Purpose: The study investigates the moderating effect of personal resources, including optimism and resilience, on the link between fear of COVID-19 and perceptions of academic safety among university students in Ghana. Design/methodology/approach: A total of 618 students took part in the research by completing an online self-reported questionnaire. The respondents were chosen using a simple random sample method. The data was processed and analysed using IBM SPSS version 24 and SEM-PLS, respectively. Findings: Results reveal fear of COVID-19 positively influence students' perception of academic safety. Furthermore, both resilience and optimism mitigate the impact of fear of COVID-19 on students' perceptions of academic safety. Originality/value: This is the first study to examine personal resources as a moderator between fear of COVID-19 and students' perceptions of academic safety. Practical and theoretical implications are added to the text.