Nigeria Universities Updates

In the previous articles we look at 10 major causes of admission failure into Nigeria Universities. A recent survey and statistics show that when these issues are properly addressed, admission chances increase from 20% to 80%.
I know you are thinking how can I properly address these problems? Don’t worry this chapter will address that in the most comprehensive way. The ideas shared here are based on survey, statistics, experiment and interview.

Problem 1 – Lack of Orientation
Solution – Get the Foundation Right

If there is anything I have learnt in life, it is that success does not happen by chance. If you are going to succeed in life including academically, you should get the foundation right. How do you do this? One way is to set values for your life and stick to those values. Besides, you should set internal values and follow them. Now back to the issue of lack of admission orientation how can a prospective student get proper orientation to get the foundation right and set values for himself? Orientation should start especially when one is in the final year of secondary school. At that point you should know what you are going to university to study. You should know what you want to become in life. That of course should be the foundation to build on. Then you should have another related course that can serve as an alternative or a second choice should that fail. Right from that time you should start building on that. Apart from the course you want to do, you should also decide on institution and your chances of admission.

You can get proper orientation from any of your teacher. You can also get orientation by visiting your prospective institution and inquire from their admission department. You can also visit the website of such institution and call them. If you want to contact these institutions, simply visit their website, go under contact and check their contact number. If you have subscribed to Project SMS UPDATES, we will send the contact number of somebody you can correspond with in your prospective university. You should ask about admission requirement and admission opportunity for people in your area.

Fortified with this foundation, you can set value for yourself and decide on how you can build on what you already know to increase your admission chances. Please note that you should know all these before you apply for SSCE, JAMB and Post jamb EXAMS. Remember, information is power to transformation. Many people fail due to lack of information.

Problem 2 – Parents Interference with Children Choice
Solution – Live on Purpose

Parents’ interference with their children choice of institution and course is one of the major causes of admission failure today. As a child, you have your life to live. That fact that your father is a doctor does not mean you too must be a doctor. Everyone has a purpose to fulfill in life. Your greatest challenge however is to know what that purpose is. You need to discover what is it you know how to do best. What is the profession you desire? You should sit down and think. Then write down all the things you know how to do best. Then ask your parents, friends and neighbors to tell you three things you know how to do best. Evaluate their responses and pick one or two that apply to you most. That may form the foundation for you. Without giving in to pressure from your parent or guardian, follow that which you think appeal to you. The reason is because you have the motivation and the willingness. In that case, it will be easier to build on that foundation. If you are preparing for that program it will be easy for you. Don’t be Jack of all trade. Don’t allow your parents to pressure you into what is not your purpose in life.

Problem 3 – Inadequate Preparation for JAMB
SOLUTION – Invest in Your Mind

Although the number of those passing JAMB in recent years has increased, a considerable number of applicants still fail. For one thing, if you don’t score up to 200 you will not be eligible to write post UME in many federal universities. That of course may reduce you to your second choice if it is a state university. So, you will need to brand yourself to pass JAMB. One way to do this is through personal effort. Invest in your mind by reading. For instance, there are past questions in JAMB. Buy them and use them in your personal preparation along with JAMB syllabus. This will help you to know the kind of questions that are usually set in JAMB. Besides, there are extra-moral classes or coaching center for JAMB, why not attend. This kind of self investment will save you time and help you to stay focus. Besides, the knowledge you acquire during this preparation is instrumental to your success during post UME and your first year of admission.

Problem 4 – Inadequate Preparation for Post UME
Solution – Prepare Yourself

Many would-be undergraduate apply for post UME without formal preparation. Surveys show that more than half of the applicants just apply and come in the exam day to write. The result? Failure. The truth is that things don’t work that way. Interestingly some universities made past questions available. What they expect you to do is to analyze this past question and see how you can master the kind of question they set. Apart from using past question for preparation, there are extra-moral classes around your choice university on post UME. I will advice you to attend this. Some of them have first hand information on the kind of questions that are normally set and include it in their curriculum. Even if you can not attend all the classes, you can attend special classes organized few days to the exam. Survey shows that those who do not prepare for post UME hardly make their first choice if at all they make the second choice. If there is anything you have learnt here, don’t leave anything to chance. Prepare for the exam and it shall be well with you.

Problem 5 – Missing of Application Deadline and Exam Date
Solution – Get Updates Through Project SMS Updates

Lack of information has cost many brilliant students admission. Many miss application deadline even when they have their money. Experience of victims show that these persons don’t have any means of getting information from these institutions. Some leave it to chance while others rely on friend and relatives. The truth is that these persons can hardly help you especially when they have important things to do. Many institutions provide updates in newspaper, local media and school bulletin. And if you are not especially interested you will not know of such development.

In view of the seriousness of this problem that has cost many time and money, we have role out what we call project SMS updates. For those who are seeking admission, they will use the general entrance level. You will be notified of scholarship opportunity that is available.

Problem 6 – Failure to Observe Admission Percentage Ratio
Solution – Do Your Home Work

Today students just apply to any university without considering risk. There are three factors to consider when talking about admission percentage. Prof. Dibu Ojerinde, Jamb registrar identifies these as merit, catchment and educational less developed state with percentage of 45:35:20 respectively. The latter chapter contains universities and their catchment including educational less developed state. So, let us do the mathematics together.

Case1 – If you are a brilliant student that means you can pass on merit. Already you have 45% chance of admission. Assuming the university you choose is from your catchment area you have additional 35% chance of admission. If you add that to 45% , you have 80% chance of admission. So, even if you are not from educational less developed states, you have 80% chance of admission.

Case 2 – Assuming you are not brilliant, it means you only have 55% chance left. Now if you are not from ELPS, you are left with 35% chance of admission.
Due to lack of information, some of these students who have 35% chance of admission will still choose universities that are not in their catchment area. That simply means they have no chance of admission. No wonder many of them fail. The gist is this; determine which of these factors apply to you. Your aim is to maximize the percentage thereby increasing your chance of admission.

There is still another problem. We have the 60:40 science/ARTS ratio. You know that in many secondary schools, the numbers of those in science class are less than those in Art class. Now JAMB says, even with their small population universities should take more students from science class. So, don’t be surprise if majority of science students in your class get admission. That is both Arts and commercial students combine will share the remaining 40% after science has taken 60%. So, if you find yourself in Art class, you have to read very well. This is because admission into Art courses will be very competitive especially if you are not from educational less developed sates.

Problem 7 – Examination Malpractice
Solution – Take Charge of Your Academic Future
The society has transferred to the children of our time a culture of success which stems from laziness. The generally accepted slogan “The end justifies the means” is portrayed in society from the point of view that success can be achieved through any available means whether positive or negative. Decide on how you want to prepare for each exam. Set goals for yourself and stick to it. There are three examinations you will pass through before admission will be possible into universities. We have SSCE, JAMB and Post UME. Examination malpractice is common during SSCE and JAMB. So my advise is what is worth doing is worth doing well. If you know you are going to school then invest in yourself. Read, attend classes instead of relying on examination malpractice. It is said that a man is what he knows. Also, life gives back to you what you give to it.
Conclusively these 10 major factors have been identified as the major cause of admission failure. I belief the information shared so far can be instrumental to your success. Read them, digest them. If you have any problem, call me for clarification. I want to share your testimony so please follow this information to the letter. One last thing, don’t take failure personal. Learn from your failure. Note that you can fail successfully.

Popularity: 9% [?]

In recent years, admissions into universities in Nigeria have become more competitive and objective. Statistics shows that only about 10 to 15 percent applicants are actually admitted into universities. The reason is because each university must adhere to the quota given to it by NUC (Nigeria Universities Commission). It has been observe that while few students get admitted at their first application, majority others have to apply time and again say up to four times.
There are many reasons why prospective students miss admission every year despite the transparency in the admission process. After a thorough research, interview, observation and experience, I have been able to identify ten major causes of admission failure into Nigeria universities. These include:
1. Lack of Orientation
Many Universities applicants fumble their way through application without formal orientation. By using the trial-and-error techniques of “fumbling successfully”, so many of them fumble their way through universities and courses selection, applications and so on. Granted, few of them manage to succeed but they are destined to have negative experiences. Majority others are faced with the reality of failure.
2. Parents Interference with Children Choice
Many parents have influenced their children taste when it comes to choice of courses and universities. Some parents force their children or wards to go for courses they are never meant for. Some of these children are averagely intelligent and they are asked to go for very competitive courses. Most times they end up no where. Some who even mange to get the admission are later advice to change their course or withdraw.
3. Inadequate Preparation for JAMB
Abraham Lincoln once said “I will prepare myself and wait for my opportunity”. Thousands who failed JAMB would have passed if they avail themselves to many coaching opportunities out there. Because of lack of preparation, majority who sat for JAMB failed or score lower than required.
4. Inadequate Preparation for Post UME
The numbers of students who scale through JAMB in recent years have increased greatly. Sadly though, many of them never made it through post UME. Many students just apply for post UME without formal preparation. The truth is that if you fail to prepare you are prepared to fail. Research shows that the strategies employed by most universities are similar.
5. Errors Associated with Online Registration
There are usually three stages of online registration before admission is completed we have SSCE, JAMB and Post UME> most applicants usually commit error of omission and commission. They may misspell their name, gender, date of birth and other personal information. These errors or discrepancy usually delay their result and sometimes make them miss admission deadline.
6. Missing of Application Deadline and Examination Date
Many students miss out the application deadline for JAMB, Post UME and Post DE. Worse still, some will apply and miss out on the screening date especially for post UME and post DE. JAMB application too can be very frustrating. Most times the website only goes in the night making it difficult for students to apply on time.
7. Failure to Observe Admission Percentage Ratio
At the Eleventh Technical Committee meeting on admission to degree awarding institutions in Nigeria held at the Federal Universities of Minna, Niger State, Registrar and Chief Executive of JAMB Prof. Dibu Ojerinde reminded Federal establishments the ratio of 45:35:20 for merit, catchments and educational less privilege states respectively was still in force. He also emphasized the need for universities to follow the stipulated guideline of 60:40 science/Arts ratio. Unfortunately, many students do not observe this admission percentage ratio. They apply to any university without considering their chances of getting the admission.
8. High Competition from Educationally Privilege States
All Western states and some South-east states are educational privilege states. It is a common practice that most families from these areas make sure that all their children and wards attend higher institution. Because of this, application to institutions in these regions is very high. Lack of orientation has made many of them to keep applying to the same school year after year without successes. This problem however can be avoided with orientation about proper attitude to institutions.
9. Choice of Course
Choice of courses plays a major role in causes of admission failure into Nigeria higher institutions. First, is the issue of 60:40 science/arts admission ratio. We also have students who are going for courses they can not pass during post UME. Also, there are some very competitive courses like Law, Accounting, Medicine and Surgery, that there are some specific numbers of students that can be admitted for them. Because of high demand, many who apply for them are never considered for admission.
10. Examination Malpractice.
There are usually penalties for examination malpractice when the person is caught. At SSCE and JAMB level, the result may be withheld or cancelled. Hence, the person may miss application deadline when the result is finally released. The situation is different though for post UME and Post DE. If you are caught that means you automatically miss the admission.

Survey has shown that these aforementioned reasons are the major causes of admission failure into Nigeria higher institutions. Detail explanation has to how a student can eliminate these obstacles is available by joining project “SMS UPDATES”.
Click here on how to join project SMS updates

Popularity: 13% [?]

ANGERED by the Federal Government’s independence to their plight, Nigerian students, on Thursday, in Lagos, demanded the resignation of President Umaru Yar’Adua.

At a rally to conincide with the 49th independence anniverasy of the country, the students, under the aegis of National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) and Education Rights Campaign (ERC), passed a vote of no confidence in his administration.

They accused him of ambivalence to the current strike by members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), which had kept the students at home for more than four months.

The students, who converged at the Labour House, the headquaters of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Yaba, said, “While it (October 1) should be an occasion to celebrate, it is rather unfortunate that it is another time for the Yar’Adua administration, which cannot point to any achievement since it came to power in 2007, to assure the traumatised Nigerian workers, students and youths of the so-called magical formula of its 7-pointless agenda.”

They said it was shameful, degrading, dishonourable and an insult on them for the president to travel to Saudi Arabia to commission an education institution when his own education sector, from the primary level, to the university level had completely collapsed due to the government’s insensitivity to the plight of teachers, lecturers and students.

“In fact, President Yar’Adua only went to humiliate himself because the whole world, including the country he went to, are all aware of the pitiable state of Nigeria’s education industry,” they noted.

Popularity: 2% [?]

The Head of National Office (HNO), West African Examination Council (WAEC), Dr Iyi Uwadiae, has counseled candidates, schools and parents to be more careful in uploading data during registration for the WASSCE as the Council will no longer entertain request to correct errors.

Uwadiae said this at a briefing in Lagos penultimate Friday while announcing the release of the 2009 May/June WASSCE results.

The HNO claimed that candidates deliberately introduce errors while registering so they can make changes, which the Council suspects are mostly fraudulent.

He lamented that despite introducing e-registration to eliminate errors since 2003, candidates still fill in wrong information and later have problems accessing their results.

His words: “One of the reasons why the council introduced online registration for its examinations is to eliminate avoidable errors committed during registration for its examinations. Unfortunately, five years after we commenced online registration for our examinations, candidates and schools have been inundating us with all manners of requests for amendments of errors committed by them during registration.

