Council raises red flag over online education of six private institutions

The Higher Education Council (HEC) in Rwanda has warned students who are enrolled in universities in other parts of the world that have not been accredited internationally to halt their studies and seek re-admission elsewhere, as they risk not obtaining equivalence once they graduate.

The affected students are engaged in e-learning and online distance learning at institutions that have not been accredited internationally, according to the council.

On the list released by the council are the Distant Production House University in the United States, Madison International Institute and Business School in the United Kingdom and the Université Distant Production House in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The others are the online branch of Institut Supérieur de Technologie or IST, in Burkina Faso, the London School of Modern Studies in the United Kingdom and the Atlantic International University in the US.

According to the council, students have to be vigilant when they enrol for e-learning and online distance learning courses.

“We continue to see some Rwandan students enrolling in universities that are not accredited to offer e-learning and online distance learning,” the council statement on 22 April read.

“Those who have started their studies at these unaccredited universities should stop and seek readmission elsewhere in accredited universities,” it added.

Consequences for students

The warning comes after the council withdrew its recognition in January for PhD degrees obtained from the US-based Atlantic International University because the programmes have allegedly not been accredited.

The decision followed the arrest of Dr Egide Igabe by the Rwanda Investigation Bureau over allegedly forging academic documents he reportedly obtained from AIU.

HEC said that it had done a thorough analysis and verification of the accreditation status of the Atlantic International University and found that this institution is not accredited in the US by the agency in charge of the accreditation of higher learning.

Igabe has taught at the University of Tourism, Technology and Business Studies and the University of Kigali.

He was arrested on 7 January 2022 but was later released on bail by the National Public Prosecution Authority.

While there is no exact figure for the number of Rwandans who graduated from the Atlantic International University, it is reported that a substantial number of university lecturers and civil servants hold PhD degrees from the institution.

As for the case of AIU, its management dismissed all the allegations, saying that it is a recognised university and has accreditation from the Accreditation Service for International Schools, Colleges and Universities, or ASIC, a United Kingdom-based independent international educational agency.

When Igabe was arrested, the university confirmed that the suspect graduated in its PhD programme, a fact verified by the permanent records held at AIU’s registrar’s office.

The Higher Education Council in Rwanda has, however, dismissed the accreditation, stressing that the accrediting agency is not a government agency in charge of accreditation in the UK or elsewhere.

What does the warning mean?

The council’s recent warning means that those enrolled in or who have graduated from the listed universities do so at their own risk and could not get equivalence from the Higher Education Council to seek employment in Rwanda or elsewhere. It also means that equivalence – recognition of equivalent qualifications – can be withdrawn by the council at any time.

In a previous interview with University World News, Dr Callixte Kabera, the vice-chancellor of the University of Tourism, Technology and Business Studies, who also doubles as the president of Rwanda’s Private Universities’ Association, called on the HEC to raise more awareness to provide students with information so they know which universities to join and which to avoid.

Kabera also believes that, although it is the responsibility of the students to verify whether the university is internationally accredited, the Higher Education Council should collaborate with other accrediting institutions and inform the students about reliable institutions.

“That should help students who seek enrolment in universities abroad to avoid spending time and money and end up not getting equivalent documents or risk having their academic documents withdrawn,” he said.