New teachers risk unemployment

The University of the Faroe Islands’ teachers’ college is admitting more students than necessary.

This is the view of Jacob Eli S. Olsen, chairman of the Teachers’ Association, who says that the current student intake numbers will result in unemployment for many teachers in the future.

He believes that an annual intake of 24 would be more suitable than the current figure of 35.

Drop-outs not taken into account

But Erla Olsen, the head of the teaching faculty at the University of the Faroe Islands, disagrees.

“We have a relatively high drop-out rate. Some years, only 25 of the 35 students make it to graduation,” she says.

“If we lower the intake to 24, we may end up with only 14 graduates, and that is not enough to meet the demand for teachers.”

Translated by prosa.fo