Background: Voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) is one among different approaches which have been
implemented as an attempt to slow the spread of HIV infection and minimize its impact at the individual, family
and society level. VCT is perceived to be an effective strategy in risk reduction among sexually active young people
like tertiary level students. Ethiopia as a country with high burden of HIV started responding to the epidemic by
preparing and updating guidelines on VCT. The objective of this study was to assess the level of knowledge, attitude
and practice of Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT) for HIV among university students in North West Ethiopia.
Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted from February to May 2010 using a stratified sampling method to
enroll students from different faculties into the study. A total of 330 university students filled in a self-administered
questionnaire with response rate of 97.3%. Main outcome measures included level of knowledge, attitude and practice
of VCT for HIV. A chi-square test was used to determine an association between a number of independent factors and
dependant variables.
Result: About 66.1% of the study participants were males with a mean age of 20 years. Majority (75.6%) of the
respondents were Orthodox with 63% reported living in urban areas before joining the university. From the study
participants 86.3% were knowledgeable on VCT, 73.3% had positive attitude towards VCT for HIV and 61.8% had had
VCT for HIV in the past. Previous residence before joining the university, level of education, sex and religion were
among the sociodemographic variables that showed statistically significant association with the one or more of the
outcome variables. Fear of positive results, stigma and discrimination following the positive results were reported as
main barriers for VCT uptake.
Conclusion: The findings reveal important barriers for VCT uptake and suggest strategies to reduce stigma and
discrimination.