By Dennis Peprah
Fiapre, (B/R), Nov 1, GNA – The Catholic University of Ghana (CUG) has admitted 2,042 fresh students for the 2022/2023 academic year to pursue various degrees, diploma and certificate programmes.
The enrolment, according to the university authorities, remained the highest annual student enrolment in the 20 years history of the CUG.
Addressing the 34th matriculation, which coincided with the 22nd congregation of the university held at its main campus at Fiapre, near Sunyani, Professor Daniels Obeng-Ofori the Vice Chancellor of the CUG, said the new enrolment had significantly improved the financial health of university.
The university graduated a total of 1,134 students who had successfully completed various under-graduate and postgraduate programmes.
Prof Obeng-ofori said “it is imperative that we continue to improve the conditions of service of staff to reduce the attrition rate.
Our placement in the University rankings in 2022 as the 11th in Ghana and the Number one private university in the country should challenge us to greater heights in the academic enterprise,” he stated.
With the grant of Presidential Charter as an autonomous full-fledged University, Prof Obeng-Ofori said the CUG stood at a strategic inflection point; a point at which market dynamics, employers and customer preferences, global trends and economic realities represented perfect conditions for the University to acquire market prominence in the Ghanaian education
landscape. In that regard, he said intensified efforts were being made to strategically position CUG to be financially sustainable to pursue the vision of the Ghana Catholic Bishop’s Conference (GCBC).
He, therefore, expressed the management’s appreciation to the Church, the Conference, the Council, staff, students, alumni and other partners for the huge sacrifices they continue to make towards the growth and development of the university.
As a chartered institution, the CUG is transforming itself over time and harnessing the Catholic quality brand to become a globally competitive and student-centred teaching and learning institution and a scholarly research environment where creativity, innovation and service to the community are the hallmarks.
“Being a globally competitive university means provision of holistic education to make our staff and products versatile and competitive in the global market.
As one of the leading private faith-based tertiary institutions in Ghana, the CUG must embrace and influence our responsibility of producing the next generation of men and women of knowledge and wisdom to drive national development through innovative teaching and learning methods,” Prof Obeng-Ofori indicated.
He said the university had introduced new programmes for the 2023/2024 academic year, including BSc. Business Analytics, MSc. Accounting and Finance, and MSc. Data Science, saying other new programmes including Mphil Accounting, and Mphil.
Finance was going through the accreditation process. Additionally, the university had reached advanced stages of accreditation to introduce four PhD programmes in January 2024, comprising PhD in Educational Psychology, PhD in Educational Leadership and Administration, PhD in Management, and Doctor of Business Administration Also, PhD in Public Health, and PhD in Religions and Pastoral Ministry were going through internal review to commence the accreditation process soon. Established on May 3, 2003, and officially inaugurated by former President John Agyekum Kufuor in November, the university started to experience low student enrolment from 2014/2015/2016 academic years due to ferocious academic competition from both public and private universities.
The CUG, however, came out with a robust strategic plan including a six-year (2019-2024) Corporate Strategic Plan meant to address strategic imperatives that the university needed to focus attention and ensure not only its survival, but its unique contribution and identity within the institutions of higher education in the country. Currently, the CUG has seven faculties and schools, including faculty of economics and business administration, faculty of computing, mathematical and engineering sciences, faculty of education, school of nursing and midwifery, school of public health and allied sciences, faculty of religions and social sciences and school of graduate studies.
GNA