Garden City University (GCU) has established a strategic partnership with Prempeh College to address the challenges facing Senior High School (SHS) business students as they transition to higher education.
The initiative seeks to tackle a growing concern in the education sector, where some business students reportedly abandon the discipline when progressing from secondary to tertiary education.
Through early academic interventions, career guidance and technology-driven learning initiatives, the partnership aims to strengthen students’ foundations and encourage more of them to pursue business-related programmes at the university level.
The collaboration is expected to introduce academic clinics and career-modelling activities before students begin their university application processes. These interventions are intended to help students better understand business-related disciplines and prepare them for the demands of higher education.
Speaking to a section of business students at Prempeh College about the factors contributing to the transition challenges, several students identified negative peer influence, alongside other socio-academic factors, as a major concern.
The discussions highlighted the need for targeted interventions to help students make informed academic and career choices and maintain their interest in business studies as they progress through the education system.
In an exclusive interview with Joy Learning TV, the Head of the Business Department at Prempeh College, Ms. Helena Akowuah, underscored the importance of the institutional partnership.
She highlighted the factors contributing to students’ shift away from business-related disciplines and outlined the need for a collaborative approach to sustaining their interest in commerce and related fields.
Adding a higher education perspective, the Director of Admissions at Garden City University, Shannan Akosua Magee, emphasised the importance of maintaining a balanced focus across academic disciplines, particularly business and economics.
“We have done well by pushing our science students to another level, but it must be noted that business and economics form the backbone of our country,” Ms. Magee stated. “Many universities in Ghana are still experiencing a decline in business student intake. Through this partnership, GCU is actively working to demystify rigid business modules and prove to secondary students that accounting and management are exciting, high-tech, and globally viable paths.”
Ms. Magee further indicated that the Vice-Chancellor of GCU, Professor Eric Kwasi Ofori, was enthusiastic about the initiative, particularly its emphasis on entrepreneurship and its potential to create opportunities with global relevance.
The partnership reflects a broader effort to strengthen the link between secondary and tertiary education by equipping students with the academic preparation, career awareness and confidence needed to pursue business-related programmes.
By engaging students before they make critical decisions about their future studies, GCU and Prempeh College hope to address some of the factors that discourage learners from pursuing business and economics at the university level.