By: Hassan Osman Kargbo.
The University of Sierra Leone (USL) has been ranked amongst the top best universities in Africa by the Times Higher Education.
The Times Higher Education is based in United Kingdom. It is a British Magazine that reports on news and issues relating to Higher Education activities around the world. The Times Higher Education has been publishing its World University ranking since November 2004. In their 2023 publications, they have rated University of Sierra Leone as one of the best Universities in Africa.
The University of Sierra Leone comprised three constituent colleges: Fourah Bay College, the Institute of Public Administration and Management (IPAM), and the College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences. These are the three colleges that constitutes the University of Sierra Leone.
According to history, Fourah Bay College is the oldest university in Africa. It’s not just an institution on a top hill, but it is the Sub-Saharan’s first University founded over 190 years ago. This institution was founded by the Church Missionary Society (CMS), and Fourah Bay College later got an affiliation with the University of Durham that is based in England in the year 1876 which placed Black Africa in the educational map in the world.
The Institute of Public Administration and Management – IPAM was founded in 1980 and it is located in the centre part of Freetown. Also, the College of Medical and Allied Health Sciences was founded as Sierra Leone’s first medical school in 1988.
According to the Times Higher Education, the University of Sierra Leone was ranked 23rd in Africa. South Africa’s University of the Witwatersrand, top this year’s University ranking, whistle University of Johannesburg and Tanzania’s Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences finished second and third, respectively.