AN EXAMINATION OF THE QUALITY OF GRADUATES PRODUCED BY THE TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN NIGERIA

AN EXAMINATION OF THE QUALITY OF GRADUATES PRODUCED BY THE TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN NIGERIA

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the study

Unemployment among tertiary-level graduates is a major issue in Nigeria right now. Thousands of students graduate each year from a variety of educational institutions with excellent or honorary degrees, but many are unable to find work. According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) (2010), the average rate of unemployment in Nigeria is 19.7 percent… and more than half of 15-24 year olds living in metropolitan areas are unemployed…. Secondary-school graduates were said to make up the largest proportion of the unemployed, accounting for about 35 percent to 50 percent of the total; 40 percent of those aged 20 to 24, and 31 percent of those aged 15 to 19. Regardless of

Despite the fact that these figures are flawed, they do not tell a compelling story.

During a seminar on the theme: Youth, Employment Creation, and Shared Growth in Africa, held during the recently concluded African Development Bank (AfDB) annual meetings in Lisbon, Portugal, Prof. Ernest Aryeetey, Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana, stated that most of what students are taught in schools today is quite different from what is required in the labor market.

As a result, Nigeria’s rate of development has been very slow as a result. Because of the low rate of production, the company’s development has been slow. Recent incompetence has also been cited as a contributing factor to the slow pace of output.

Graduates from a university. The reasons for the current situation have been questioned. The following are some of the justifications advanced:

The education sector in the country is currently dealing with three major issues, all of which are thought to be the root causes of the sub-par performance. A continuous lecturers’ strike, which has resulted in a significant brain drain, a shortage of instructional facilities in schools, and an inadequate budget are among the difficulties.

Because of the large number of graduates, there are not enough job openings to go around. Furthermore, the specializations of graduates do not correspond to the needs of Nigerian organizations.

As previously stated, the president emphasized the importance of allocating university resources to courses that will prepare students for careers.

“We now need graduates who are problem solvers and job creators, and whose characters will be enviable and unimpeachable at all times,” he says, rather than simply adding to the pool of unemployed youths in the labor market. This study is primarily concerned with the most recent rationale advanced.

According to reports, employers have complained that these graduates are unprepared for the workforce. They believe that the quality of academic work has declined in recent decades and that their degrees no longer guarantee communication skills or technical competency. The goal of this study is to determine whether or not these tertiary graduates are meeting the expectations of their employers. The purpose of research is to collect data from them. According to Andrew and colleagues (2000), there appears to be a significant disparity between academic output and labor-market demand. According to their findings, career opportunities for recent graduates have recently declined. This is due, among other things, to the Nigerian economy’s fragile state, the policy environment, and a scarcity of qualified human resources, particularly in terms of the quality of the workforce’s tertiary educated segment. Businesses widely believe that they are dissatisfied with the quality of graduates produced by educational institutions and that they must constantly retrain them before they can be useful to their organizations. As a result, the goal of this research

is to determine whether the quality of tertiary graduates is as low as stated or as high as claimed. The findings of an empirical study lend credence to this deteriorating perception of quality.

According to reports, first generation Nigerian university graduates have a lower “reputation” rating than their elders. These individuals stated that they believe the quality of university education has declined. According to the findings of several studies, people who graduated in the 1980s provided more positive responses to questions about the availability of study materials than those who graduated in the 1990s. This demonstrates that the most recent generation of graduates have a scarcity of study resources. Numerous academic studies have revealed that graduates

The quality of supervised practical work and academic advice received by Nigerian universities is rated as extremely poor. A casual conversation with graduates in engineering, management, and the sciences reveals that only a small percentage of them find the majority of the ideas they learn in school to be applicable in their daily work environments. When it came to practical aspects, graduates in particular gave their education a low rating. If this is the case, the school’s curriculum is obsolete.

He or she is a direct product of our society, a reflection of decay, and a reflection of the recent decline in morals and values.

Given these findings, it is clear that there is There is a significant gap between what is taught in college and what is required in the workplace. Stakeholders believe that our educational system owes it to graduates the background and skills needed to succeed in their chosen fields. As a result, when companies are looking for graduates, they look for those who graduated from schools with curriculum that includes new technologies and focuses on contemporary practices. Academic staff members at Nigerian institutions of higher learning with a genuine academic research focus are one approach to achieving this goal. It is also common knowledge that Nigerian public universities have large enrollments but a shortage of trained teachers to accommodate them. Regardless of The fact that the majority of businesses are dissatisfied with the quality of graduates produced by Nigerian educational institutions in recent years is well known. According to many companies, the quality of these graduates is simply a reflection of the academic staff, learning resources (library, labs, etc.), and budget constraints at institutions of higher learning. Any improvement in the quality of university graduates is contingent on resolving staffing and retention issues. Staff quality is deteriorating, as evidenced by high rates of “brain drain,” a drop in the number of professors and assistant professors at universities across the country, and a drop in the number of post-graduate students enrolled.

