3,958 students graduate from ATU

Skills development in Vocational and Technical Training has been identified as the panacea for transforming Ghana’s industrialisation and curb unemployment.

In view of this technical universities have been urged to improve the relevance of Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) system to equip the youth and adults with skills required for employment, entrepreneurship and lifelong leaving.

The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Professional Studies, Accra, UPSA, Prof Abednego Feehi Okoe Amartey who was  speaking on the topic, Technical and Vocational Training for employment and job creation, at the 21st Congregation of Accra Technical University (ATU) on Saturday, April 23, 2022, said since strategic business- university research collaborations provided a myriad of benefits to their participants, policy makers should put in place pragmatic policies to ensure that industry and universities did not run parallel.

The Vice-Chancellor of ATU, Prof Samuel Nii Odai, said a total of 3,109 students graduated from the university with Higher National Diploma, (HND) Diploma (Dip) and Certificates on Saturday, while 849 Bachelor of Technology students graduated in March this year.

He said a total of 146 students obtained First Class which represented 4.70 per cent, adding that the university had been admitting in excess of 7,000 students for the past three years.

The Vice-Chancellor said the launch of the university’s Five-Year Strategic plan under its Eight Strategic pillars   in 2021 was the compass that would direct the university into the middle of the decade.

Prof S Odai said seven BTech programmes which included Accounting and Finance Analytics, Cyber Security, Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Interior Design and Technology, Medical Laboratory Science, Water and Sanitation Engineering and Mechanical Engineering which have received accreditation were currently running.

He said the university’s second campus at Mpehuasem in the Ga West Municipality was now operational and has been serving students from the Faculty of Engineering for practical lessons since last year.

 
Prof Odai was elated to note that some students had made the university proud by winning a couple of awards, while donor agencies had also provided grants to the university over the period.

The Minister of Education Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, who was the guest of honour, tasked the university to work hard on campus recruitment and contrive ways of merging the period with the National Service of students who would be affected. 
He charged the students not to underestimate the opportunity offered them to study at school, adding that the country’s capacity to transform was in their hands.

The Minister lamented that though companies were ready to recruit the right caliber of students who would exude confidence, they could not get the right people to recruit, adding that since the country’s capacity to transform laid in their way,they

Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum advised the students that though challenges and obstacles would come their way, they must try to surmount them, adding that they should not underestimate their abilities and capabilities.

“Those who are successful in life have invested a great deal in those fields, hence the need for you to do same,” he said.

He said the Free Senior High School concept was to change the face of education and that the expansion in education enrolment was to provide the opportunities to more students to be educated to enable the country to tap from their human resources.

The valedictorian Ms Abena Bondziwa Bonney asked her colleagues to take pride in themselves, have faith in what they did and make time for fun.

By Raymond Kyekye