In a small drugstore in the Alajo neighbourhood of Accra, the capital city of Ghana, Efua Doe arranges medicines on the shelves, helping her mother serve customers.
But years ago, Doe imagined herself in a very different place. She wanted to go to university, train as a nurse and work in maternal healthcare.
“Nursing meant I could help other people,” she said. “I knew there were complications with childbirth, so I wanted to explore that.”
Instead, her plans were derailed by a set of examination results.
Like hundreds of thousands of Ghanaian students each year, Doe’s path through school culminated in the West African Senior School Certificate Examination, or WASSCE. In Ghana, the results can determine whether a student attends university, what they study and, for some, whether they pursue higher education at all.
Doe sat the examination in 2015 after attending senior high school in a rural area. She said her school struggled with learning materials, infrastructure and enough teachers.
“I put in my efforts. I put in what I could do, but then it didn’t bear fruit as I assumed it would.”
Her results included a D in mathematics and a failing grade in science. University was no longer an option.
At least, not then.
Doe tried again, and again. But each resit meant additional costs for remedial classes, learning materials and transportation.
“I didn’t have the money to be going to the remedial class over and over again,” she said. “The time I would spend going to the class and the money I would spend — I was now seen as an adult, so I had responsibilities.”
The repeated setbacks also began to affect how she saw herself.
“It makes people doubt themselves,” she said. “It makes them doubt themselves that they are not capable of doing more. They are not capable of doing big things or great things.”
Doe’s experience reflects a broader debate over Ghana’s education system and the weight placed on a high-stakes examination.
WASSCE is Ghana’s main senior high school-leaving examination. Students are assessed in subjects including mathematics, English, integrated science and social studies. Their final results combine school-based assessment with the national examination — with WASSCE accounting for 70% of the overall score.
Universities then use students’ results to determine admission and programme eligibility. For students who fall short, even narrowly, the consequences can be significant.
At the University of Ghana, 19-year-old Salamatu Umar remembered the pressure surrounding her own results. Now a second-year political science and archaeology student, she said she was terrified before checking her WASSCE results. Her parents had told her they would not pay for a resit.
“There was a lot of pressure. I was stressed. I even got sick because I wasn’t sleeping well. The stress was too much,” Umar said. When she finally saw her results, the relief was overwhelming.
“I was screaming. I was so happy, and I was proud of myself at the same time,” she recalled.
But meeting the requirements does not always mean getting the programme a student wants.
Eighteen-year-old Ceron John Kwegyir-Aggrey is also a second-year student. He wanted to study business administration but missed the cut-off by one mark. He is now studying psychology.
“I don’t think it is a case of you cannot do what you are applying for just because of a one-mark difference,” he said. “Because you were close enough. Maybe they should look more into the student applying rather than just going off the grades you are bringing.”
Kwegyir-Aggrey said the pressure to perform can also influence how students learn. Students use a phrase to describe it: “Chew and pour, pass and forget.”
“They just read to write the exam and then they are done with that,” he said. “Chewing is reading and putting it in your head, then pouring is writing it on the paper, and you’re done with that. You just forget whatever you learned.”
Educationist Anis Haffar said the problem is not simply the examination itself, but what the education system encourages students to value. He argued that students need more opportunities to apply knowledge, analyse problems and think independently.
“It’s all about being driven to do something with your knowledge,” he said. “Not just have the knowledge for the sake of it.”
Haffar said one possible reform would be to give school-based assessment and the national examination equal weight. But changing the balance would come with its own challenges. School-based assessments would need safeguards to ensure that grades are consistent and credible across schools.
For parents like Ruwaida Kwegyir-Aggrey, another concern remains: an examination cannot capture every quality a student develops.
Her son Ceron’s academic record tells only part of his story, she said.
“These were characteristics that I didn’t know he possessed,” said Ruwaida, describing his resilience and personal growth. “And so, I am sure there are definitely other abilities and potential that he possesses that his teachers will know of.”
She also believes years of school performance should carry meaningful weight alongside a final examination.
“I don’t think it is a fair process because you are supposed to be a good student cumulatively,” she said. “What then happens to the students who did so well during their academic life in senior high and, for some reason, are not able to do so well on the final exam?”
The West African Examinations Council, which administers WASSCE, said the national examination is designed to provide a common standard. John Kapi, the council’s head of public affairs, said examination experts carefully review questions to ensure they are clear and consistent.
“When it comes to our assessments, experts will sit down and look at the quality of the questions, ensure there is no ambiguity,” he said.
Kapi acknowledged that some may question whether a one-off examination is the best way to assess readiness for tertiary education.
But, he said, the system has provided a common measure for many years.
“A lot of people have gone through it and they’ve performed very well at the tertiary level.”
The University of Ghana and other schools were contacted for responses to concerns about the role of WASSCE in university admissions, but did not give a response.
The debate is essentially about the role of a national examination in measuring student achievement and determining access to higher education.
WASSCE provides a common benchmark for students across the country. But students also arrive at the examination with different resources, circumstances and learning experiences.
Back in Alajo, Efua Doe is still working in her mother’s drugstore. The nursing career she once imagined never materialised. But she doesn’t believe a failed exam should become a permanent verdict on what someone can achieve.
“Mistakes were made at certain times of our lives. We were younger,” she said. “Once the person is willing, motivated enough and ready to put in the work and effort, please open the door for them. Create the opportunities for them to come in.”
For now, Ghana’s challenge may not only be about getting more young people through school, but making sure the system can recognise what they might become once they finish.
By: Ridwan Karim Dini-Osman
