65 inmates, 28, 675 students to graduate from National Open Varsity

Vice-Chancellor of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), Professor Olufemi A. Peters, has disclosed that a total of 28, 740 students will be graduating in the forthcoming Convocation; among them, are 65 inmates from Nigerian Correctional Centre.

Prof Peters noted that 58 of the inmates are undergraduates and seven are postgraduate, and that they are studying at no cost as the university offers them scholarship as part of their social responsibility and provides them opportunity to make a living for themselves after they serve their terms.

Speaking at the university’s 12th Pre-Convocation briefing on Tuesday in Abuja, Prof Peters noted that the number of graduands is high and that is why the university was established to be able to bring in more literacy to the Nigerian community and other opportunities.

He gave the breakdown of the graduating students as 21, 339 undergraduates, 7,401 post graduates out of which 58 of the undergraduates and seven post graduates are inmates, adding that six students will be awarded with First Class, 2,306 for Second Class Upper, 11, 075 for Second Class Lower and 5,558 for Third Class.

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While noting that the convocation will take place simultaneously at the 114 study centres of the varsity across the country so as to get students and parents to participate from the centres close to them, he said only about 10, 000 students will participate in the ceremony in Abuja, which comprises of Abuja study centre graduates, First class graduates, all Post graduates and all the students who are to receive awards in their respective disciplines.

Speaking on the issue of National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) faced by the graduates of the varsity, he said their students are exempted and that the students didn’t want that.

He said parts of the reasons are due to issues of logistics and that the varsity is working on a new proposal for the Corps with hope it will be more receptive and bring in some of the students into NYSC.

The Vice Chancellor also disclosed that the varsity recently got full accreditation for 28 programmes while only two got interim accreditation, adding that the varsity has about 141, 000 active students and about 250, 000 when on and off students are added.

Meanwhile, the Vice Chancellor of University of South Africa (UNISA), Prof. Puleng Lenkabula is expected to deliver the Convocation lecture with the theme, “Volatility & Opportunities in Higher Education” on Friday.

UNISA is one of the oldest distance learning universities in Africa of about 150 years and Prof. Lenkabula is the first female VC.