General description about the college

College of Education and Behavioral Sciences is one of the Colleges in the Main Campus of Hawassa University (HU). The College began its function in 2000 within the University, which was commenced as Hawassa University since 2007 instead of formerly named as Debub University. Previously Debub University embraced independently operating colleges in different campuses located in the former South Nations Nationalities and Peoples’ Regional State (SNNPRS). The campuses that were in the then Debub University designated as Hawassa College of Agriculture (ACA), Wondo Genet College of Forestry and Natural Resources (WCFNR), and Dilla College of Teacher Education and Health Sciences (the current Dilla University) at which training of teachers, school leaders, and educational professionals started within the then Debub University.

At times since its commencement the current College of Education and Behavioral Sciences had been given different names based on the reforms introduced in the Hawassa University. Initially it was called as Faculty of Education from 2007 to 2009 with the objective of training teachers, school leaders, and educational professionals; since 2010 until 2011, it was also designated as Institute of Training and Education; afterward it was organized as School of Education and Training (SET) beginning from 2012 up until 2016 within the College of Social Sciences and Humanities (the new name following the restructuring of the Hawassa University as a result of the Business Process Reengineering/BPR study, whose implementation was started in 2011) ; beginning from 2016 up until 2023, the former School of education and training has transformed to full-fledged College of Education with three departments and one school in it (department of Educational Panning and Management (EdPM), department of Adult Education and Community development (AECD) which is presently regarded as the department of Life-Long Learning and Community Development (LLCD), department of Special Needs and Inclusive Education (SNIE), and School of Teachers’ Education (STE) and hence it was called as College of Education; and very recently, since 2023 College of Education has included the department of Psychology from the College of Social Sciences and Humanities and accordingly it has been labeled as College of Education and Behavioral Sciences. As a result, right now the College of Education and Behavioral Sciences has one school and four departments.

According to the directive from the then Ministry of Science and Higher Education (MoSHE) to advance the mission of the Universities in the country/Ethiopia through differentiated areas, the Public Universities in Ethiopia have been classified into three categories as Research Universities, Applied Universities, and Comprehensive Universities. Subsequently, Hawassa University (HU), which has been authorized to give due emphasis on ግብርናና ስነ-ህይወት ሳይንስ (Agriculture and Life Science), ሕክምናና ጤና ሳይንስ (Health Science and Medicine), ፊዚካል ሳይንስና ስቴም (Physical Science and STEM/Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), ቢዝነስ & ኢኮኖሚክስ እና ማህበራዊ ሳይንስ  (Business & Economics and Social Science), and የመምህራን፣ የትምህርት አመራርና ባለሙያዎች ትምህርት (Teachers, School Leaders and educational Professionals Education), became one of the eight first generation Research Universities in Ethiopia. Accordingly, College of Education and Behavioral Sciences (as one  Hawassa University College that make its attention on one important endorsed agenda, which is የመምህራን፣ የትምህርት አመራርና ባለሙያዎች ትምህርት or Teachers, School Leaders and educational Professionals Education) focuses on the corresponding strategic issues that encompass Teaching and Learning, Research and Technology Transfer and Community Service, Institutional Capacity Development of Management and Administration, and Ensuring Quality and Operational Excellence. Besides, since 2016, Hawassa University has been nominated as one of the few five first generation Universities in Ethiopia (Hawassa University, Addis Ababa University, Bahir Dar University, Jimma University, and Mekele University) to be the center for the Excellence of Teachers and School Leaders, the mandate that College of Education and Behavioral Sciences of the Hawassa University should carry on.

Previously since its commencement, College of Education and Behavioral Sciences coordinates 58 programs. Among them (3 BA, 8 MA, 3 PhD, 2  DEd , 6 Certificate (Post Graduate Diploma in School Leadership/PGDSL, Post Graduate Certificate in Primary School Supervision/PGCPS, Post Graduate Certificate in Secondary School Supervision/PGCSS, Women’s Leadership, HDP, and Induction Training for Beginner/Novice Teachers) have been managed within the College, that is,  College of Education and Behavioral Sciences; and in collaboration with the College of Natural and Computational Sciences/CNCSs, College of Law and Governance/CLG, and College of Social Sciences and Humanities/CSSH, it manages and organizes 8 BED in four years Degree Programs, 12 Post Graduate Diploma in Teaching (PGDT), and 9 MEd  and 7 DEd  Programs. 

Currently active programs in the College of Education and Behavioral Sciences are BA in Educational Planning & Management/EdPM, Life Long Education and Community Development/LLCD, Special Needs & Inclusive Education/SNIE, and Psychology; MA in School Leadership, Social Psychology, and Counseling Psychology; PhD/DEd in Curriculum and Instruction (PhD), Educational Measurement and Evaluation (PhD), Educational Assessment and Evaluation (DEd), Educational Leadership and Policy Studies (PhD), Educational Policy and Strategic Management (DEd); HDP (Higher Diploma Program); PGDT (Postgraduate Diploma in Teaching of Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Information Technology/IT, Health and Physical Education/HPE customarily named as Sport, Geography, Civics, History, Foreign Languages and Literature usually called as English, Sidaamo Afo’o and Literature, and Economics.

Regarding human resources/manpower, College of Education and Behavioral Sciences has 73 academic staff members, and 9 supportive staff members of whom 2 of them are technical workers (i.e., library worker and information technology worker) and the remaining 7 are administrative staff members. Therefore, at this point in time College of Education and Behavioral Sciences has a total of 82 staff members (both academic and supportive staff members).

Concerning students and trainees figure, currently the total number of students and trainees who are attending/pursuing their education and training at different modalities and levels within the College of Education and Behavioral Sciences is 610. Among this total number, 322 are undergraduate program students (of whom 276 are regular students and 46 of them are weekend students). In terms of gender, 230 are males, and 92 are female undergraduate students. In College of Education and Behavioral Sciences, number of students who are currently attending Post Graduate MA program is 55 (of whom 44 of them are males and only 11 of them are female students). Around 53 students are attending PhD/DEd program (50 males and 3 females). Regarding HDP trainees, they are 122 in number that consists of 86 males and 36 female trainees. The number of trainees in the PGDT modality is 58 (with 54 of them are males and 4 of them are females). 

Beyond its academic programs, the College actively engages in university-wide, community, and national initiatives. At the university level, it supports professional development through induction programs and the Higher Diploma Program (HDP), which equip academic staff with contemporary ideas and practices to enhance their expertise. Additionally, the College is in the process of establishing a Testing and Measurement Center, which will collaborate with international testing organizations to administer standardized tests, job placement assessments, and admission exams for government, NGOs, and businesses at various levels. 

As part of its community engagement efforts, the College has established a secondary school and kindergarten on campus, providing quality education to over 300 students. These initiatives reflect our commitment to serving the local community and advancing educational opportunities. 

The College’s contributions to Ethiopia’s educational development have earned its recognition by the Ministry of Education as one of the five national centers of excellence for teacher education and leadership. Through this designation, the College plays a pivotal role in coordinating the preparation of national textbooks and distance education materials, a notable accomplishment underscoring its impact. 

As a research institution, the College’s academic staff actively engages in producing high-quality research, with findings published in reputable national and international journals. To further disseminate knowledge, the College launched the Ethiopian Journal of Education Studies, which provides evidence-based insights to academic communities, policy makers, and practitioners, supporting informed decision-making.