VC advocates scraping of uniform admission cut-off marks

Benin – Prof. Eghosa Osaghae, the Vice Chancellor of Igbinedion University, Okada in Edo, has advocated the scraping of uniform university admission cut-off marks to promote competitiveness among the country’s universities.

He said each university should be allowed to have its own admission cut-off marks because all universities were not equal. “The standards that the universities have are not the same. If you want to push all the universities to have the same standard, then you are negating the whole essence of competitiveness. “Why do universities thrive to be excellent? “It is so that they can be on the top, and the considerations for universities at the top should not be the same for those that are below”, he said. Osaghae suggested that the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), should be saddled with the responsibility of administering entrance examinations, while universities should be allowed to select their candidates. “We have a matriculating board, JAMB. Let it administer the exams while tertiary institutions chose what they want. “If you look at the world of ideas and the world of learning there is no equality there. “If you select 10 unequal universities in the world and ask people to make a choice, you will find out that most people would want to go to the top universities. “It is these top universities that have most of the stringent requirement; that is the practice all over the world. “If you want to go into Oxford or Cambridge, you must have very good grades. That is what is practised all over the world. “You cannot equalise all tertiary institutions and fix the same admission cut-off marks for them all”, he explained.

UNILAG expels 125, rusticates 198 students

Professor Rahamon.A Bello
Vice-Chancellor

Authorities of the University of Lagos have expelled 125 students and rusticated 198 others for various offences, including examination malpractices during last academic session. Unilag, students Unilag, students The lists of the affected students were published on the university’s

The institution’s Deputy Registrar (Information), Mr Toyin Adebule, confirmed the expulsion and estimation to newsmen in Lagos on Sunday, Adebule said that the university “will soon publish and display the names and photographs of the students in the media’’. He said that the action was in line with the university’s zero tolerance on malpractices and other vices in campus. “Yes we have published some names on our website and these students will be punished in various degrees, depending on the severity. “Last session, a number of students were caught in various forms of malpractices during their examinations. “Some were found cheating during the examination with “micro sheets” while others were hired as surrogates to write papers for others. “Others were caught smoking weeds (Marijuana) right in their halls of residence by their colleagues and reported to the university authorities. “For those who were caught impersonating, writing examinations for others, they will face outright expulsion,’’ Adebule said. Adebule said the other categories of students, such as those caught with micro sheets and the smokers, would face suspension ranging from two to four semesters. “In other to get the desired effect of their various punishments, we are planning to publish all their names as well as display their photographs all over the campus in the next one week. “We shall carry out this measure in all the departments and faculties in the institution. “This is to help the university ensure that the affected students will have nowhere to hibernate on campus. “By doing this, the affected students would know that the university want to ensure total compliance to the sanction and would not want to be seen anywhere around the campus,’’ he said. Adebule said that before every examination, the university normally make available the rules and regulations for the students to abide by. He said that such rules and regulations were usually accompanied by various sanctions for defaulters. According to him, the university will continue to do all it can to sustain set standards and best practices as obtained in other top universities around the world. Adebule, however, clarified that the development had nothing to do with those involved in the recent students’ riot.