Functioning of guidance and counselling centres in higher education: A survey of the public universities in Ghana

Gabriel Amponsah Adu; Sujata Srivastava

doi:10.32351/rca.v10.393

Authors

Gabriel Amponsah Adu University of Baroda https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2022-2538
Sujata Srivastava University of Baroda https://orcid.org/0009-0002-4921-2365

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.32351/rca.v10.393

Política de Crossmark DOI: https://doi.org/10.32351/politica-crossmark

Keywords:

Functioning guidance and counselling centres, vocational, educational and social/personal

Abstract

This study examined the functioning of guidance and counselling centres in public universities of Ghana, focusing on the services provided to students and teaching staff. A descriptive survey design was employed. Stratified random sampling was used to group the 15 public universities into three zones. The lottery method was used to select the universities in each zone. All counsellors (42) from the selected universities form the sample. Data was collected through a 57-item questionnaire, covering vocational, educational, and social/personal guidance, use of time, counselling tools, online counselling, and record-keeping practices. The major findings revealed that counsellors provided comprehensive support, including vocational guidance on career skills and job information, educational counselling on scholarships and curriculum guidance, and social/personal support for personality development and interpersonal relationships. Most counsellors utilised traditional face-to-face counselling, with limited engagement in online counselling due to unreliable internet infrastructure. Counsellors effectively used various counselling techniques and maintained records of sessions. While guidance and counselling centres are functioning well, there are areas for improvement, particularly in enhancing online counselling services and implementing standardised digital record-keeping systems. Implications for government of Ghana, university authorities, and guidance and counselling units include improving internet access, organising frequent vocational and educational seminars, and investing in counsellor training to support better students and teaching staff academic and personal development.

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Author Biographies

Gabriel Amponsah Adu, University of Baroda

Research Fellow at the Department of Education, MS University of Baroda, India.
Sujata Srivastava, University of Baroda

Prof. Department of Education, MS University of Baroda, India.

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