Education in Nigeria
First class degree: We’ve proved detractors wrong – Babcock varsity VC
The previously held notion that private universities in the country were using First class degree as marketing tool to lure students to the institutions has been vitiated by the performance of Babcock University since its inception as its products have shown that the standard of learning being imported in the school is world class and its degrees are above those of public universities.
This is evident in the excellence displayed by graduates of the university in external examinations both in Nigeria and global Ivy League institutions.
Prof. Ademola Tayo, President and vice chancellor of Babcock University, said during a media parley at the weekend, that 100 of the students the institution presented for the 2023 Law School program produced 21 First Class degrees beating every other university in the country, stressing that some of those who came out in Second Upper degrees from the university also earned First Class at the Law School exam, thus rating its degrees comparable to the Law School bench mark.
According to him, the institution has made such remarkable progress in both infrastructure development and academic learning that it could only have been by the grace of God. He commended the leadership team at different levels for their commitment to the vision and quality standard, which the university has come to represent.
Prof. Tayo, who had been at the helm of affairs in the university since 2015 said reports from the performance of its graduates across the world are heart warming, as they are proving to be good ambassadors with two of them beating all comers in a Canadian university, showing that the Law School results were no fluke. He said the foundation of excellence being laid in the school has become a world standard and he is satisfied with the efforts of the past nine years, which have been challenging, but truly rewarding.
Prof. Tayo, who is on the last year of his five year two term tenure, expressed concern over the cost of electricity to educational institutions, asserting the adverse effect is not only felt in public universities, in which activities were being grounded over huge electricity bills.
“It’s not only being felt by the public universities; in spite of our huge investment in alternative energy sources, such as solar, which lights up all our streets, we still spend over N230 million every month on electricity bill. This is quite a burden to bear, and still provide necessary facilities to develop the institution. We appeal to the government to consider private varsities in the supply of electricity,” he said.
The VC said that his greatest joy and assurance is that he has lived within his legitimate means and has not pinched at the resources entrusted to him, and would never wish otherwise. “I consider myself and my family blessed; I have lived on my legitimate earnings during these years as VC, and my earnest prayer is that God should remove me from this position before I begin to take what doesn’t belong to me. May that day never come,” he declared.
