An individual first learns to read and write, acquiring a compulsory education in order to understand how the world works, and begin using that knowledge to improve their livelihood. Obtaining a tertiary education, on the other hand, is not mandatory, however almost every person desires to be enrolled in a university and receive a diploma. Everyone wants to do so because university is the only place that grants a widely acknowledged diploma proving that you have become familiar with the knowledge that mankind has accumulated in your chosen area.
Having been asserted by tertiary education, knowledge becomes a stronger tool. Knowledge is the basis of social development and requires everyone to keep learning. The advantages of the 21stcentury information and communications revolution are offering people all over the world limitless opportunities to learn and bring about development. Nelson Mandela once said “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
In my column titled ‘Universities Ranking’ in September 2009, I wrote about return on investment from tertiary education in Mongolia – with only one third of all graduates being able to find a job – and the lack of monitoring and evaluation of employment outcomes for the remainder of graduates. I also recommended that there was a need to examine the capability of Mongolian universities and to introduce ranking. Now it is necessary to have a broad discussion on what has changed over the last five years, and what progress has been made.
UNIVERSITIES WITH WOBBLY FEET
Mongolia’s increasing demand for tertiary education has been catalysing the increase in supply as well. Although the number of universities has been decreasing, their capacity has grown. A study done by the School of Economics of the National University of Mongolia reported that the number of universities and colleges in Mongolia decreased by 44 percent in 2002-2013 to reach 100. During the same period, the number of students reached 176,000 growing by almost 80 percent. This number has reached 180,000 in 2015. In the decade covered by this study, the number of public universities and private universities decreased from 40 to 15 and from 138 to 85 respectively. Yet the number of students grew by 60 percent in public universities and by almost 100 percent in private universities. The number of Mongolian students studying in foreign universities increased by 15 percent. As of 2013, approximately 60 percent of all students studied in public universities.
The increase in university students was the same as the international average. It directly relates to the rapid development of knowledge economy and the fact that services industry is dominating the economy. The research team also said that “As we set more limits on the number of students to be enrolled in public universities, the number of students going to non-public institutions has increased.”
In 2011, experts from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) assessed that there was a need to boost the quality of education, improve the curriculums, strengthen the governance and funding of universities, and increase the availability of universities. In line with these recommendations, the government established an agreement with the ADB four years ago to acquire a long-term soft loan of 20 million USD in order to strengthen universities as an institution, improve preparation of personnel, obtain some required facilities, expand the cooperation between public and private universities, and improve policy environment in tertiary education. They actually started doing some work. However, it has been lagging behind since as the government policy has changed almost on a yearly basis and the structure of the relevant ministry has kept changing. For example, the national coordinator who is in charge of this project has been replaced four times in four years. Due to these delays, the most important objective to certify the structure and governance of Mongolian universities and the tertiary education they provide to international standards, has not been met. As a result, there has not been any change in the quality of education provided by universities, whilst the government continues to give an allowance to each student not dependent on their performance. The number of the unemployed people with a diploma is still rising.
STRENGTHENING THE RANKING
The first attempt to rank Mongolian universities was made by Forbes Mongolia magazine a year ago.Students and their parents have the right to calculate what investments they are making, the kinds of institutions they are making them to, and what returns they are getting. Therefore, this study that was carried out to provide an independent assessment on the quality of universities and to give guidance for young people to choose their profession, has looked at the issue from three aspects: university, student, and professor. The study covered 30 universities, one third of the total number. The National University of Mongolia was ranked first followed by the Mongolian University of Science and Technology, and the Institute of Finance and Economics. Monos and Khuree universities were ranked last.
Going forward, we need to further improve the methodology of this ranking, include all universities, and add more specific areas to cover such as assessing social needs and business demand, determining the percentage of students who found a job within 3-6 months after graduation, and even start ranking by average salaries of graduates, especially for business schools. Furthermore, it is time to determine the effectiveness of English classes provided by universities, estimate whether there is direct access to the internet, and assess the outcomes and opportunities of research and development.
Also, it would be more beneficial to have a student loan system which graduates can pay off after finishing school instead of financing public universities by giving allowances to students. This would provide an incentive for students to perform well, and to find a job with a good income. If the product you have prepared for five years has decreasing quality without being sold and is being used for different purposes than originally intended, it means that the investment you made into the product is not being profitable.
Higher education is the most important investment in life. However, it is currently valued low and cheap in Mongolia.Students are paying for tuition for the sake of it whilst universities are being paid for the sake of it. For this reason, universities are unable to attract the best professors. The education and knowledge of Mongolians guarantee the prosperity and security of our country.
2015.09.09