GTEC Orders UDS to Stop Unauthorised Weekend Delivery of Accredited LLB Programme
The Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) has directed the University for Development Studies (UDS) to immediately stop delivering its accredited evening Bachelor of Laws (LLB) programme as a weekend programme.
In a letter dated October 5, 2026, GTEC instructed the university to restore the LLB programme to its approved evening mode and discontinue arrangements requiring students admitted to the evening programme to move to weekend delivery.
The Commission also directed UDS to ensure that affected students are restored to the approved mode of delivery without academic or financial disadvantage.
GTEC further ordered the university to formally communicate the directive to affected students as well as the relevant academic and administrative units and submit documentary evidence of full compliance within seven days.
GTEC says UDS changed approved LLB delivery mode
According to the letter addressed to the Vice-Chancellor of UDS in Tamale, GTEC said it had noted with serious concern that the university was delivering an LLB programme accredited for evening study as a weekend programme.
The Commission said it had also established that students who were duly admitted into the approved evening programme were being required to migrate to the weekend mode of delivery.
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GTEC stressed that accreditation is granted based on specific academic, staffing, infrastructural and programme-delivery arrangements submitted by an institution and subsequently assessed and approved by the Commission.
The Commission said the approved mode of delivery forms part of the conditions under which a programme receives accreditation.
As a result, it said an institution cannot independently change the approved mode of delivery of an accredited programme without obtaining prior written approval from GTEC.
Commission orders immediate restoration of evening programme
GTEC therefore issued a direct order for UDS to stop delivering the accredited evening LLB programme as a weekend programme.
The Commission stated: “Accordingly, the Commission hereby DIRECTS the University to CEASE, WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT, the delivery of the accredited evening LLB programme as a weekend programme and to restore the programme to its duly approved evening mode of delivery.”
The directive means that students admitted to the evening LLB programme should not be required to convert to the weekend mode under the arrangement questioned by the Commission.
GTEC also directed UDS to restore affected students to the approved mode without imposing academic or financial disadvantage on them.
GTEC raises concerns over accreditation requirements
The Commission’s concern goes beyond the timetable or day on which students attend classes.
According to GTEC, changing an accredited programme’s mode of delivery without prior approval represents a material departure from the conditions under which the programme was accredited.
The Commission said such a change has implications for academic contact hours, faculty availability, access to teaching and learning facilities and quality assurance arrangements.
It also said the change affects the conditions under which students accepted admission into the programme.
GTEC therefore considers the unauthorised conversion of the evening LLB programme into a weekend programme to be a matter of regulatory non-compliance.
UDS given seven days to demonstrate compliance
GTEC has given the University for Development Studies seven days to comply with the directive.
Within that period, the university is expected to provide documentary evidence demonstrating that it has complied with the Commission’s instructions.
UDS is also required to communicate the directive formally to affected students and the relevant academic and administrative units.
The Commission warned that failure to comply within the stipulated seven-day period could trigger regulatory action without further notice.
Possible regulatory action against LLB programme
GTEC said continued failure to comply would constitute an ongoing breach of the conditions under which the LLB programme was accredited.
The Commission indicated that possible regulatory measures could include suspension or withdrawal or revocation of the programme’s accreditation.
Other possible measures identified by GTEC include directing the university to stop admitting students into the programme and applying any other regulatory measures available under the applicable regulatory framework.
The Commission was emphatic that it would not recognise the continued delivery of the LLB programme in a mode that had not been duly approved.
What the directive means for affected UDS students
For students admitted to the evening LLB programme, the immediate issue is the mode in which the programme is delivered.
GTEC has directed UDS to restore affected students to the approved evening mode and specifically stated that this should happen without academic or financial disadvantage.
The directive also requires the university to formally communicate the matter to affected students, meaning students should receive information from the university on the implementation of the Commission’s instruction.
The source material does not indicate how many students are affected or provide details of any specific timetable for their restoration beyond GTEC’s immediate directive.
GTEC awaits compliance from UDS
The directive was contained in a letter dated October 5, 2026, and signed by GTEC Deputy Director-General Prof. Augustine Ocloo on behalf of the Director-General.
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The next major development will therefore be UDS’s compliance with the Commission’s instructions and the submission of documentary evidence within the seven-day period.
For students affected by the change from evening to weekend delivery, the key issue is whether the university restores the programme to its approved mode without academic or financial disadvantage, as directed by GTEC.
