Makerere University is the best university in Uganda and is well-known for producing some of the country’s top lawyers. However, there are now serious concerns about how students are chosen for government sponsorship in the Law program. The main issue is with the pre-entry exam, which is supposed to test if students are ready to study law.
This year, the exam was held on April 12, 2025. The university said students needed to score at least 50% to pass. But what happened after surprised many people. Some students who had only 12 points from the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) were given government sponsorship, while others who had the highest score of 20 points were only given private admission. Many people feel this is unfair and are questioning how the selection process works. It seems unclear and lacks transparency.
In total, Makerere University admitted 1,732 students under government sponsorship in 73 different programs. These selections were mainly based on UNEB results. However, for the Law program, the process is different and confusing. The public wants to understand how UNEB scores and pre-entry exam results are used together, and how much each is considered. Right now, there are no clear rules, and this creates doubt and suspicion.
People are also asking: who creates and marks the pre-entry exams? Is it done by a trusted body like UNEB, or is it only handled by people inside the university with no outside checks? This is an important question because if there is no proper oversight, the process may not be fair. Transparency is very important if the public is to trust the system.
Another problem is the high cost of coaching for the pre-entry exam. It is said that some students pay millions of shillings for special training. This gives rich students, especially from cities, an unfair advantage. Poor students from rural areas, who travel to Kampala for the first time to take the test, are at a disadvantage. They may not fully understand the exam content, and this can stop them from succeeding even if they are smart. This kind of system increases inequality and locks out students who deserve a chance.
In my opinion, the pre-entry exam should not be used to block students who have good UNEB results. Instead, it should just help to check if a student has a basic understanding of law and is ready for the course. Giving more importance to an unclear exam than to national exam results is not right or fair.
To fix these problems, the Ministry of Education, the National Council for Higher Education, and the Joint Admissions Board need to work together. They must create a system that is fair and clear for everyone. The current way of selecting law students is hurting bright students and reducing public trust in our education system.
The writer, Ariyo Marysent Abiine, is a former lecturer at NTC and is now the Deputy RDC of Bundibugyo. She is calling for a full review of the law admission process at Makerere University to make it fair, equal, and trustworthy.
