The University of Namibia (UNAM) School of Medicine Registrar, Erika Maass has said the school ‘does not work with tribes but with criteria’.

She said this here on Monday at the media engagement to brief the nation at large on the admission of the School of Medicine. The university’s engagement comes after it was accused of tribalism recently.

“Admittance into the highly competitive Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBChB) programme is determined through a combination of regional representation and performance,” said Maass.

“We don’t look at tribes, UNAM School of Medicine focuses on regional representation,” said Maass.

She further said the selection process is made by the executive deans and associated committee, who know that the total number of students at the university are not only Oshiwambo speaking but all from different tribes, while 35 points in Grade 12 is the lowest they have taken.

The School of Medicine experiences a high demand for admission with 1 500 to 1 800 applications being received annually for only 70 available places.

Maass reiterated that UNAM refused to hand out the intake list because the information is confidential.

UNAM Manager of Public Relations and Media Operations, Simon Namesho explained that each of the 14 regions in Namibia are allocated a quota based on the regional population and on the recent national census data.

“Regional quota is calculated by dividing the regional population and country population multiplied by the approved places for Grade 12s, excluding international, BSc or marginalised students. Therefore, mathematically, regions with high populations receive higher quota allocations. In each region the top qualifying performers are academically ranked and selected. When a regional quota cannot be filled with qualifying applicants, the unfilled places are returned to the pool and filled by the next best national candidates,” he said.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency