The Registrar’s Office is the coordinating administrative arm of the University, and is headed by the Registrar, who is the Chief Administrative Officer of the University. Serving under the Vice-Chancellor, the Registrar provides the appropriate support for policy implementation, while keeping abreast of administrative trends to continuously improve services, and ensuring the interpretation and implementation of university rules, regulations and policies.

The Registrar is assisted by Deputy Registrars, Senior Assistant Registrars and Assistant Registrars who handle the various Departments of the Office, service Committees and the Governing Council of the University.

Profile of The Registrar

Mr Nurudeen Issah Abubakar assumed Office as the Registrar of the University for Development Studies, Tamale in September 2021. He is an educational administrator with about twenty years’ experience in higher education management and administration. He started his career as an Assistant Registrar at the University for Development Studies, and rose through the ranks to become a Deputy Registrar in the same institution.

He has worked in various departments of the University, including the Office of the Vice - Chancellor, the Directorate of Academic Planning and Quality Assurance and the Academic and Students’ Affairs Department. Until he assumed Office as Registrar in September 2021, he was the Head of the Academic and Students’ Affairs Department of the University. He is a member of the Chartered Institute of Administrators and Management Consultants, Ghana (CIAMC-Ghana).

Mr Nurudeen Issah Abubakar holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Arabic and Philosophy and a Master of Arts degree in Archival Studies, both from the University of Ghana, Legon.

The Main Registry

The Main Registry handles all correspondences to and from the University, on behalf of the Registrar. All applications for appointments into the University and those by Senior Members seeking promotion to Senior Lecturer/ Senior Assistant Registrar or their equivalent grades and Professorial positions, are received in the Main Registry, on behalf of the Human Resources Section. The Registry serves as a point from which management decisions are relayed to staff of the University as well as information to stakeholders and others seeking to do business with the University. The Registry/Office of the Registrar also takes custody of most of the University’s documents regarding policy/regulations or any correspondence with the University. As the nerve Centre of the University’s administration, the Office of the Registrar also coordinates all the activities of the various sections of the University.

Tracking of all mails to and from the Registrar continues daily in the Registry to ensure that all the mails received or dispatched are accounted for. An important addition to the activities of the Registry is the dispatch of mails especially to Deans, Directors, Campus and Faculty Officers by e-mail. During the period, mails were sent to the named recipients via e¬mail for the purpose of speeding up the processes involved in the correspondence. Efforts are being made to expand the scope to reduce the paper work in the University’s administration.

The Postal Unit

The Postal Unit of the Registry processes all mails and documents of the University. It also receives individual mails on behalf of staff. Those concerned are called on phone to pick up their mails at the unit. Letters sent by the DHL and EMS can now be tracked via the internet to ensure their security and proper delivery.

The year under review saw a significant improvement in the activities of the Registry, especially on retrieval of information, though the challenge of managing the mounting numbers of documents and letters received daily, with the small number of staff, still exist.

University Relations Office

The University Relations Office falls under the office of the Registrar and is primarily responsible for planning, organising and managing programmes and activities which enhance the flow of communication between the University and its publics.

The schedules of the UR office can be summed up to include the following:

• Media relations
• University publications
• Official functions
• Public Relations support for management
• Information/communication Granting permission for filming, photography and hoisting of banners on the various campuses
• Granting permission for posting to be done on the University website
• Protocol assistance and tourism/ excursions