By 2015, there are 44 tertiary education institutions in Rwanda, 12 of them are public and 32 private. The first university in Rwanda, the National University of Rwanda (NUR now part of University of Rwanda), was opened by the government in 1963, with 49 students. By the 1999-2000 academic year, this had risen to 4,550. In 1997-8 Rwanda had a total of 5,571 students enrolled in higher education. Today this stands at 26,796, 39% of them female.
Throughout the higher education system some 100 PhDs are held, the bulk of them at NUR. Areas of research include agriculture, livestock, and the training of farm managers. A system of 'universités du soir' (night school universities) has been established to widen access to university. However, there has been some debate over the quality of the courses offered.
Rwanda's higher education sector has some way to go in developing the internal efficiency. In 2000-1, final year students were graduating with a success rate of between 11 and 50%. Across all years, this success rate is 53 to 76%.
The main higher learning institutions in Rwanda are:
University of Rwanda, which in turn comprises 6 colleges:
University of Rwanda - College of Science and Technology (formerly known as Kigali Institute of Science and Technology)
University of Rwanda - College of Education (formerly known as Kigali Institute of Education )
University of Rwanda - College of Medicine and Health Sciences (formerly known as Kigali Health Institute)
University of Rwanda - College of Business and Economics (formerly known as School of Finance and Banking)
University of Rwanda - College of Agriculture, Animal Sciences and Veterinary Medicine (formerly known as ISAE Busogo)
University of Rwanda - College of Arts and Social Sciences (formerly known as National University of Rwanda)
Rwanda Teachers College ( RTC )
African Leadership University
Tumba College of technology ( TCT )
Umutara Polytechnic (UP)
Integrated polytechnic Regional Centre Kicukiro Campus ( IPRC )
Institute of Legal Practice and Development (ILPD)
Private Higher Learning Institutions
Catholic Institute of Kabgayi (ICK)
Kigali Independent University (ULK)
Institut d'Agriculture, de Technologie et d'Education de Kibungo (INATEK)
Institut Laique adventiste de Kigali (INILAK)
Adventist University of Central and East Africa ( AUCA )
Institut d'Enseignement Supérieur de Ruhengeri ( INES )
Catholic University of Rwanda ( CUR )
KIM University ( formerly Kigali Institute of Management ):www.kimuniversity.ac.rw
Byumba Polytechnic ( IPB )
- Protestant Institute of Arts & Social Sciences ( PIASS )
- University of Tourism, Technology and Business Studies (UTB)
Mount Kenya University Kigali Campus ( MKU Kigali )
Kigali Health Institute, higher institute of agriculture and animal husbandry (ISAE)
- Akilah Institute for Women