Abstract
This descriptive quantitative study investigated the performance of the Science Foundation Programme (SFP) graduates in their 1st year of the degree programmes at the University of Namibia (UNAM) from 2005 to 2016. The population of the study consisted of 1298 all the former students who went through the SFP from 2005 to 2016 at the Oshakati campus and a sample of 100 (n = 100) students was randomly selected from the population (N = 1298). The researchers analysed the University Integrated Tertiary System (ITS) database to extract students’ records to find out how many former SFP students had registered for degree courses; and also to find out the performance of these students in their courses of study at UNAM. The findings of the study showed that since the establishment of the SFP in 2005 at the Oshakati campus in 2005, the SFP has been growing and attracting more students within Namibia. The findings also indicated that the SFP was meeting its mandate and achieving its goal and objectives of preparing students for the first year of their studies at tertiary institutions because each year, more students have passed their 1st year and have progressed into their second year of studies at UNAM. The study recommended that a longitudinal study should be carried out to shed light on the performance of SFP graduates throughout their studies: from first year to their final year of studies.
Highlights
IntroductionAfter independence the University of Namibia (UNAM) joined the government in responding to the needs of disadvantaged learners; especially those in rural and remote regions from the capital city, Windhoek
The findings indicated that the Science Foundation Programme (SFP) was meeting its mandate and achieving its goal and objectives of preparing students for the first year of their studies at tertiary institutions because each year, more students have passed their 1st year and have progressed into their second year of studies at University of Namibia (UNAM)
It can be concluded from the document analysis’ results that the SFP has been growing and attracting more students within Namibia. It can be concluded from the document analysis’ results that more than half of the former SFP students were enroled in UNAM degree or diploma courses as from 2006 to 2016
Summary
After independence the University of Namibia (UNAM) joined the government in responding to the needs of disadvantaged learners; especially those in rural and remote regions from the capital city, Windhoek. This was necessary because UNAM had a limited number of students from previously disadvantaged communities, especially in the science-related fields that used to be only for the elite (Chirimbana, 2014). The SFP is offered to Grade 12 certificate holders who show potential to pursue a degree in science-related fields but do not meet the university entry requirements of 25 minimum points in five subjects. The following research objective was addressed: To investigate the performance of the SFP graduates in their 1st year of the degree programmes at UNAM from 2005 to 2016
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