“We have discovered that some candidates deliberately introduce errors during registration in order to come back and ask for ‘corrections’ to satisfy their fraudulent intentions. I wish to use this platform to strongly advise all schools presenting candidates for the Council’s May/June school examination diets, and the candidates for November/December private candidates’ examination diets, to endeavour to enter correct data and verify them before uploading their entries as the Council intends to put a stop to any request for amendments in future examinations.”

Only 356,981 representing 25.99 per cent of those who wrote the May/June 2009 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) can gain admission into the universities without combining ‘O’ Level results.

Speaking on the performance of candidates, Uwadiae said that they were the only ones that made five credits including English Language and Mathematics in the examination which was written by 1,373,009 candidates nationwide.

He said the result, compared to last year where only 23.5 per cent of the candidates achieved the same feat shows there is a slight improvement in performance. However, he added that the performance was nothing to jubilate about and if subjected to further statistical analysis, may show no improvement.

“The performance is slightly better this year. If subjected to statistical analysis it is possible there will be no difference. We have nothing at hand to jubilate about. If we are talking about 50 per cent making credits in five subjects including English and Mathematics, then I would have put it in my speech and announced that the candidates did well,” he said.

Uwadiae said that the poor performance which has been the case for some years now shows that intervention programmes being put in place to improve quality education are not yielding the desired results. He blamed the candidates, their parents, teachers and the society at large for the poor results

“The performance shows that the factors causing poor results are still there. The intervention being put in place in schools has not manifested in terms of performance. Our research has shown that no learning is taking place neither is there effective teaching. Everyone has a share of the blame. Pupils and their parents have their fault. Pupils don’t read and their parents don’t monitor them. Teachers are not committed. Society itself elevates material things,” he said.

Of the 1,373,009 candidates made up of 755,955 males and 617,054 females, 1,265,090 (92.14 per cent) candidates have their results processed while 107,919 (7.86 per cent) have a few subjects being processed due to errors. Also, 109,201 (8 per cent) candidates have their results withheld because of alleged involvement in examination malpractices.

Popularity: 2% [?]

THE Federal Government will spend $1.2 million (about N200 million) on 2010 Nigeria Education Data Survey (NEDS) to be carried out in the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The chairman, National Population Commission (NPC), Chief Samui’la Makama, disclosed this, on Tuesday, at the signing of an agreement on NEDS and its inauguration at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja.

The agreement, which was between Research Triangle Institute International of the United States of America and the NPC, according to Chief Makama, came at a time Nigeria strived to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and overcome its educational challenges.

He said education data surveys were normally conducted immediately after the National Demographic Housing Survey (NDHS) so as to collect additional data on a subset of household survey in the NDHS.

The proposed NEDS, he said, was intended to collect additional information and to statistically link it with data from the 2008 NDHS to create a broader data set.

The representative of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Nigeria, Dr. Shandy Ojikutu, commended Nigeria for providing the opportunity to work with USAID, adding that the survey would provide the opportunity of knowing facts relating to education in the country.

Popularity: 3% [?]

THE Senate resumed sitting in Abuja, on Tuesday, after a two-month recess and expressed regret over the festering crisis between the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the Federal Government, which has paralysed academic activities in the country for over three months.

While lamenting the effect of the strike on Nigerian students, the Senate assured that it would do all it could to bring it to an end.

The spokesman of Senate, Senator Ayogu Eze, in a media briefing at the National Assembly Complex, blamed the crisis on the global financial crisis, adding that a solution must be sought to the crisis to guarantee the future of Nigeria.

Senator Eze informed that the leadership of the Senate, besides the Senate’s Committee on Education, would tackle the issue to make sure the university unions returned to work within the shortest time.

“What has happened is a symptom of the general collapse in the finances of the world, not just Nigeria. You know that the world is still reeling from the effects of the global financial meltdown. I think that some of the things that are happening are symptoms of the meltdown,” he said.

He added that “be that as it may, the Senate is going to lend its voice to ensure that we see how we can bring this strike to an end.”

In another development, the academic and non-academic staff of the Abia State University (ABSU), Uturu, under the Joint Consultative Council of Staff Unions (JCCSU), have resolved to resign en masse instead of going back to work unless the Federal Government signed the agreement it reached with the ASUU.

Addressing journalists in Umuahia, the state capital, on Tuesday, the chairman of ASUU/JCCSU, George Chima, blamed the government for keeping students at home, saying it was not committed.

“There is no going back. We are behind our respective national executive councils. We will rather resign en masse than betray this national struggle for the sustainability of the university system in Nigeria,” he said.

Popularity: 2% [?]