The great Nelson Mandela said education is the most powerful weapon to change the world. The quote is not just synonymous with how important the best legacy is. It implies the undeniable fact that education is just as important as other fields of endeavour.
Like every other effort, there are varying indices that measure the sector. These indices range from Quality of Teaching and Learning, Academic Environment, Accommodation, Tuition, Research and Grants, Courses Offered, and Community Engagement, among others, which contribute to the quality of the education given to the students.
While it is the duty of the parents to make their children available for school, it is the duty of the school management or authorities of such institutions to develop strategies for making theirs the best, according to the parameters above.
In Osun State, South West Nigeria, there is a heavy concentration of public and private higher institutions domiciled across the nooks and crannies of the state. With over 20 tertiary institutions, admission seekers choose from the number to seek where they could best achieve their academic dreams.
In the first installment of this series, Osun Defender examines the situation of the three public universities in the state, namely; Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Osun State University (UNIOSUN), and the University of Ilesa (UNILESA).
However, there may not be much information about UNILESA because it was approved by the National Universities Commission and commenced operations very recently.
Brief History Of The Public Universities In Osun
Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU)
The Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), which is also proudly called (Oba Awon Unifasiti) by its students and alumni is located in Ile Ife, Osun State, and is one of the three Universities established in Nigeria between 1961 and 1962 by the Federal Government.
On June 8, 1961, the law providing for the establishment of the Provisional Council of the University was formally inaugurated under the chairmanship of Chief Rotimi Williams.
UNIOSUN
Osun State University (UNIOSUN) was founded in December 2006 under the administration of Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola.
The university, after its approval by the National Universities Commission, became the 80th university in Nigeria, with academic activities of the university starting on September 21, 2007.
UNIOSUN is a conventional, multi-campus university with campuses in Okuku, Ikire, Ejigbo, Ifetedo, Ipetu-Ijesa, and the main campus in Osogbo, the state capital.
UNIILESA
The University of Ilesa is a state-owned university located in Ilesa, Osun State, Nigeria. It was formerly known as the Osun State College of Education, but in September 2023, it got approval and was accredited by the National Universities Commission (NUC) to run 32 courses for the 2023–2024 academic session.
COURSES
The world is now a global village, and Nigeria’s leaders have to invest in the education sector to ensure the country’s undergraduates can compete with their peers globally.
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) as well as Data Science courses are being introduced more in universities across the globe to allow students to contribute to important changes in the world.
There is also a need for Nigerian universities to introduce more ICT and Data Science-related courses into their curriculum.
OAU – Courses
The Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) has over 90 courses for its students, allowing aspiring candidates to choose from a diverse array of options to pursue their academic passion and excel in their desired fields.
It runs courses leading to the award of First Degrees, Postgraduate Diplomas, Masters’ Degrees, and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees.
Some of the ICT/Data Science-related courses offered at the OAU are; Computer Science, Statistics, Demography, and Social Statistics; Computer Engineering, Computer Science with Economics; and Computer Science with Mathematics.
UNIOSUN – Courses
Uniosun also has over 90 courses for its current and prospective students up to the PhD level.
A delve into the courses on offer at the university showed that the school in the area of ICT and Data Science offers; Information Science, Computer Science, Information Technology, Software Engineering, Cyber Security, Demography and Social Statistics.
UNIILESA – Courses
As stated earlier, the university commenced academic activities in the 2023–24 academic session with 32 approved courses.
However, the university will be offering Computer Science and Cyber Security among the 32 approved courses.
RANKING: From the details above, Osun State University leads among the public universities in the state with more Data Science courses; Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife follows closely while the University of Ilesa, a new varsity comes a distant third.
TUITION
OAU – Tuition
The management of Obafemi Awolowo University recently reviewed the school fees payable by the students of the university.
The school fees are as follows; for the returning students from the Humanities, the amount they were expected to pay is N76,000 while the new students in the Humanities, are to pay N131,000.
For those in the Sciences and Technology, the fee is N86,000, while new students in the same faculties will pay N141,000.
Also, Pharmacy and College of Health Sciences students would pay N109,000 while new students are to pay N164,000.
UNIOSUN – Tuition
According to the information on the UNIOSUN website (www.uniosun.edu.ng), Non-Science including Arts and Social Sci Ed., Adult Ed. Peace and Conflict Studies, Psychology, Lib and Info.Sci. Int. Rltns &Diplomacy, Criminology & Security Studies, Social Works Banking & Finance, Geography, Entrepreneurial Studies Tourism, Geography, Entrepreneurial Studies and Tourism students pay N130,000 as tuition fees.
For students in Accounting, Business Administration, Industrial Relations & Personnel Management, Cooperative and Rural Development, Public Admin. Economics, Political Science, and All Engineering Courses including Software Engineering Sciences including Anatomy, Physiology, Education Technology, Sci. Ed. Nutrition & Dietetics, Pharmacology, Cyber Security, Env. Ed, Biotechnology, Information Technology, Information Science, and Agriculture, N155,000 is the amount to be paid as school fees.
Nursing, Law, Public Health, MLS, SLT, and Radiography & Radiation Science students are paying N195,000, while students studying Medicine are to pay N550,000 as tuition.
