Uganda Christian University (UCU) is facing renewed criticism after the National Council for Higher Education (NCHE) questioned why the institution only sought regulatory guidance on a student’s credit transfer after she had completed her Bachelor of Laws programme and was awaiting graduation.
The latest correspondence between the university and the higher education regulator has added a new dimension to the ongoing dispute involving Samantha Mwesigye, whose case has attracted widespread public attention over student rights, university governance and the handling of academic credit transfers.
Mwesigye joined UCU in 2022 after studying her first year of a Bachelor of Laws programme at King’s College London. She was admitted under a credit transfer arrangement, with the expectation that the courses she had already completed would count towards her law degree at UCU.
The dispute escalated after UCU declined to recognise those transferred credits as she approached graduation, despite having allowed her to study for four years. The matter was taken to the High Court, which in June ruled that the university had acted unfairly and irrationally by raising concerns about her academic credits only at the final stage of her studies.
Although the court awarded Mwesigye Shs100 million in general damages and legal costs, it stopped short of ordering the university to graduate her, leaving the final decision on her academic status unresolved.
Documents obtained by this website indicate that before the court delivered its judgment, UCU had written to NCHE requesting guidance on whether Mwesigye’s credits from King’s College London could be recognised.
In a letter dated May 29, 2026, UCU Vice Chancellor Prof. Aaron Mushengyezi informed the regulator that Mwesigye had been admitted provisionally into the Bachelor of Laws programme and requested advice on the accreditation, equivalence and transferability of the credits she had earned abroad.
He explained that the student had previously pursued legal studies at King’s College London, where she completed part of the programme before seeking to transfer those academic credits to UCU.
However, in a response dated June 29, 2026, NCHE Executive Director Prof. Mary Okwakol stated that under the current legal framework, the Council only assesses and issues certificates of equivalence for completed academic qualifications rather than partial studies.
Prof. Okwakol also expressed concern over the timing of the university’s request, noting that Mwesigye had already completed her fourth year and was due to graduate by the time UCU sought the Council’s guidance.
According to the regulator, matters concerning recognition of prior learning, equivalence of qualifications and credit transfers should be resolved before a student is admitted or allowed to continue with an academic programme. Seeking guidance after the student had completed nearly all the required coursework, she noted, amounted to a regulatory compliance concern.
Instead of making a determination on Mwesigye’s eligibility, NCHE directed UCU to resolve the matter internally using its approved academic policies and the applicable legal framework. The university was also instructed to engage the student and formally communicate to the Council the measures taken to settle the matter.
The regulator’s position appears to reinforce observations previously made by the High Court regarding the university’s handling of the case.
In his June ruling, Justice Bernard Namanya found that UCU’s refusal to recognise Mwesigye’s transferred credits was characterised by irrationality and procedural impropriety. He held that the university had frustrated the student’s legitimate expectation after admitting her on the basis of transferred credits, allowing her to complete the programme, serve as Guild President and even present herself as a prospective graduand before changing its position.
The judge further observed that neither the Universities and Other Tertiary Institutions Act nor Mwesigye’s admission documents required her to obtain a certificate of equivalence from NCHE before her credits could be recognised. If such a requirement existed, he said, the university should have communicated it at the time of admission rather than introducing it after four years of study.
Justice Namanya described the university’s actions as arbitrary, unfair and an abuse of its administrative authority.
Despite these findings, the court declined to compel UCU to transfer the disputed credits or immediately graduate Mwesigye, holding that decisions relating to academic policy, credit recognition and the award of degrees fall within the statutory mandate of universities and the National Council for Higher Education.
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