Studying and parenting: Experiences of student mother in Ugandan universities

In the past, University education in Uganda mainly catered for direct entrants from secondary schools. Today, there is a significant shift where by many mature students are entering Universities. These mature students include women who are parents as well. This trend has been influenced by the introduction of various programmes such as: distance learning, evening, and weekend programmes coupled with the growing number of private Universities that currently stand at more than 10 in number. For this study, which inquired about the experiences of student mothers in Ugandan Universities, data was collected from 53 respondents drawn from three universities, namely: Ndejje, Nkumba and Kyambogo. The following were found to be reasons that motivate mature to go back to study, which: promotion, status, protection of jobs, to match their highly educated husbands and their own career building. The challenges faced were categorized as follows: domestic challenges; challenges with spouses, challenges at the university and at places of work. These challenges thus call for varying copying strategies that student mothers have to employ in order to strike a balance between studying and parenting at the same time. The study recommends that universities needed to introduce courses tailored to student mothers with an increased time frame without compromising educational quality. In addition, student services that include guidance and counseling sessions and childcare centres at University premises to support mothers' education should be taken into account. Employers are also encouraged to introduce innovations in the way they relate with student mothers who may decide to go back to study, including reduced workload or study leave where necessary, without affecting the performance of the organization.Mtafiti Mwafrika Vol.17 2006: pp.1-2