Fourah Bay College offers a range of undergraduate and graduate programs designed to equip students with essential skills and knowledge. Our continuous General Civil Engineering training prepares students for a Bachelor of Engineering (B. Eng.) degree, along with opportunities for recognition and a Master of Engineering (M. Eng.) degree.
In addition, we focus on critical issues such as water and sanitation. Our initiatives assess the role of NGOs in providing essential water and sanitation services to rural populations in Sierra Leone. This includes programs like 'Water for Survival,' which addresses local needs for clean water and sanitation.
Our commitment to the arts is reflected in our plans to establish a Theater Arts Program, led by the Head of the English Department. This program aims to enhance cultural activities and engage students in creative expression.
At Fourah Bay College, we are dedicated to fostering a vibrant academic community that prepares students for future challenges and opportunities.
Engineering, Water Research and the Arts in Context
The pairing of civil engineering with water and sanitation work is not accidental. In Sierra Leone, much of the practical demand for engineering skills sits in basic infrastructure: boreholes, hand-dug wells, gravity-fed water schemes, latrines and drainage. Students who study structures, hydraulics and surveying gain the tools to design and assess these systems. They also learn to judge whether a system will keep working years after the people who built it have left.
Research into the role of non-governmental organisations is especially valuable here. Many rural water points are installed with outside funding, and a recurring question is who maintains them once a project ends. Useful studies in this area tend to look at a few practical issues:
- Community ownership: whether local water committees have the training, tools and funds to carry out repairs.
- Technology choice: whether spare parts for pumps and fittings can actually be found in nearby towns.
- Water quality: whether supplies are tested regularly, particularly after the rainy season.
- Coordination: whether NGO projects line up with local council and national planning, or duplicate one another.
Students interested in this field can find related coursework and supervision options on the Programs page. Ongoing projects are listed under Research.
A proposed Theatre Arts Programme may seem far removed from pipes and pumps, but the two meet more often than people expect. Drama, song and community performance have long been used across West Africa to share public health messages, including hygiene and safe water practices. A college that trains both engineers and performers can link technical solutions with the communication needed to make them stick. Theatre also gives students from every faculty a place to build confidence, practise public speaking and take part in campus cultural life.
Prospective applicants who want to combine interests, for example engineering with community outreach, should check entry requirements and course combinations on the Admissions page. It is also worth contacting the relevant department directly to confirm which options are currently offered.
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