Then again, universities probably get the funding BEFORE the students drop-out, hence universities don't care how many people drop-out because they have obtained what they wanted.
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There's no way you can tell if a student coming from matric will do well or not... I've seen people with 8 distinctions failing their first semester... but then people that just got into their course do exceptionally well... So there really isn't a defined way to decide who's qualified or not :p.

I've also think we need more universities simply because we need more graduates (or a higher density of graduates) in the country.
 
zulgin said:
it is research, to increase the knowledge pool of the country, graduates is a byproduct of research :)
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I beg to differ. because then our most efficient uni's would actually be private style research labs.

Giving class is the price researchers(or lecturers) pay to be able to do their research - but that is something else entirely to saying the function of a university is mainly to do research.
 
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