UG advertises for Vice-Chancellor

The University of Guyana has advertised for a new Vice-Chancellor and Principal.

The advertisement in Sunday’s newspapers said that the position becomes vacant on April 1, 2012 as interim Vice-Chancellor Professor Lawrence Carrington will be leaving its employ shortly.

According to the advertisement, the university is on the “verge of a change process towards a revised regulatory framework, diversification of funding sources and curriculum review in the interest of deeper engagement in national development”. It said that the university has a current enrolment of 6,000+.

The ad says that candidates must be of high academic standing and have experience in university administration. “They should have the credibility to lead an academic community and to work effectively with the University’s many stakeholders. They should demonstrate knowledge of the issues pertinent to higher education in a developing country such as Guyana and should evince capability of providing leadership in the development and delivery of tertiary level curricula relevant to the needs of the country”.

Applications have to be addressed in care of the Registrar, University of Guyana, P.O. Box 101110, Greater Georgetown, Guyana.

Applications should be submitted no later than March 30, 2012.
With the university in the midst of student unrest over conditions and the termination of contracts of several lecturers, the selection process is likely to be watched carefully. In the past there has been controversy over the selection of VCs. Critics have said that the process has not been transparent. In previous years search committees were established by the University of Guyana Council to identify suitable candidates and critics have said that this mode does not aid transparency.

There were questions recently about why some positions had been advertised and others were not.