The Chairperson of the governing council of the Ghana Christian University College (GHANACU) at Amrahia in the Adentan Municipality of the Greater Accra Region, Prof Adelaide A. Kastner has tasked the country’s tertiary institutions to make conscious efforts to inculcate in their students a result-oriented culture to help address societal challenges.

The council chairperson while questioning the basis for the high unemployment rate in the country wondered if the country’s tertiary institutions offered adequate preparations to their students to critically analyze issues and solve them.

“The question is does the type of our current education sufficiently prepare our graduates to solve challenges in their areas of study?” she quizzed.

Prof Kastner was speaking during GHANACU’s 12th matriculation and 14th congregation (54th graduation) ceremonies as an accredited university college on the theme, “solution-driven education, the panacea for national development,” which attracted many dignitaries from the academia, state institutions and traditional leadership.

The Council chair while noting that the theme reflected the debate that raged on in the country and elsewhere about the type of education that will serve as the panacea for a country’s development furthered: “Today, organizations and establishments seek people who are not just degree holders but those who can think outside the box to solve problems.”

According to the professor, nations over the world are seeking critical thinkers and problem solvers who can initiate new ideas and contribute to national development.

She welcomed the matriculants to their new academic environment and urged the graduating students to be good ambassadors of the university.

A total of 231 students made of 164 from the School of Development and Health Sciences and 67 From the School of Science and Technology were matriculated with the ceremony for the School of Theology and Ministry mentored by the Akrofi-Christaller Institute to be held at a later date.

A total of 168 students who graduated from the university college on the day were presented to the University of Development Studies (UDS) for BSc. Public Health, BSc. Human Resources Management, BSc. Accounting, BSc. Marketing and BSc. Health information management.

Out of these, 133 made up of 26 males and 107 females graduated from the School of Development Management and Health Science with two graduands obtaining a first-class, ninety-three obtaining second-class upper, thirty-eight second-class lower and one-third class.

A further 35 graduands from the School of Science and Technology made up of 5 males and 30 females made of three first class, twenty-eight-second class upper, and four-second class lower were similarly presented to the UDS for graduation as BSc. Nursing.

Prof. Shamsu-Deen Ziblim who represented the Vice Chancellor of the University for Development Studies (UDS), Prof. Seidu Alhassan and the academic board admitted the graduands to the degrees of the UDS and other sister universities.

The matriculated students signed the ceremonial cards and made their matriculation declarations while the graduands took the alumni oath before having the alumni status conferred on them.

Outstanding students were honoured on the day with Miss Josephine Afua Akese receiving the overall best student award.

Appeal for a scholarship scheme for students

On his part, the president of the Ghana Christian University College placed a passionate call to the government to set up a scholarship scheme for students in the Adentan municipality desirous of studying in various tertiary institutions in the catchment area to enable them to do so.

Dr. Nelson Swedstrup Ahlijah observed that the scholarship scheme was important to address the financial difficulties most students faced in their attempts to access tertiary education.

The president further called on benevolent bodies to come on board and support the school to meet the needs of its teeming students.

He congratulated the graduands, freshmen and women, staff and faculty for successfully organizing the event.

Prof Ahlijah hailed the grant of accreditation to its School of Science and Technology by the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) to run the Bachelor of Science in Information Technology and Systems for which the college is discussing a programme affiliation agreement with the University of Professional Studies (UPS).

The university college, the prof added is also setting up a graduate school in the areas of public health, business administration, theology and ministry having obtained the Council’s clearance to take up issues of accreditation and mentorship with its mentoring institutions and GTEC.
The institution also received 462 books as part of efforts to boost its library collections.

Aside from successfully going through the re-accreditation exercise for its BSc programmes in public health and health information management, GHANACU’s academic board has also accepted a new school for business administration.
Prof. Shamsu-Deen Ziblim described heartening the University College’s continued efforts over the years to make steady progress despite the challenges facing both private and public tertiary educational institutions, particularly the private ones exacerbated by the emergence of pandemics and global wars.

He therefore congratulated the Management of the College for the zealous and result-oriented manner they were running the institution, particularly, its compliance with the affiliation rules and regulations of UDS and that of GTEC.

The professor pledged the UDS’ full assistance and support to the University College by assisting it in increasing the intake of fresh students to the programmes affiliated with UDS.

He congratulated the matriculants and graduands for their feats.