Universities must stop selling degrees and start selling purpose

MyJoyOnline reported that universities must stop selling degrees and start selling purpose. Ghana has thousands of graduates every year, yet employers complain about skills shortages, and skilled labor is imported for sectors where Ghanaian universities have been producing graduates for decades. The problem is not just the number of graduates, but how students are guided into courses, how courses are structured, and how they connect to the country's economic needs.

Most students entering university know little about the real economic value of courses, often selecting programs due to prestige, family influence, cut-off points, or admission. Few make decisions based on job availability, business creation, or critical manpower shortages in Ghana. This is identified as a national planning failure. Ghana needs a comprehensive Courses Marketing and Advocacy System, providing secondary school students with clear information on university courses, industries served, employment prospects, entrepreneurial opportunities, expected future demand, and contribution to national development. Scholarship decisions should be linked to sectors needing skilled professionals. Students choosing Archaeology, Museology, Fisheries, Forestry, Surveying, or Statistics should understand both academic content and economic opportunities. Many courses are mocked because society has not been taught their value, which is a failure of the educational system to explain them.