On Thursday, 19th December 2024, the University of Media, Arts and Communication (UniMAC) held its first session of the third congregation. The ceremony saw a total of a thousand two hundred and forty-two (1,242) undergraduate students graduating, with one hundred and twelve (112) first class students and ten (10) students with distinction at the bachelors and diploma levels, respectively.
Welcoming the students, parents and guardians, invited guests and sponsors as well as members of convocation, the Governing Council Chair, Emeritus Professor Kwesi Yankah remarked that,“Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, today marks the culmination of years of hard work, dedication, and intellectual growth. It is a day to reflect on the incredible journey our students have undertaken — a journey of exploration, creativity, and transformation. It is a day to acknowledge not only academic achievements but also a huge potential to shape and influence the world around them, particularly in the fields of media, arts, and communication, which are at the heart of modern society.
Delivering his annual report, the Vice-Chancellor of UniMAC, Prof. Eric Opoku Mensah gave the details for the graduating class as follows: “Institute of Film and Television: seventy-three (73) graduands; Institute of Languages: one hundred and forty-two (142) graduands; and the Institute of Journalism: one thousand and twenty-seven (1,027) graduands.
I am particularly proud to share that, female students make significant impact across our three Institutes, with women comprising almost seventy-three percent (73%), a total of eight hundred and eighty-seven (887) out of our graduating class. These statistics speak volumes about UniMAC’s ongoing commitment to increasing the representation of women in the media, arts, and communication fields, well ahead of the passage of the Affirmative Action Bill. We are proud to empower women and provide them with the tools they need to thrive in these crucial sectors, acknowledging the intelligence and flair that women bring to every area of life.”
The Vice-Chancellor also shared his vision for UniMAC as he shared the previous day at his Investiture. He emphasized the need for Artificial Intelligence by stating that, “In the ever-evolving landscape of higher education, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is gaining prominence. In the media, arts and communication space, we keep hearing of deep fakes, cloned social media accounts, impersonations, among others, impacting hard earned reputations. We must embrace the transforming power of AI to teach our students to use AI for good and guide them to use AI to deliver relevant information that promotes, protects and builds rather than destroy.”
The Guest of Honour was the Honourable Minister for Education, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum. He was ably represented by the Deputy Minister for Education, Honourable Rev. John Fordjour. The Deputy Minster congratulated UniMAC for the professionalism it is bringing to the media, arts and communication sector of Ghana. He also congratulated the graduating students for their hard work and commitment to climb higher the education ladder emphasizing that, “your graduation must not be a means to an end in itself but must just be a means to an end. Therefore, as you are going to be deployed into the world of work, the world of vast opportunities, a world of challenges, it is my expectation that you would have the fortitude to navigate around the challenges and have the boldness to confront the challenges and make the most out of them.”
The Deputy Minister also advised the graduating students to embrace Artificial Intelligence by saying that, “Today, in a world of increasing artificial intelligence, technological advancements, particularly permeating every facet and in particular, in the industry most of you are going to be working in, it is expected that you add on further skills acquisition to be a competitive professional in your area. The journey towards becoming a celebrated broadcast journalist, and the renowned and famous artiste that the world would celebrate begins today. And, I am excited at the bright future that lies ahead of you, ayekoo.”
Mr. Kwami Sefa Kayi, the Guest Speaker for the event highlighted the need for communicators to be professional and to help stop the rise of misinformation fueled by social media and artificial intelligence that makes it difficult to see what is real and make belief. He stated that, “Public Relations is convoluted and includes a lot of additional stakeholders that otherwise would have been excluded previously.” He therefore rallied the graduating students to be professional in the remarks that, “the challenges confronting you today is enormous and you need to be ready to adapt in order to survive in this game. We need the assertiveness of the PR Practitioner now, more than ever, to curb misinformation, disinformation and malformation.”
It was all cheers as students mounted the dais to be greeted and congratulated by the principal Officers and Council Chair of UniMAC. Louder were the cheers when the Valedictorian, Ms. Carlene Ameyaa Abena Affram, gave her valedictorian address. She recounted the difficult journey she and her mates have gone through to finally graduate. She paid glowing tribute to the lecturers and non-teaching staff for their great support, nurturing and guidance. And to her fellow graduates, she had this to say, “Know that this is just the beginning. With our degrees and certificates, further learning, resilience and good morals, the sky would only be the starting point.”
As graduates of UniMAC, the Director of Public Affairs, Ms. Nana Efua Rockson, who is also an alumna of the erstwhile Ghana Institute of Journalism (Class of 1998) administered the Alumni Oath to the graduates. She further asked the graduates to shine their light wherever they find themselves in life.
The Council Chair, Emeritus Professor Kwesi Yankah, before dissolving the assembly, explained the significance of the highlights of the congregation. He urged the graduates to remember the responsibilities that has been entrusted on them as being a product of one of the best public universities in the country now.
It is instructive to note that, UniMAC is a merger of the erstwhile Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ), the National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI) and the Ghana Institute of Languages by an Act of Parliament 2020 (Act 1059). The Act envisages a holding University with constituent Institutes with the power to award degrees of the holding University. UniMAC is uniquely positioned to deliver excellence in Media, Arts and Communications education at the tertiary level.
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