Which is the best University in Ghana? University of Cape Coast (UCC) or the University of Ghana, Legon? This age-old debate will be thoroughly analyzed and put to bed in this video. Why is this even a question? This is because over the years the University of Ghana has been ranked consistently as the best university in Ghana while UCC has in recent years been ranked as the best University in Ghana. So now the question remains, has UCC overtaken Legon? Or has UCC always been the best? As a parent, student, or academic, you may have at one point or another engaged in a passionate debate as to which of these two universities is the best. Tell me in the comments if this is true or not.
The University of Ghana, fondly known as Legon, and the University of Cape Coast (UCC) have long been the subjects of passionate debates and discussions among students, parents, and academics alike. Today, we embark on an exciting journey of exploration and comparison as we endeavor to answer the age-old question: which of these universities truly stands as the best in Ghana?
In this video, the comparison will be based on academic excellence, infrastructure, location, and international recognition, to determine the rightful claimant to the prestigious title. So, join us on this thrilling quest as we witness the ultimate showdown between Legon and UCC in the pursuit of Ghana’s finest higher education institution.
- Academics
Comparing the academics of both universities is difficult because there is no standardized test for both UCC and Legon students. Some factors to assess are the university’s admission requirement or cutoff point, quality of tuition, and qualification of academic staff. Let’s begin with the admission requirement.
University of Ghana’s cutoff point for Bachelor of Medicine & Bachelor of Surgery and Bachelor of Law is an aggregate of 7, while for Bachelor of Arts in Education it is an aggregate of 24 (30 for distance education). UCC’s cutoff point for Bachelor of Medicine & Bachelor of Surgery is 08. For Bachelor of Law, WASSCE/SSSCE candidates must have credit passes in six (6) subjects with an overall aggregate of 36/24 respectively. The cutoff point for BSc. Agro-processing and B.ED. Physical Education is an aggregate of 34.
This means, generally, the University of Ghana admits students with higher grades, thus attracting students who are better academically than the University of Cape Coast.
Secondly, we look at the quality of tuition. One factor that greatly influences the quality of tuition is teacher-to-student ratio. The Ghana Education Service recommends a teacher-to-student ratio of 1:40 for effective teaching and learning.
UCC has a total enrolment of about 78,485 out of which 60,0406 are undergraduate students. Their teaching and research staff are about 876. Legon on the other hand has a total enrolment of about 53,643 out of which 44,474 are undergraduates. The teaching and research staff at Legon are about 1,248. This means the teacher-to-student ratio at UCC is 1:90, while the teacher-to-student ratio at the University of Ghana is 1:43. This means that based on this factor, the quality of tuition at Legon is better than that of UCC.
What about the qualifications of the academic staff? Out of the 1,248 teaching and research staff at the University of Ghana, 78 (6.3%) are professors, 140 (11.2%) of them are associate professors, 401 (32.1%) are senior lecturers, 476(38.1%) are lecturers and 153(12.3%) are assistant lecturers.
Out of the 829 teaching and research staff at the University of Cape Coast, 46(5.2%) are professors, 109(12.4%) are associate professors, 289(33%) are senior lecturers, 257(29.3%) are lecturers and 95(10.9%) are assistant lecturers.
The University of Ghana has more and a higher percentage of professors and lecturers than UCC. The academic staff at Legon are more qualified than the academic staff at UCC.
2. Infrastructure
A university campus is a place full of memorable experiences and a sense of place. It is an environment that potentially creates a social and intellectual exchange of ideas and brings together diverse people.
The University of Ghana’s (UG) infrastructure is predominantly dependent on the Government of Ghana (GoG), through GETFund. The astronomical surge in student population in the last few years has put a lot of pressure on the university to upgrade the school’s infrastructure. The University of Ghana has four campuses: the Legon campus (main campus), the Korle-Bu campus, the Accra city campus, and the Distance education campus.
UG campus covers an area of 99.3 hectares and is characterized by tropical compound buildings and long horizontal buildings with a colonial architectural style with a majority of the buildings having a gable roof with distinctive red clay roofing tiles. The campus landscape creates a distinctive visual identity and harmonizes with the campus-built environment. The campus is also characterized by its unique sculpture which also reflects the Ghanaian African Culture.
UCC has a Southern Campus close to the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, providing a daily comfortable sea breeze. The site sits on high ground above sea level providing a beautiful bird’s eye view of the ocean. The Northern Campus or New Site of the University of Cape Coast popularly referred to, as “Science” was established to meet the needs of the growing number of students admitted into the university, as the University increasingly became the destination of choice for a lot of high school graduates from across the country and beyond. Being a recently developed campus, the new site is home to everything new you would find on campus; good roads, shopping centers, and modern structures, among others.
