Presbyterian University College trains students to be entrepreneurs
The Presbyterian University College, Ghana (PUCG), is investing in student entrepreneurship through the introduction of appropriate skills training programmes, to nurture the students for the job market after graduation.
According to the President of the PUCG, Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Adow Obeng, the creation of entrepreneurs must start from the universities, and the PUCG was playing a front role through the introduction of appropriate training programmes.
At the matriculation ceremony of the institution at its Asante Akyem campus at Agogo in the Ashanti Region, he said the PUCG took great interest in the future of its students, and therefore committed to train them to make them fit for the job market.
A total of 418 students comprising 238 males and 180 females were admitted to pursue various undergraduate programmes.
Threat
He said there had been a decline in the school’s admissions, indicating that, “These low figures can be attributed to the keen competition on the higher education scene and the challenges being faced by private universities in the country, especially from the public universities.
“Areas that were the preserve of private universities have now been taken over by the public universities including the organisation of evening and weekend classes and sandwich programmes.
As a result, the survival of private universities in Ghana has come under threat.”
Prof. Adow Obeng said other challenges confronting the private universities “were the tortuous processes of accreditation and affiliation and logistical support.
“These situations have forced many private universities to lay off staff while some are unable to pay their utility bills and had stopped infrastructural development.”
New programmes
He mentioned that a number of programmes ran by the university were at various stages of affiliation and accreditation and the university was working hard to get approval to begin those programmes in the 2019/2020 academic year.
The programmes, he said, included BSc. Computer Engineering, BSc. Midwifery, B. A. Communication Studies, Doctor of Optometry, MSc. Financial Risk Management and MPhil. Educational Studies.
Other programmes are Higher National Diploma in Engineering, Media and Mass Communication, Information Management and Technology, and Event Management.
Discipline
Rev. Prof. Adow Obeng cautioned the students against indisciplined acts, saying those caught in examination malpractices would be dismissed.
He said the university did not condone sexual harassment on campus, pointing out that, last academic year, a first year student was dismissed for sexual harassment.