UNIILESA – Tuition
Information on the school website showed that students in the departments of Linguistics, English Language, History, International Relations, Music, English Education, Political Science Education, Economics Education, Social Studies Education, G & C Education, Adult & Continuous Education, Education Management, Music Education, Business Education and Tourism and Hospitality Management pay N130,000 as tuition.
Also, Computer Science, Integrated Science, Agricultural Science, Accounting Business Administration and Economics students will pay N155,000.
For public health students, their tuition is N200,000, while Nursing students will pay N650,000, and Students of Medical Laboratory Science have N550,000 as their school fees.
RANKING: In this category, Students of the Osun State University pay more tuition fees among the Public Universities in Osun State; with UNILESA and the OAU coming second and third in the amount of fees payable by students as tuition for an academic session
ACCOMMODATION
In the area of accommodation, OAU has on-campus hostels for its students, while the school also allows off-campus accommodation.
According to a student of the OAU who does not want his name in print, the school hostel fees were previously charged at the rate of N25,000 for returning students and N30,000 Naira for fresh students.
To ensure the well-being and safety of the students, the students who stay in one of the campus hostels said the school provides essential amenities, such as access to water and security measures in the hostels.
However, the student complained about the epileptic power supply in the hostels, urging the management to address the area. For those who prefer off-campus accommodation, the fee charged by property owners varies depending on the location and standard of the apartment.
While some off-campus students get accommodation for as low as N20,000, others spend up to N500,000 and above to secure an apartment of their taste.
UNIOSUN – Accommodation
For UNIOSUN, the school management has hostels for the students and also allows outside accommodation. The school hostels are compulsory for 100-level students, while 200-level and above students can decide where to stay. UNIOSUN hostels are well-equipped with electricity and water systems.
The school management, according to a student, provided solar energy systems to provide electricity for the students in the hostels. According to the student, the hostel fee is #120,000 for 4 students in a room and #135,000 for two students in a room. For those staying outside the school hostel, the price of accommodation depends on the environment in which their campus is located.
Osun Defender gathered that those at the main campus, Osogbo, pay more to secure accommodation than students on the other campuses.
UNIILESA – Accommodation
The university management on Tuesday, January 02, 2024, commissioned the students’ hostel building.
However, the fee to be paid by the students to access the hostel was yet to be known at the time of filling this report.
Also, the upgrading of the school from a College of Education to a University is likely to affect the price of securing accommodation in the environment, especially, as the first set of full-scale degree students resumed for its first academic session.
RANKING: In this category, Students of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), have more accommodation facilities than any other public university in the state; Osun State University comes second with only hostel facilities for students in 100 and 400 levels; and the University of Ilesa coming third with lesser hostel facilities than the other two.
RESEARCH AND GRANTS
OAU – Research and Grants
The Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) has received several grants in recent years to support its academic and research endeavours.
In 2020, the University secured a grant from the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP).
In 2021, Tetfund awarded a grant of N1 billion naira to Obafemi Awolowo University for research-based and development purposes.
Similarly, last year 2022, the OAU Research Team Won the Solidarity Fund for Innovative Projects (FSPI) Grant.
In the outgoing year 2023, OAU was recognised as one of the eight universities worldwide to receive significant support and a grant to establish a master’s degree programme in Artificial Intelligence.
UNIOSUN – Research and Grants
In June 2023, the vice chancellor of UNIOSUN, Professor Clement Adebooye announced that the school won $12 million in grants in six months through some scholars of the university.
In July 2023, a UNIOSUN lecturer won 3,600 euros in International travel grants.
Also, UNIOSUN won $40,00 in grants for the Carnegie Fellowship Programme and a 7.8 million Euros Erasmus Lump-Sum Non-EU-Africa grant in June 2023.
In 2022, the institution won the UNESCO-IFCD grant and emerged as the first university in Nigeria to win the prestigious UNESCO International Fund for Cultural Diversity (IFCD). The total value of the 17-month project is $100,000.
The school also won the $1.4 million Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation research grants in 2022.
RELATIONSHIP WITH HOST COMMUNITIES
OAU, UNIOSUN and UNIILESA enjoy a smooth relationship with their host communities.
The students of the Universities have no problem living and interfacing with indigenes and residents in the school’s host communities.
The host communities also benefit from the school as some of their indigenes are engaged in one thing or the other by the school management.
The presence of the schools in the host communities also has a positive effect on their economic growth, especially the Osun State University which has its campuses (faculties and colleges) spread across the three senatorial districts and six strategic zones of the state.
CONCLUSION
The above highlighted some of the relevant information about the tertiary institutions which the medium believes will be useful for people seeking to know about them.
However, Osun Defender from its findings observes the need for the schools to accommodate more ICT and Data Science courses to address some of the emerging problems in the world today.
The series continues…..
Kazeem Badmus is a graduate of Mass Communication with years of experience. A professional in journalism and media writing, Kazeem prioritses accuracy and factual reportage of issues. He is also a dexterous finder of the truth with conscious delivery of unbiased and development oriented stories.