According to Andrew and colleagues (2000), the financial stability of universities is inextricably linked to the state’s fiscal fortunes.

For the past two decades, the government budget has been in a state of flux. It is heavily reliant on oil revenues, which have been volatile in recent years. Inadequately equipped labs, out-of-date libraries, poorly compensated faculty, deteriorating academic buildings, and a lack of significant research output are some of the consequences of insecure funding. And it is these factors that will have an impact on the overall quality of the graduates, whether in a positive or negative way.

1.2 Problem Statement

Politicians, educational stakeholders, and labor employers (who are also end users of graduates’ services) have all participated.On several occasions, he questioned the quality of tertiary institution graduates. According to sources, the federal government is reportedly developing a specific method to score each institution in the country based on the quality of their goods, particularly the quality of their graduates and outputs (Andrew, 2000). A high reliance on low technical expertise in the industrial sector, as well as the high rate of unemployment plaguing the nation’s economy, can be attributed to Nigeria’s polytechnics and other tertiary institutions’ inability to produce highly-sought technical manpower in the sub-sector sector. The problem is that graduates’ performances are of poor quality due to a lack of technical ability, and as a result As a result, they fall short of their employers’ expectations. Many people believe that institutions must be more proactive in their responsibilities, particularly in terms of reaching out to industries that will meet their needs, if graduates from the nation’s universities and polytechnics are to be more effectively utilized by the industrial sector. Given the foregoing, education experts have advised that Nigeria’s educational system be completely overhauled. If success in this area is to be achieved, they believe that the country must take on several key responsibilities, such as acquiring and applying global knowledge and developing new regional information. All of these are high-quality indicators. By investing in human capital to improve their ability to absorb and utilize information

We may achieve similar results if we apply information as well as invest in technology that aids both the acquisition and absorption of knowledge (Andrew, 2000).

It is necessary to determine which elements contribute to this quality as well as whether or not the complaint is valid. The type of training they receive has a big impact on the quality of their work. If they are not properly trained, their quality will suffer, but if they are properly instructed and supervised, their quality will improve.

1.3 The study’s purpose

The study’s overarching goal is to examine the quality of graduates produced by Nigerian tertiary institutions:

To assess the quality of graduates from Nigerian tertiary institutions.

to identify the factors that influence

the caliber of university education programs

To determine whether quality assurance factors influence graduates’ employability.

1.4 QUESTIONS FOR RESEARCH

The following study questions have been prepared:

What is the quality of tertiary institution graduates in Nigeria?

What factors affect the quality of university education programs?

Does the presence of quality assurance factors affect the employability of graduates?

1.5 Importance of the Research

The significance of this study cannot be overstated, given that it has so much to do with the graduates who will determine the country’s rate of development. Because, as Harbison (1973) stated, they are the ultimate source of the nation’s wealth.

As a result, the purpose of this research is to determine the quality of tertiary graduates. This is determined by

the perceptions of their employers, which will aid in determining whether or not the training provided is adequate. After all, it is the users of a product who can determine whether or not it is good. As a result, the employers of these graduates, who are the users, are in a better position to determine whether they have received adequate training. If they are of poor quality, we will be able to determine why from their responses and suggest ways to improve them.

The findings of this study will help to determine whether it is correct to say that tertiary graduates are of low or high quality. If they are low, the findings will assist in determining the areas where they are low and putting the

Institutions are on high alert.

Whether the quality is high or low, the findings from the employers’ suggested ways of improvement will undoubtedly yield novel information that will assist tertiary institutions in determining ways to improve the academic/practical quality of the institutions.

1.6 The Study’s Scope

This study will look at the quality of graduates from Nigerian tertiary institutions. The research will also look into the factors that influence the quality of university education programs. Finally, the study will look into whether quality assurance factors influence graduates’ employability. As a result, this study is restricted to Nassarawa State University.

1.7 Study Restrictions

Like in every human endeavour, the researchers encountered slight constraints while carrying out the study. Insufficient funds tend to impede the efficiency of the researcher in

sourcing relevant materials, literature, or information, and data collection (internet, questionnaire, and interview), which is why the researcher chose a moderate sample size. Furthermore, the researcher will conduct this study alongside other academic work. As a result, the time spent researching will be reduced.

Term Definitions:

Quality is determined by comparing graduates’ outputs to their inputs in order to determine effectiveness and efficiency. It also referred to the level of performance. It is also used in this study to indicate job readiness.

Tertiary graduates are those who have completed the normal years of training for their chosen course at polytechnics, universities, or colleges of education and have been awarded certificates. that effect; including graduates of higher education than secondary school.