University of Sheboygan, Wisconsin United States of America (USA) called Lake Land in collaboration with Malawi government is hunting for five primary school teachers to undergo an intensive Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree from August this year.

The programme which is being fully paid by United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Malawi will run till May 2012 where the candidates will graduate into full trainers.

THis will be the first time for primary school teachers to earn a foreign degree programme fully sponsored

The lucky five, upon completion of the studies will be deployed into Malawi’s five Teacher’s Training Colleges (TTC’s) to work for a period of five years as teachers’ trainers before they could be freed to make their choices of occupation.

A statement signed by USAID’s head of Education Team Florence Nkosi says the scholarship is focusing on primary education in Malawi.

The publication says the opportunity requires interested teachers to make their applications for the training.

Mzuzu University will supervise the trainees’ 12 week complete teaching practicum during the scholarship period.
“All candidates will be interviewed in Lilongwe,” it reads the statement.
Female teachers who have the capabilities stand better chances to make it into the programme according to the press release.
However on the study and work conditions USAID says the students will sign a bond to continue serving government.
The teachers are only required to have Malawi School Certificate of Education (MSCE), with minimum of five credits, serving in civil service as a primary school teacher, with minimum of three years of teaching experience and maximum age of not more than 35 as of August1 2009.
The teachers will under go full medical examination before flying to the US.
Malawi also signed an agreement with the Clinton Hunter Foundation and the British Department for International Development (DFID) have signed a five-year tripartite agreement to fund the operational and maintenance costs of the Initial Teacher Training Facilities (ITTF) estimated at 5.5 million British pounds sterling.
Clinton Hunter Foundation and Band Aid have provided 2.35 million British pounds
to build, furnish and equip the two teachers training colleges in the country,
while Malawi and DFID will fund the running costs, trainee allowances and
graduate teacher salaries estimated at 3.65 million pounds.
The agreement is expected to increase the number of teachers to 2,400 by 2017
and help reduce Malawi’s pupil teacher ratio to 1 to 50 by 2014 from the current
1 to 80.
Speaking during a signing ceremony in Lilongwe, Sir Tom Hunter of the
Hunter/Clinton Foundation said the agreement marks another step in supporting
the education sector in the country.