Vice-Chancellor of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), Professor Olufemi A. Peters, has disclosed that a total of 22,250 students will be graduating from the institution, among them are 25 inmates.
Peters noted that while 24 of the inmates are undergraduates, one had concluded his Master’s programme.
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He said they studied at no cost as the university sponsored them in line with providing equity by taking education to correctional centers to provide a future for those who may not have the opportunity.
Speaking at a Pre-Convocational briefing on Tuesday in Abuja, the VC noted that no university has graduated a large number as what they will be churning out and that is a recognition that NOUN is executing one of the mandates the federal government established it for.
He said there were 69 graduates with First Class, 4,357 Second Class Upper, 9,489 2nd Class Lower, and 2700 third class, while 16,679 are undergraduates and 5,571 post graduates.
Peters said the convocation will take place simultaneously at almost all their study centres, except 48 of them so as to get students and parents to participate from the centres close to them.
He revealed that 1500 NOUN Law graduates were currently at Law Schools, through a special arrangement with the school.
He said the report of the law graduates doing well is welcoming and another set of 1500 are yet to enroll in the Law school.
While noting that all their courses are accredited, he said the university has done well in digitilisation and no university can match them.
“Since COVID-19, we have trained 22 Nigerian universities in electronic learning and many more are still coming. We don’t shy away from the fact we have the skills,” he said.
On Honorary Degree, he said: “We do not have any honorary degree this year but we are hoping that next year we will have. It was considered that we give but the logistics of providing it is what we are unable to accomplish this time around but it will happen next session.”
Speaking on union agitation, he said they do have agitation but “this university does not accept that, the fact that our students are little different from conventional universities, our students are working and have special consideration to study, because of that we discourage our staff from joining the national body.”
He said they have every reason to have unions among themselves but they have restricted that.
“In any case whatever they are looking for the university is willing to provide it and that is what we have been doing. Since I became the VC our welfare system has become second to none and no university can beat that and we plan to do more,” he said.