Also located on the new site campus is the university garden, where flowers, ornamentals, shrubs, and trees have been planted with a carefully designed plan that creates a natural atmosphere for the leisure of both residents and visitors. The University’s Zoo, which houses a wide variety of animals, is also located here.
UCC has many useful facilities including a library, network and infrastructure section, hospital, reading room, language laboratory, childcare facilities, etc. The University of Ghana has similar facilities with a few differences. Let’s first look at the library system.
UCC’s Library System comprises the Main Library, Faculty Libraries, Departmental Libraries, and Hall Libraries. These are of varying sizes, content, and services and are distributed across the campus. Their Main Library, Sam Jonah Library, offers a diverse and innovative range of products and services to cater to the needs of every user. The library subscribes to electronic resources through Ghana’s Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries (CALIGH). The library also provides hypertext links to websites, giving free access to full-text electronic documents, e-journals, and other free Internet resources.
UG’s library, the Balme Library on the other hand is the largest within the University of Ghana Library System (UGLS), endowed with information resources, IT infrastructure, and expert staff, and is currently the biggest library in West Africa. The library has gone through successive growth with its printed book collection totalling over 400,000 volumes. The library subscribes to an increasing number of online databases including electronic journals (e-journals) and electronic books (e-books).
In conclusion, we can say that the University of Ghana is beautiful while UCC has a more modern campus. Both have excellent facilities but the University of Ghana has better facilities with its Balme Library, the biggest library not only in Ghana but in West Africa being an excellent example.
3. Location
The location of a university plays a major role in the college experience. For example, an urban university might offer you bigger business internship opportunities and easy access to modern facilities and entertainment although your expenditure may be higher. A university in a town on the other hand may offer you a quiet environment, and smaller expenditure as the cost of transportation and food may be cheaper, but access to state-of-the-art facilities and entertainment opportunities may be limited.
Located in Accra, the University of Ghana can boast of its presence in Ghana’s capital and administrative center and offers its students more experiences, entertainment, access to modern facilities, and all the other advantages a big city offers.
UCC is located in the Central Region. Their Southern Campus or Old Site is uniquely situated in the heart of the hilly settlements of “Apewosika” and “Kokoado” in the Cape Coast metropolis close to the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, providing a daily comfortable sea breeze. The site sits on high ground above sea level providing a beautiful bird’s eye view of the ocean.
The Northern Campus or New Site of the University of Cape Coast popularly referred to, as “Science” is located near Kwaprow and Amamoma communities, just about 1km away from the Old Site. Various structures of tourist value, including Castles, Forts, and other relics of Ghana’s colonial masters are located nearby, providing a wide variety of options for entertainment and leisure.
Who wins this round? Legon is in the city and offers all the benefits of life in the city, while UCC although in a suburban area, is close to places of tourist value. It’s a draw.
4. International Recognition
This comparison will not be complete without looking at the international ranking of both universities. An objective analysis will be to look at their ranking not just from one institution but from several institutions such as Webometrics, EduRank, uniRank, Scimago Institutions Rankings, and Times Higher Education University rankings.
Times Higher Education ranked UCC as the best university in Ghana in 2022 and 2023 and the University of Ghana as the second best in Ghana. Before you start your jubilation as a UCC supporter, take note that this ranking is a fairly recent development. Legon was ranked as the best university in Ghana by the Times Higher Education in all the years leading up to 2022.
uniRank has consistently ranked the University of Ghana as the best university in Ghana and this was again the case in 2023, with UCC ranked as the 3rd best in the country. EduRank also ranked the University of Ghana as the best university in Ghana, the 14th best in Africa, and the 1006th best in the world, while UCC is ranked as the 3rd best university in Ghana, the 52nd best in Africa, and the 2725th best in the world. Scimago Institutions Index also ranked the University of Ghana as the best university in Ghana and UCC as the 3rd best in the country. Other institutions such as AD Scientific Index, and UniversityGuru also rank the University of Ghana as the best University in Ghana.
Analyzing all these rankings, we reach the conclusion that all institutions with the exception of Times Higher Education’s recent rankings, rank the University of Ghana as the best university in Ghana. The University of Ghana is internationally recognized as the best university in Ghana.
In conclusion, looking at all these factors, which university is the best? UCC or Legon? Legon tops all when it comes to academic excellence with academically good students, a good teacher-to-student ratio, and an academic staff with the highest qualifications.
Secondly, UCC has very good infrastructure but the University of Ghana’s facilities are better. Thirdly, both have advantages when it comes to their location so that is a draw. Finally, internationally, Legon is recognized by most institutions as the best university in Ghana.
All of this goes to show that although UCC is an excellent institution, the University of Ghana is the best university in Ghana. Do you agree with this analysis? Tell us in the comment section.