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AMMUSTED confers degrees on 8,274

 A total of 8,274 stu­dents, comprising of 62 per cent males and 38 per cent females have been conferred with Certificates, Diplomas, Bach­elor’s, Master’s and PhD Degrees, by the Akenten Appiah Menka University of Skills Training and Entrepreneurial Development (AMMUSTED).

They were made up of one PhD Degree, 376 Master’s Degrees, 6,469 Bachelor’s Degrees, and 1,428 Diplomas and Certificates.

The congregation, the third of its kind since attaining autonomy, both at Kumasi and Mampong campuses, was especially unique, because it would go down in history as the University graduated its first batch of students matric­ulated to pursue four-year degree programmes.

The first and second graduation ceremonies were for students who were matriculated by AAMUST­ED but pursued one to two-year programmes.

Prof. Frederick K. Sarfo, Vice Chancellor of AAMUSTED, was full of praise to the government for establishing the University to facilitate the implementation of government’s transformative Tech­nical and Vocational Education Training (TVET), Entrepreneur­ship, and Industrialisation agenda.

He indicated that the University had developed 86 new academic programmes related to TVET, Agricultural Technical Vocational Education and Training (ATVET), Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), and Entrepreneurial Education, in con­sultation with major stakeholders.

The aim, he explained, was to foster entrepreneurial mindset, skills, and knowledge among the students, to enhance their employ­ability and job creation capabilities, in line with the University’s core mandate to provide higher educa­tion in technical, vocational, and entrepreneurial training to develop skilled manpower for job creation and economic development.

He noted that the University had recorded consistent increases in its student numbers from 17,639 in the 2020/2021 academic year when it started as an autonomous university to over 30,000 during the 2023/2024 academic year.

However, he said, the University was still grappling with inadequate student residential accommodation, lecture halls, and offices for staff.

The Vice Chancellor mentioned the needs of the University, on both campuses, such as modern library blocks, ICT Centres with modern facil­ities, workshops, and laboratory spaces to cope with the increasing number of students.

“We also need an ultra-modern hospital to serve staff, students, and the surrounding communities on our two campuses,” he intoned.

He further mentioned the need for sufficient financial clearance to employ new staff to bridge the high student-lecturer ratio.

There is also inadequate staff in the non-teaching directorates such as the Registry, the Library, the Directorate of Works, Physical Development and Facility Manage­ment, the Directorate of Internal Audit and the Directorates of Health Service and Finance.

Contributing, Prof. Francis K.E. Nunoo, Deputy Director-Gen­eral of Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC), pointed out that the success of the Universities in Gha­na, traditional and technical “lie in their ability to identify and develop specialisations that reflect national and global needs…institutions that stick to their mandate and invest deeply in their unique strengths will continue to produce graduates who are not just academ­ically competent, but also equipped with the skills that the workforce desperately requires”.

He touched on the closure of satellite campuses of some universities in senior high schools and on other unapproved premises potentially lowering standard of education.

He said the closure of the cam­puses was not an end but rather “a step toward reinforcing the quality of education across the country”.

 FROM KINGSLEY E.HOPE, KUMASI

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