Our Mission
“Excellence, Knowledge that Educates and Pedagogy that Transforms.”
This motto, both institutional and lasting, reflects the IPA's mission. It highlights excellence and the two essential dimensions of the Institute: knowledge, which refers to mastery of academic disciplines, and pedagogy, which reflects the ability to pass on knowledge effectively and to contribute to the transformation of society through education.
Today, the IPA is one of the institutes of the University of Burundi. Its main mission is the initial training of teachers.
The objectives assigned to the IPA are:
- To train teachers for Basic and Post-Basic Schools;
- To conduct research in the sciences and in languages;
- To support school curriculum reforms;
- To provide continuing education for in-service teachers;
- To contribute to improving the quality of education in Burundi.
1979–1993: From the Pedagogical Institute to the IPA
The Institute of Applied Pedagogy (IPA) was created in 1993 by Decree No. 100/147 of 14 October 1993, replacing the former Pedagogical Institute. The latter had been created in 1979 within the University of Burundi. Its main mission was to prepare, in two years of study, teachers for the lower cycle of secondary education (general humanities).
1994–2011: Two Cycles of Study
The IPA actually opened its doors in the 1994-1995 academic year. When it opened, the IPA was organised in two cycles of study:
- First cycle (3 years): training teachers for the lower cycle of secondary education, leading to a teaching diploma;
- Second cycle (2 years): training leading to the Licence in Applied Pedagogy, qualifying graduates to teach in the upper cycle of secondary education.
The departments gradually came to cover the main subjects taught in secondary schools: French, English, Kirundi (later Kirundi–Kiswahili), Mathematics, Biology–Chemistry and Physics–Technology.
Since 2011: the Bachelor's–Master's–Doctorate System
As part of the modernisation of Burundian higher education and its alignment with international standards, the University of Burundi adopted the Bachelor's–Master's–Doctorate (BMD) system from the 2011-2012 academic year. The IPA then adapted its programmes and currently awards the following degrees:
- Bachelor's (3 years), organised in six departments;
- Master's (2 years), professional or research-oriented, organised in eight specialisations, opening the possibility of doctoral studies according to the programmes and structures of the University of Burundi.
Research is organised around two centres, the CRDS and CURPAS, which together comprise five laboratories. The Institute notably takes part in the BRIGHTER project (Burundi Renewable Innovation Growth and Higher Education for Renewable energy systems), funded by the European Union, whose focal point is Professor Emile NIBONA, Dean of the IPA.