GOAL drops ISCD, Staffordshire from partners’ list

Mar 18, 2025 News

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Kaieteur News-  The Guyana Online Academy of Learning (GOAL) said it has severed ties with International Skill Development Corporation (ISDC) and the University of Staffordshire after students raised concerns about the non availability of programmes they had successful signed up for.

But the state-funded scholarship programme said it remains committed to expanding access to online education for Guyanese citizens, noting that since its establishment it has transformed lives through academic and professional training, facilitated by strategic partnerships with over 20 local, regional, and international institutions.

GOAL said its success is underpinned by the unwavering support of its partners, which include:

• Action Invest, Guyana
• ACCA-affiliated institutions, Guyana
• Atlantic Technological University (ATU), Ireland
• Amity University, UAE
• International Skill Development Corporation (ISDC), UK
• Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), India
• JAIN “Deemed to be” University (JAIN), India
• New Guyana School, Guyana
• Nations Inc., Guyana
• QualiTest Inc., Guyana
• Robert Gordon University, Scotland
• Texila American University, Guyana
• The University of the West Indies, Barbados
• Universidad Católica de Murcia – Structuralia, Spain
• University of the Caribbean, Dominican Republic
• University of the Southern Caribbean, Trinidad
• University of Petroleum & Energy Studies, India
• UNICAF in partnership with the University of East London, UK
• UNICAF in partnership with Liverpool John Moores University, UK
• UNICAF in partnership with the University of Suffolk, UK
• UNICAF University, Zambia
• UNICAF University, Malawi

According to a statement by GOAL, these partnerships provide Guyanese students with opportunities to pursue academic programmes in diverse fields, including business, technology, healthcare, and engineering. Additionally, GOAL collaborates with third-party partners to enhance the delivery of its programmes. These partners are: International Skill Development Corporation (ISDC), UK; Structuralia, Spain; UNICAF, Cyprus and Coursera, USA.  GOAL said between 2021 and 2024, GOAL awarded a total of 29,758 scholarships. The number of scholarships granted has increased steadily each year, reflecting a 32.4% growth from 6,280 in 2021 to 8,316 in 2024. The most significant annual increase occurred between 2021 and 2022, at 18%.

GOAL said at a meeting on November 30, 2023, a GOAL representative met with the leadership of the University of Staffordshire (UoS) and ISDC at UoS’s London Campus to discuss collaboration in delivering undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes to Guyanese students via the SQA progression pathway. The meeting was productive, resulting in the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between ISDC and GOAL. Under this agreement, GOAL scholars would pursue their degrees through the ISDC progression pathway, leading to UoS qualifications. Subsequently, UoS officials issued a letter to GOAL confirming this arrangement, while ISDC’s Executive Director provided a similar confirmation in writing.

Since 2022, GOAL said it has collaborated with ISDC in delivering the Get Ready for Opportunities to Work (GROW) initiative, which has benefited over 4,000 Guyanese by enabling access to tertiary education. “Many of these students are now nearing completion of their bachelor’s degrees at internationally accredited universities. Recognising the potential of a UK degree pathway with tuition fee discounts based on enrolment volumes, GOAL pursued this opportunity to increase the number of scholarships available to deserving citizens,” the statement read.

According to the statement the ISDC pathways are well-established in the UK and have facilitated access to higher education for students worldwide. ISDC is accredited by the Scottish Qualifications Authority and currently collaborates with approximately 20 UK universities. “As previously noted, ISDC is one of GOAL’s third-party partners. Similarly, UNICAF provides access to three UK universities as well as two universities based in Africa, while Structuralia, another third-party provider, collaborates with the Organisation of American States to offer master’s degree qualifications from European universities. These partnerships have been instrumental in delivering internationally accredited university education at scale, with significant tuition fee reductions.”

GOAL said following the finalisation of its partnership with ISDC, approximately 1,400 Guyanese were awarded scholarships under the UoS/ISDC SQA progression pathway in August 2024. However, it was not until late January 2025 that GOAL was made aware of challenges affecting the delivery of academic programmes under this arrangement. “Multiple efforts were undertaken to address these issues, including three virtual meetings with affected students. Initially, the difficulties pertained to a mismatch in course offerings, access to the Learning Management System (LMS), and inaccuracies in course matrices. However, the situation escalated into a dispute between UoS and ISDC over the implementation of their partnership. At no point prior to this had either institution formally notified GOAL of the breakdown in their collaboration or its implications for our scholars,” the statement noted.

According to GOAL, attempts to engage directly with UoS leadership were unsuccessful. “It is our understanding that legal representatives of both parties are currently negotiating a resolution. Since this dispute came to light, GOAL has provided affected scholars with opportunities to transfer to other partnering universities. Additionally, ISDC is actively engaging five UK universities—Arden University, Queen Margaret University, University of the West of Scotland, Wrexham University, and Cardiff Metropolitan University—that are likely to accept our awardees and recognise the credits they have earned under the disrupted partnership.” “GOAL sincerely apologises to its awardees for the inconvenience and frustration caused by this situation. We assure them that every effort is being made to safeguard their academic progress. Affected scholars will be contacted before the end of the week with details of available transfer options within our network of partner universities,” the statement concluded.

(GOAL drops ISCD, Staffordshire from partners’ list)

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• Action Invest, GOAL, Guyana Online Academy of Learning, International Skill Development Corporation

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