F URTHER Education and Training (FET) colleges are being touted by Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande as an attractive alternative to universities.
This comes after Gloria Sekwena, the mother of a prospective student was killed and 20 others injured at a stampede at the University of Johannesburg last week. Thousands of late admission students flocked to the university desperately seeking enrolment.
And universities say they have received thousands of applications for the limited number of first-year spots in 2012.
Delivering the Green Paper for Post-School Education and Training this week, Nzimande said they are aiming for four million enrolments in colleges or other post-school institutions (full and part-time) in the next 20 years with the expansion of the FET sector their primary focus.
A green paper is not government policy and the department will receive public comments regarding its content. A white paper drafted with these suggestion will be drawn up later this year for approval and adoption by the cabinet as official government policy.
There are more than 50 registered public FET colleges in the country with a number of privately owned registered colleges. They offer a range of courses from beauty and hairdressing to financial management, civil and electrical engineering to art and design.
The course length and price differ according to individual subjects, but cost a fraction of university fees.
Singing the praises of FET colleges is a former student, who has worked his way up to become a sales manager at one of the country’s largest supermarket chains.
Mobisi Bhengu, 31, studied for a diploma in human resources at Thekwini FET College for 18 months. He then did 18 months in-service training at the college’s HR department until 2008, thereafter working as a manager at a large supermarket chain and eventually becoming a sales manager.
“I would not have attained this position if I did not have my qualification,” he said.
“FET colleges are an option for students who can’t go to university.”
Nzimande said the FET colleges sector would play a central role in expanding the development of artisanal and other mid-level skills which are in short supply.
“FETs working with both private and public employers will be our spearhead in tackling this problem. By 2030 we aim to raise the university enrolments to 1.5 million as opposed to the 2011 enrolments of 899 120,” he said.
This would include a new institutional model, provisionally called Community Education and Training, to address the needs of out-of-school youth and adults, he said.
Brian Cadir, rector of Thekwini FET Colleges (which has six campuses in KZN), said FET colleges are being tasked to skill the nation’s youth.
A former diesel mechanic, Cadir said FET colleges offered students a qualification coupled with hands-on training.
“There is this perception that if you work with your hands you are less intelligent. I was a tradesman and look where I am today. Being an artisan does not limit you.”
However, Cadir said there had been little change in funding despite a growing demand.
“Students only now have access to the national student financial aid scheme (NSFAS) and we have started with the Sector Education Training Authorities, which also assists with funding.”
He said FET colleges are spread across rural and urban areas but warned potential students not to fall prey to fly-by-night institutions that are not registered with the Department of Higher Education, and which are out to make a quick buck.
Thekwini FET Colleges can accommodate about 8 000 full- and part-time students, and there are plans to increase their intake drastically, but they need more staff.
“But guidance classes at schools need to become more useful in giving direction from Grade 8,” Cadir said.
The minimum requirement for study is that you must be at least 16 and have completed Grade 9 or 10 depending on the course you want to do.
Students can complete the equivalent of a matric at a college and what they study depends on their academic strengths.
For instance, a student can’t study engineering without maths.
When the Sunday Tribune visited the Thekwini FET College’s Asherville campus this week, hundreds were registering for the first semester.
Among the students was Thembisa Mabindisa, 19, who was enrolling to complete her one-and-a-half-year marketing management course by June before going on to do in-service training.
“People don’t think I am less intelligent because I didn’t go to university.”
Advocate Ishmael Malale, who chairs the parliamentary portfolio committee on higher education and training, said students should avail themselves of the opportunities offered by FET colleges, particularly in areas where there is a scarcity of skills, to enhance the country’s productivity.
“We should not rely too much on universities and academic studies to meet the economy’s needs.
“Infrastructure needs to be expanded to allow more students the opportunity to study. Resources must be channelled for infrastructure at both universities and FET colleges.”
But Adcorp Labour analyst Loane Sharp believes FET colleges are a poor second to universities.
He encouraged distance learning through Unisa if students could not get on-campus study as the probability of getting a job increases with a tertiary education.
He believes that standards at FET colleges are poor and that for the thousands of students who do not qualify for on-campus study, distance learning is an alternative.
“This will allow you to work while you study and obtain a high-calibre degree that you can complete in your own time, but it’s important to study what is relevant to vacancies in the job market,” he said.
Sharp says Unisa degrees are reputable and of a high standard, but “students studying religious studies for example, will battle to find employment. They should be focusing on economics, management, finance and accounting.”
He suggested that while degrees in the arts, social science and humanities might be good for character development, it would not help in the job market.
He said professional bodies blocked the entry of students into disciplines where there was a shortage, namely in medicine, architecture, law and accounting by setting standards too high.
Sharp advised students to re-do matric to get an exemption pass or to approach small businesses and offer their services as unpaid apprentices.
“You need to see how the business is run so you can one day start your own.”
Spokeswoman for the Department of Higher Education and training Vuyelwa Qinga said FET colleges were an alternative given that of the 50 national FET colleges, there were 264 campuses in the nine provinces, unlike the universities which only exist in seven of the provinces.
“FET colleges have a much wider geographical reach. They cater for different types of students. For instance, they offer the National Certificate (Vocational) NC(V), currently offering a menu of 18 programmes to choose from.”
She said there are more than 80 000 places available for new students at FET colleges this year.
Qinga said public FET colleges are not required to be registered – but that private education institutions are required to register with the Department of Higher Education and Training.
Prospective students can call 0800 87 22 22 to verify the registration status of any private educational institution.
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