"A degree to nowhere": Former education minister labels certain university courses as "useless"
- Ghana's former Education Minister Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum criticised universities for running programmes that leave graduates unemployable
- Adutwum singled out Development Studies at UDS and the BA in Education (Non-Teaching) at the University of Ghana as prime examples
- The former minister accused tertiary institutions of keeping irrelevant courses purely to collect student fees rather than serve national development
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Ghana's former Education Minister Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum has launched a sharp attack on the country's tertiary institutions, accusing them of running degree programmes that produce graduates with little hope of finding meaningful employment.
Speaking on the Konnected Minds podcast, the former minister took direct aim at two specific courses: Development Studies at the University for Development Studies (UDS) and the Bachelor of Arts in Education (Non-Teaching) at the University of Ghana.
Source: Facebook
Adutwum's case against irrelevant university programmes
On the UDS offering, he was unequivocal: "We do not need anybody to offer courses called Development Studies to study development. No."
His criticism of the University of Ghana programme centred on what happens to graduates once they complete their mandatory national service.
"After national service, they are frustrated because nobody is hiring them. So university degree to nowhere," he said.
In a report sighted on Grapjoc Online, Dr Adutwum argued that universities retain these programmes not out of any commitment to national progress, but for financial reasons.
"They are just filling up the spaces because they are coming and they are paying money to come, and the universities like it," he stated, suggesting institutions are more invested in tuition income than in the long-term prospects of their students.
Adutwum calls for overhaul of education system
The former minister called on regulators to step in and bring academic programmes in line with the actual needs of Ghana's economy.
He warned that without fundamental reform, the graduate unemployment crisis would remain unsolvable:
"If you don't revamp the whole education system... you cannot confront and solve your graduate unemployment problem."
Graduate unemployment has long been a persistent challenge in Ghana, with thousands of degree holders entering a labour market that struggles to absorb them each year.
Dr Adutwum's remarks reignite debate over the role tertiary institutions should play in shaping a workforce that matches the country's economic priorities.
Adutwum criticises Mahama's gov't
Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported that Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum had criticised the President John Mahama-led government for extending the Free SHS policy to private schools.
He argued that the double-track system had been phased out successfully under the NPP and that bringing in private schools made no sense.
The current government announced that the policy extension would begin in the next academic year as part of plans to decongest public schools.
Source: YEN.com.gh
