Vice Chancellor, University of Lagos (UNILAG), Akoka, Prof. Folasade Ogunsola, has disclosed that the institution is currently undertaking major review of some of its academic programmes to foster growth in the fields and produce future-ready graduates.
Ogunsola, who listed some of the courses as Architecture, Creative Arts and Mass Communications, said the redesign was in response to industry needs and emergence global standards, and would establish them as stand-alone faculties.
The Vice Chancellor, while giving her score card at a media parley, also added that the university has attracted about N11.5 billion in research grants since she came on board.
On the programme redesign, Ogunsola said although the institution is guided by the prescriptions of the Core Curriculum Minimum Academic Standards (CCMAS), “but I am bold to say that we are also self-driven and undertaken some of the restructuring by unbundling our programmes. Our aim is to ensure that we offer the best to our students and ensure we deliver on our mandate to produce future-ready graduates.”
She gave a breakdown of the research grant as N228,386,139.50, £161,763.00, $8,777,466.62 and €493,890.00, saying various faculties have been recognised for research studies.
She added that the institution was recently selected as one of the beneficiaries of a professorial Chair Endowment Fund worth N30 million by the National Communications Commission (NCC).
“The endowment is to enhance focused-research activities and improve the quality of industry-ready graduates produced by the university in telecommunications and social sciences, areas that greatly impact the activities of the commission and telecoms industry.
Ogunsola stated that the institution’s efforts at advancing contributions to industry development in the country, culminated in the strengthening of collaboration with Nigerian Navy Hydrographic Office (NNHO) and has resulted in the senate-approved Master of Science (M.Sc.) in Hydrographic Surveying.
She, however, stated that the university is challenged in the areas of staff housing, funding, and security.
“Housing of staff is one of our major challenges. We have striven to democratise the procedures for the allocation of all accommodation, including boys quarters on campus. We are also engaging in remodelling of some of the structures housing staff residences with a view to creating more spaces to alleviate the housing challenges that many of our staff face. One of our strategies is to convert the bigger duplexes to two-bedroom flats.”
“Funding remains a challenge to optimising quality education delivery, but we are not relenting in our efforts. We are hopeful that our initiatives, will be complemented with government support to improve the situation soon.
”We are beginning to experience unprecedented threats to the security of university property. This year, we experienced incessant attacks on university property, but I will say that the combined efforts of our security agents and the Nigerian police have helped to stem the tide. We will continue to ensure that we keep our campuses safe,” Ogunsola assured.
