Students in private universities are not leftovers - Lord Asamoah

Kumasi, Nov. 22, GNA - Dr Lord Emmanuel Asamoah, Principal of the Garden City University College (GCUC), said it was wrong for people to describe students who did not gain admission to public universities and entered a private university as leftovers.

He said the arbitrary cut-off measure by public universities following the surge in university education had resulted in a situation that denied admission to the majority of qualified applicants. He said applicants with an aggregate score of 24 in six subjects technically qualified for admission to a public university in Ghana. Addressing the Third Matriculation of the College at Kenyase near Kumasi, Dr Asamoah said private universities gave every qualified applicant the opportunity to prove himself or herself.

The current student enrolment of the University College, which started with 47 in 2005, stands at 1,800 with 769 fresh students made up of 414 men and 315 women being inducted.

They would pursue programmes in nursing, business and information and communication technology.

Dr Asamoah said instances could be cited where students with average performance in general examinations had turned out to be first class students when they entered universities and polytechnics. Dr. Asamoah told the students that the success of their academic careers in the university depended on their attitude to academic work and the way they conducted themselves morally and socially in the College.

"Stay away from any acts of commission or omission that have the tendency to bring the name and image of your families and this institution into disrepute or disgrace," he said.

Senator Musliu Obanikoro, High Commissioner of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, in an address read on his behalf, urged the students to work hard and use their youthful exuberance to support and promote the unity and progress of Ghana and its sister communities in West Africa. He said the youth of today were the agents of change and there was no need for students to waste their energies on useless ventures that would retard the development of the nation. 22 Nov. 09