More than 2,000 medical students across Uganda are protesting what they call an unjust ‘no-retake policy,’ which bars them from progressing to their final semester if they have any outstanding retakes from previous semesters.
The affected students, now in their second-last semester, say the directive threatens to delay their completion dates and impose unexpected financial and emotional burdens.
The contested guideline is one of 11 directives contained in an October 21 circular issued to principals of Health TVET institutions by Ms Hellen Mukakarisa Kataratambi, the executive secretary of the Uganda Health Profession Assessment Board (UHPAB).
The Board, formed after merging the Uganda Nurses and Midwives Examination Board (UNMEB) and the Uganda Allied Health Examination Board (UAHEB), now oversees assessments for both nursing and allied health trainees.
The circular states: ‘All trainees who still have retakes should not be registered for the final semester assessment before passing the preceding semester load. This guideline exempts only the Allied Health trainees whose final semester ends in December 2025.’
Under this rule, students pursuing two-year certificate or three-year diploma programmes who were due to complete their studies early next year will be blocked from registering for the final semester if they have even a single retake. UHPAB officials declined to comment when contacted.
Principal public relations officer Agnes Wadda said she needed more time to review the specific guideline before issuing a statement.
Courses most affected include diploma and certificate programmes in Pharmacy, Clinical Medicine, Laboratory Technology, Dental Studies, Orthopaedics, Public Health Dentistry, Anaesthesia, Radiography, ENT, Environmental Health, Psychiatry, and Ophthalmology.
Student leaders representing the more than 2,000 affected trainees told the Monitor that the guideline unexpectedly extends their study period, increasing tuition and accommodation costs.
Ryan Kajubi, one of the student representatives, appealed for urgent intervention.
‘We politely ask you to exempt students who enrolled during the UAHEB era, those in Year Two and Year Three, so they can finish within the expected timeframe. The guidelines should instead apply to students who joined after the merger,’ he said.
The broader guidelines also state that candidates who fail ’50 percent or less’ of their semester papers must retake them within six months while remaining at the training institution.
Students argue that this approach differs sharply from previous UAHEB procedures.
‘When we were under UAHEB, a student could proceed to the next semester with retakes as long as they had not failed half their papers,’ said Pius Ocieng.
‘The old system allowed progression without being pushed back. The new guideline is unfair and catastrophic,’ he added. Alarmed by the implications, the students petitioned Ms Kataratambi on October 28, urging her to revise or suspend the directive.
In their letter, they warned that even students without retakes were at risk, as the outcomes of the November examinations were still unknown. Any new retake, they argued, would automatically halt progress to the final semester.