MONROVIA, Montserrado – The administration of the state-run University of Liberia has notified over 10,000 undergraduate students of their poor performance.

According to the Liberia News Agency, Vice President for University Relations Norris Tweah said that the notification serves as a warning to the concerned students to improve their academic work. The notification came as a listing of students’ identification numbers posted on the walls of buildings at the university.

Tweah said the first list, which includes students that have failed one semester, shows that 5,349 students are on single probation after failing to maintain minimum cumulative GPA of 2.00 for the second semester of 2012 and 2013.

The second probation list is comprised of students who have consecutively failed two semesters. According to Tweah, the double probation list shows that the business college, which has the most students in the university with the enrollment 11, 242 students, has 1,955 or 17 percent of students on double probation. The College of Agriculture and Forestry, with a total enrollment of 3,551 students, has 755 or 21 percent of students, on double probation. The Science College has the total enrollment of 8,000 students with 1,852 or 23 percent of students on double probation while thith a total enrollment of 5,524 students, has 598 or 10.8 percent of students on double probation. The Teacher College with the total enrollment of 1,993 students has 186 or 0.9 percent of students on double prohibition.

“When broken down further by departments, the double probation list shows that the university accounting department has 819 or 15.33 percent, biology department has 533 or 10.14 percent, and geology department has 532 representing 9.9 percent of students double probations respectively,” Tweah said.

A student will make either the single or double probation list if he or she fails a semester or two of an academic year successively.

Tweah said that three successive failures would lead to expulsion in line with the student handbook. He also said that students on double probation may remain at the university if their cumulative averages are not less than 2.00 at the end of the two semesters.

Amongst students, there are mixed feelings. Some see the list as a means of humiliation for students.

Amanda Newberry, biology major, said, “I don’t think putting a list up is good. I think [the] administration should write each student concerned a letter notifying them of their [probation]. Listing their ID numbers on walls, in my mind, is some sort of [attempt to] disgrace.”

Varflay Duyanku said that he believed the issue of poor performance of students can be attributed mostly to the negligence of students.

“If I find out that I’ve gone on probation for the first time, I will make sure to work hard next time and improve,” Duyanku said. “But for some of our colleagues, they will feel so much complacent and thereby do nothing to improve their academic performance.”

He said he saw the list as a wake-up call for students to develop themselves.

“I just hope that those ID numbers listed will see the list not as a disgrace and work towards their improvement, as we are tomorrow’s hope for a better Liberia” Duyanku added.

Bedeskoe Tumbay contributed to this article. Featured image courtesy of  Teri Weefur