Dear Mr. Failan Saleem,
I am a graduate teacher and wish to do my Master's in Education in a Sri Lankan university, (full time or part time) but details are not available in university web sites.

I would like to know whether there are any private educational institutions or universities in Sri Lanka where I can do my Master's this year.

My ambition is to become a Principal of an international school one day. I would appreciate if you could advise me regarding this matter. Are there any courses related to school management etc. in Sri Lanka. I have been a teacher in government schools for the last 20 years.
Mrs. S. Ruberu
Kotahena

Dear Mrs. Ruberu,
The Master of Education (M.Ed., MAEd., MSEd., or Ed.M.) is a postgraduate academic Master's degree awarded by universities in a large number of countries.

The degree in education often includes the following majors: curriculum and instruction, counselling, and administration. The Master of Education is a degree conferred by institutions of higher education usually, though not always, for educators advancing in their field. For classroom teachers in some countries, a Master's degree is required to earn professional licence. In most countries a Master's degree or higher is required for a Principal or school counselling position.

The University of Colombo Faculty of Education offers the following courses:

• Master's in Education (General Course)
• Master's in Education in Educational Management
• Master's in Education in Science Education
• Master's in Education in Teaching of English to Speakers of other Languages
• Postgraduate Diploma in Education - Teaching of English as a Second Language
• Postgraduate Diploma in Education (Sinhala/Tamil medium)
• Postgraduate Diploma in Counselling
• M.Phil./Ph.D. Programmes

Alternatively you can try out some of the international sites mentioned below

• http://www.universities.com/
  Distance_Learning/Degrees_Masters_Degrees_Education.html
• http://www3.open.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/qualification/f01.htm
  It is good to see positivism in igniting your career through a focus on the Master's, your decision to go forward should be based on time, cost and recognition.
  Do your research on the web and prioritize.

Dear Sir,
I did my A/Ls last year in the Bio Stream and I'd like to be a software engineer and hope to do a software engineering degree in the local open university.
My questions are:
1. Is the local OU good to follow the software engineering degree programme?
2. What are the advantages and disadvantages in studying at the local OU.?
3. Can you name a few institutions which are well known for software engineering degrees ?
Please help me. Your valuable advice is eagerly looked forward to.
Hansani
Via email

Dear Hansani,
According to the National IT survey (2006), the country requires 5,755 IT graduates, whereas, the present supply is only 2,216 (38.5%). Hence, more IT Degree awarding institutions of quality must be encouraged to operate in Sri Lanka and hence the many degree offering institutions. Again the decision should be based on whether you want to work in Sri Lanka, or take the next step to go out of the country.
To be more specific,(OUSL) and The Sri Lanka Association for Software and Services Companies, SLASSCOM have entered into a corporation agreement to design and conduct an innovative degree course in Software Engineering for students of the Open University. The programme covers the major subjects of computing according to the ACM/IEEE curriculum guidelines. The degree has been specially designed in response to industry demand to produce graduate software engineers. BSE is an innovative industry-oriented degree programme in software engineering where students can complete the degree in 3 years.

As a matter of policy I am unable to recommend or name institutions offering courses in software engineering, my research tells me that there are nineteen institutions offering the qualification.
However in order for you to make a decision you can use the following prioritization list:

• Course work reflects width and depth
• Curriculum/Recognition
  
• Rating Value of the degree
• Relevance to career development
• Cost and Time

It is good to talk to industry experts and past students prior to arriving at a decision. Be focused

Dear sir ,
I'm R.K.D.M. Sanka Bandara Dissanayake, 20 years old athlete & rugby player from Gurugalpola Walawwa in Kandy. I studied at St. Sylvester's College (Commerce Section) Kandy.
I started my Foundation Certificate of Human Resource Management Course in the Institute of Personal Management, Colombo. Then I did the English for Management Course to become fluent in English. I also decided to do The Certificate Course of Banking & Finance in IBSL, Colombo.
I was selected for the under 19 Sri Lanka Rugby Pool in 2006. But, I was not given a chance to perform my talent for our team. So now I'm in CR & FC training.

I wish to get your assistance on a suitable career. I look forward to your reply. Please contact me on 0812463548 or 0718799742.
Thank you
Via Email

Dear Sanka,
I am not in the business of head hunting, however from the little you have told me, I see three problems in your career road map:

• Too much clutter in your academic focus, for example you have started at the IPM as well as IBSL the way I see it you have started at IBSL maybe to start work at the bank and play rugby for the bank. Choose one and try to be the best at it first
• Getting advice from the wrong people
• Don't know what you want for yourself

Use the goal setting diagram published before to get yourself on track.
I see loads of energy in you. Use this to stay positive and focused, getting the first job is always difficult.
Will keep in touch with the job position.