Government explains reintroduction of quota system in colleges of education

Government in a letter dated December 16, 2022, announced the reintroduction of the quota system for the 46 accredited Public Colleges of Education for the 2022/2023 academic year.

Some Education analysts believe this move will likely prevent prospective applicants from gaining admission into the various Colleges of Education in the country.

The Executive Director of Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC), Professor Mohammed Salifu has explained that its decision to reintroduce the admission quota system at the Colleges of Education is a result of limited infrastructure.

According to the list released by Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC), a total of 12,002 prospective teacher trainees are expected to be admitted into the Colleges of Education for the 2022/2023 academic year.

In a letter to the National Conference of Principals of Colleges of Education (PRINCOF), the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission outlined the list of Colleges of Education with their respective admission quotas for the academic year under review.

Reacting to the new development in a Citi News interview, the Executive Director of GTEC, Professor Mohammed Salifu, said physical spaces at the various Colleges of Education are limited due to the running of the four-year system, hence the move to bring back the quota system and cut down on enrolment.

“We planned a programme of physical infrastructural expansion, but the expansion hasn’t kept pace with the progress of the cohort. So as it stands now, physical space is still a little limited. You would have heard that we have hostel projects going on across all the various colleges. While that is ongoing, we have to manage the space we have. That is what informed the decision,” the Executive Director of GTEC explained.

Professor Salifu debunked claims that the reintroduction of the quota system was due to the payment of teacher trainee allowances.

“As far as I’m concerned, there’s no policy change with the reintroduction of the trainee allowances, so that hasn’t been in the equation at all. It hasn’t been one of our considerations, we are dealing with an existing policy which recognises that we pay them [teacher trainees] allowances. But the numbers we are dealing with now are just numbers that are constrained by the physical space that the colleges have,” he emphasised.

Quota System Reintroduced

The Government has reintroduced the quota admission system for the 46 accredited Public Colleges of Education, effective the beginning of the 2022/2023 academic year.

The Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC), in a letter to the National Conference of Principals of Colleges of Education (PRINCOF) outlined the number of permissible admissions for prospective teacher trainees for the 46 Colleges of Education.

“Please be informed that the allocation cannot be varied and must be strictly adhered to. For the avoidance of doubt, payment of Feeding Grants and Trainee Allowances will be guided by these members,” GTEC said in its letter.