MANDEVILLE, Manchester – To be educated at a recognised institution whose programmes are synonymous with quality is the dream of many well-thinking Jamaicans. However, it is sometimes difficult to find a reputable institution, and even more challenging to afford the tuition.

But the emergence of the Management Institute of National Development (MIND), an executive agency of the government, has helped to widen the scope, allowing access to certified tertiary-level courses at costs that are generally lower than market.

The MIND Mandeville Learning Centre, established in 1979, offers similar opportunities for aspiring, career-minded persons in seven of Jamaica’s mid-island and western parishes – Clarendon, St Elizabeth, Westmoreland, Hanover, St James, Trelawny and Manchester.

Formerly referred to as the MIND Mandeville Centre for Lifelong Learning, the institute offers tutoring in mainstream subjects such as accounting, computer application, customer service, government accounting, human resource management, management development, and public sector management, as well as the not-so-mainstream area of ‘holistic governance’.

Its offerings also cover summer specials for teachers wanting advanced training, and subjects taught for end-of-high school examinations set by the Caribbean Examination Council and General Certificate Examination.

“Like the Hope campus (in Kingston), we also offer customised training to our partnering clients and other organisations through ‘Your place or MIND’,” said regional manager of MIND Mandeville Lois Robinson, adding that the concept matches the specialised needs of particular organisations.

Also like the campus at Hope Road, MIND Mandeville offers the option of study through MIND Online, and its product line also includes MIND Consulting, The Caribbean MIND, Research at MIND, and the Friday Policy Forum.

With its comfortable, air-conditioned classrooms, each with seating capacity of up to 40 persons, flexible class schedules and practical teaching strategies, MIND Mandeville has made an impression on its students.

“MIND is a training institution with competent and understanding lecturers,” says Kemar Graham, a former student.

Adds Terryann Nembhard, also a former student: “The lecturers were excellent in the sense that they were quite knowledgeable, not only from the textbooks, but also with hands-on experience.”

Nembhard is now administrative assistant to the Mayor of Manchester, Desmond Harrison.

“Mrs Robinson has tried to meet us half-way in everything,” she said of the institute’s manager and her staff of six.

‘Your place or MIND’ allows for the modification of most of MIND’s existing programmes to suit the peculiar manpower development needs of a company or organisation

And where a re-adjustment of courses is insufficient to fulfill those needs, MIND will research and create a customised course, just for the client.

The Mandeville centre similarly offers unscheduled courses.

“These are courses required by particular companies for their employees that do not exist in MIND’s curriculum, but are designed for the employees,” said Robinson, citing as example a post-graduate course in ‘general management’, offered since 2001, targeting mainly senior and middle managers.

“Once it’s cost effective and we have enough persons, we’ll hold the classes,” she said.

The regional manager points to another reason why MIND Mandeville is an institution of choice.

“We try to match our training delivery schedule to meet the needs of our targeted population,” she says.

Not only are classes scheduled around working hours for the full-time employed, but MIND also has a ‘Pay As U Learn’ payment plan that allows for interest-free servicing of the tuition fee, for persons who find it difficult to fund a lump sum payment for their courses.

The plan allows for a 30 per cent of the course fee, and paying the balance in monthly or fortnightly instalments.

The result is a 150 per cent increase in enrolment up to 2004.

“MIND is here to develop our Jamaican nationals and so we try our best to accommodate each individual,” said Robinson.