In this interview with MOTUNRAYO JOEL, Vice-Chancellor of Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Prof. Ayo Charles, says more Nigerians will seek university admissions abroad if the Federal Government continues to ignore the problems of education

I will only speak on behalf of Covenant University. This statement is completely untrue. Gaining admission into this institution is not an easy task. Our vision is to be a leading university committed to raising a new generation of leaders. Going by that mission statement, you can take out three key words, namely: spirituality, excellence and discipline.

Anyone who truly believes in God will not tarnish the future of the coming generation. Being a world class university, experience has shown that the standard for admission is higher in an institution like ours than other ones. Some years back, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board decided that 170 marks should be the cut off for university admission. We were not comfortable with this so we made our cut off mark 180. When JAMB raised the cut off mark to 180, we increased ours to 200 marks.

We did this because we are mindful of the processes involved. We consider the input and the output. For CU to be a world class university, we started by admitting highly qualified candidates. If you observe the newspaper reports on our university, you will realize that we have hit the headlines more than any other university on account of discipline, which we do not compromise in order to check all acts of exam malpractices. The certificates we award can compete favorably with that of any world class university around the world.

Does Nigeria have enough universities to accommodate students?

Currently, we do not have enough universities to cater for the academic yearning of our youths. We are experiencing huge challenges of access and quality. This is most unfortunate as this portends danger and a bleak future for the generations unborn if not attended to urgently.

According to the last UTME report, about 1.7 million applicants participated in the examination but there is capacity for only 500 thousand candidates, thus, 1.2 million candidates would have to wait till another year. If with about 125 universities in Nigeria the situation is as stated above, then we need more universities. I have not bothered to separate the polytechnics from the colleges of education in Nigeria because the margin would still be about the same.

In Nigeria the existing universities lack the required quality. We appear to be in a hopeless situation and government should be more concerned because of the effect this could have on the society. Without a solution to this problem, there may not be holistic and lasting solution to examination malpractices both during the entrance examination and even within the university system. By extension, the issue of unemployment, youth restiveness, corruption and other social vices would continue to exist in our society.

You must have observed a number of foreign universities now offer admissions to Nigerian students. It was reported that Ghana realizes about $1bn yearly on account of Education Tourism. This is made possible because the country has good planning, quality educational system, steady academic calendar, better funding and improved infrastructure. Nigeria needs to invest more to be in this class.

What are the pitfalls in the country’s educational system?

You cannot get much from a venture that you have not invested in. The solutions to the socio-political and economic problems in Nigeria lie in quality and sustainable education we are able to provide. Any investment in the education sector is an investment in the future of Nigeria. Quality and sustainable education have the potential to create employment, improve wellness and create a well-informed or politically-informed citizenry. It should be noted that the root cause of the insurgent in the northern part of the country is lack of proper education.

Nigeria’s budget for education is less than 10 per cent of our annual budget while in Ghana it is about 30 per cent of its annual budget. Ghana makes money from Education Tourism from Nigerians because of its investment and dividend projections. Nigeria has simply failed to plan and has given in to failure in educational sector.

From my personal observations with other universities that I have visited in the US and the UK, I realize that they are better in terms of curricular and infrastructure. In addition, they maintain a close tie with the industry. These are what we are working to achieve at Covenant University.

Therefore, I want to appeal to the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency in this sector and come up with a development plan that will solve the problem of access and quality within a specified period of time.

What are your plans for CU in the next five years?

Within the next five years, concerted efforts shall be made to evolve a robust university structure, improve infrastructural facilities, exhaustive review of curricula, improve teaching quality, encourage quality research patents, products and publications, reinvigorate the research activities of the university, pursue further collaborations with renowned universities and improve on the university’s Webometric ranking.

How affordable is CU’s tuition fee?

We operate on a high standard but our fee isn’t too high compared to other private universities in Nigeria. A recent study conducted revealed that CU is one of the least expensive universities in Nigeria. We strive to operate on a world class standard and our facilities don’t come cheap. We focus on raising exceptional graduates who are world class materials.

There are claims that some Christian universities give admission to students with shady characters. Is this true?

This is not true because of the attendant benefits of attending a Christian university. Most parents prefer to send their children to these universities with the hope that they will be better persons in life. As I earlier mentioned, CU is the most preferred private university in Nigeria. It tries to reform students but it is not a rehabilitation centre. The students are open to the same doctrine. They can choose to be successful or otherwise, based on how they comply with the school standard. However, it is our desire that we take as many as God has given to us to the Promised Land but the students must show the will to excel.

Is it true that your institution ranks high among universities with the high rate of students expulsion?

On account of exam malpractice, you don’t have to be a Christian or a private university to send culprits packing when they are caught. We have a compelling mandate to be a leading university committed to developing a new generation of leaders on account of discipline. May be we should ask ourselves why Nigeria’s educational values have degenerated over the years. This is because the level of corruption and indiscipline across the spheres of government have not been dealt with.

When students arrive at our institution, we imbibe our culture into them at the initial stage. We don’t expel a student immediately he or she is caught breaking the university’s rule. We have various procedures that must be followed. And as soon as we are convinced that the student is not supposed to be here, we send him away without wasting time. We have a population of over 1,000 students and you cannot undermine the effect of one bad egg among them.

We give students the opportunity for a rebirth, but students who are not ready to change are sent away from the school.

As far as we are concerned, students caught with hard drugs are not allowed. Class and chapel attendances are compulsory. Students who comply with our rules always remain grateful to the institution.

What are the challenges you face as the vice-chancellor of the university

Being appointed the vice-chancellor of this university is a privilege and an honor for a number of reasons.

Leading the university is about the easiest job for me because we have a Chancellor, Dr. David Oyedepo, who is highly spiritual, visionary and well-informed about university education. He designed most of the programmes that we run based on values and needs.

Contrary to the general belief, with a deep sense of humility and responsibility, we don’t have any financial needs. We have a proactive, supportive, responsive and responsible governing board that sets the pace for development.

The major challenge we have is making staff and students from various backgrounds comply with the new order in the institution.

How have you been able to handle this challenge?

The system is very tolerant but to a limit. There is zero-tolerance for cultism, examination malpractice and other social vices. In the same vein, there are ample opportunities for both staff and students to make restitution.