Community College increases intake by 30%

Since an Act of Parliament five years ago paved the way for the four post secondary educational institutions be brought together under one umbrella to form the St Vincent and the Grenadines Community College, tremendous strides are still being made some five years later.{{more}}

At the first ever amalgmated graduation ceremony of the Teaching, Nursing, Technical and Vocational and Sciences and General Studies institutions, Director of the St Vincent and the Grenadines Community College Dr. S. Joel Warrican stated that ceremony “is just another milestone in the unfolding history of what we envision will be a great institution.”

Delivering the Director’s report, Warrican said persons must think about the institution’s ubiquitous presence on the national front and its contribution to the development of the nation’s people.

In the 2008-2009 academic year there were 1,484 students enrolled at the College. For 2009-2010, there were 1,921, which represents an increase of almost 30% over the previous academic year.

In the Division of Technical and Vocational Education, in 2008-2009 academic year, 409 students pursued studies in that Division. This academic year, there were 763 students, which represents an 87% increase over the previous year. “In order to accommodate this increase, five temporary classrooms were constructed at the Division, and additional staff was hired. Indeed, ten additional faculty members were brought in, taking the size of the full time staff from 26 to 36,” Warrican noted.

The Division of Arts, Sciences and General Studies has also experienced some growth with 497 students being admitted to the division this year, a 26 per cent increase over the number in the previous year. The total enrolment figure at the Division now stands at 806.

In last academic year, there were 506 entries for the Cambridge Advanced and Advanced Subsidiary level examinations, with 380 passes, securing a pass rate of 75 per cent. The CAPE examinations, saw 996 entries, with 887 passes, securing a pass rate of 89 per cent. This year, there were 285 subject entries at Cambridge and 1682 at CAPE.

According to Warrican, 35 students were enrolled in the Division of Teacher Education in the Primary Education programme, 20 more than 2008-2009. Eighteen students were also enrolled in the secondary programme this year.

Registered Nursing; Midwifery and Nursing Assistant, were the three programmes offered this year in the Division of Nursing Education. At the end of the academic year, this division had a total of 183 students. The Division had three cohorts of students at various stages of the Registered Nursing programme. There were 49 students in the first year and 43 in the second year. Pass rates for clinical examinations fell between 70 and 75 percent.

Additionally, 36 students successfully completed the final year of the Registered Nursing programme and, along with 6 others from the previous cohort of students, went on to write the qualifying Regional Examinations in April. Of these 42 students, 26 were successful.

Shedding light on some of the upcoming initiatives by the college, Warrican noted that workshops are planned for the upcoming academic year, starting at the end of August. He further stated that in an effort to increase access to the programmes, the College will be extending its opening hours from September. The new opening hours will be 8 a.m. until 9 p.m. “These extended hours will not only accommodate more students, but also non-traditional students…In the past, the College has focused on new school leavers…we are widening our scope to include people who are employed and who need to upgrade their qualifications, prepare for a job,” Warrican said.

Apart from the Associate Degrees offered in Division of Arts, Sciences and General Studies, all the certificate programmes offered in the Division of Technical and Vocational Education will be converted to Associate Degrees. This change is designed to make the qualifications earned by our students more viable.