The extent of educational guidance and counselling services to female students at University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania

The purpose of the study was to examine the extent to which guidance and counseling is practiced at the University of Dar es Salaam especially to female students. The study sought to establish the type of problems usually experienced by female students and how those problems were solved so as to create a better condition for studying. The assumption was that female students experience various social, personal and academic problems. These problems lead to multitude of students postponing studies and failing examinations hence discontinuation, repeating a year and supplementary which not only demoralize the student but count as a loss or wastage in a young nation experiencing economic hardships like Tanzania. That guidance and counseling services could improve the situation. The reviewed literature covered both theoretical and empirical overview. It included the various definitions of the concepts of guidance and counselling.Further it traced the historical development of theguidance and counseling practices in the developed countries and discussed the same within the developing countries and particularly at the University of Dar es Salaam. To sum up, review of literature was used in building a conceptual frame work for the data needs and analysis. The study was conducted at the University of Dar es Salaam main campus. The study sample consisted of 90 respondents which included 50 first and second year undergraduate female students from all faculties except the Faculty of Engineering for lack of sufficient respondents. Others were 10 former University female graduates (from1972-1988) from different faculties, and 20 University Staff both administrative and academic. All respondents were sampled through a systematic and strategic random sampling method. Information was collected through semi-structured interview and documentary review. The data obtained was by large qualitative. The only quantitative data was calculated into simple percentages and presented in simple tables. The findings as presented in chapter four, revealed that, it is true that female students at the University experience various problems of personal, social and academic nature which greatly affect their performance in studies. As a consequence there is a big wastage of students in terms of postponement of studies, discontinuation, repeating and supplementing examinations. As found out, under present practices, guidance and counseling services offered to the female students include little individual or personal guidance and counseling. Facilities established for the purposes are not fully utilized. There are also incompetent personnel for the practices; that is untrained staff and very inexperienced. Time factor is also a problem. From the findings above, it can be concluded that female students at the University of Dar es Salaam experience serious problems of social personal and academic nature. Lack of proper guidance and counseling has led to high drop out from studies. In view of the findings and conclusions made, it has been recommended that there is need to reconsider the practices of guidance and counseling services offered at the University. There should be trained personnel of both sexes for guidance and counseling services. These should work independently only as counselors and not as administrators. Further, it was recommended that a women hostel be built with maternity facilities to cater for those students who deliver babies during study period.