2. University of Calabar, Cross River State
UNICAL, as it is fondly called, is one of the second generation universities in Nigeria that was established in 1975. Some students have had terrible experiences with this university in terms of PG education. The university has a good academic culture, a wide array of alumni members and fairly manageable infrastructure. It is a go-to university for undergraduate education. However, they have not gotten it right in terms of PG education and below are some of the reasons why:
i. UNICAL allows departments too much flexibility: In UNICAL, every department works independently of the other and does so however it sees. There are no strict policies in place to make sure the departments are running the programmes in line with the PG school’s dictates. With this level of flexibility and individuality, many departments unbearably delay students beyond their graduation deadlines.
ii. Corruption: This is one university where academic corruption has eaten deep into its marrows. There are many reports of PG students being extorted by the staff of the university. Extortion starts upon registration till result collection. In fact, UNICAL is for those with a fat pocket as you will have to pay for everything from the day you pick the form and the day you write the aptitude test to the day you gain admission and graduate. If you don’t come with a fat pocket, be prepared to linger in the system for a long time.
iii. Nonchalance of staff: The members of staff in this university have a very bad attitude to work, save a few. Lecturers may not come and teach as and when due. Supervisors may never read student’s submissions or even be available for discussions. Non-academic staff are not left out. They are hardly accessible for registrations, explanation, etc.
From the above, we can see why UNICAL is lagging behind in terms of speed and other indices of a standard PG programme. The university management has to immediately scrutinise the system and get to the root of the problem before it becomes worse than it already is.
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