ASUU STRIKE- NIGERIAN STUDENTS SEEK EDUCATION ABROAD.

                                L-R Jennifer Onyukwu head Education USA Abuja, Bill Strassberger- Head Cultural Affairs Section US Embassy and Elise Brombach Consular Officer.

By: David Barau.

                Studying outside the shores of the country has become imperative for Nigerian tertiary students owning to poor standard of education and recently the incessant strike embark upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

                The Academic Staff Union of Nigerian universities have been on strike for over two months demanding that the federal government keep to their promise made in 2009 of injecting mega funds to university Education. With several meetings between government officials and Asuu ending in deadlock, Nigeria students are searching for Education Elsewhere.

                For this reason many countries over the years have been advertising their education programmes and marketing scholarship opportunities to Nigerians. The United Kingdom, and the United States embassy in Nigeria have been championing this cause by inviting reputable institutions in their respective countries to come to Nigeria and recruit prospective and eligible students even on the spot.

                Many Nigerian students who cannot afford the luxury of western education travel to nearby African countries which offer cheaper and sometimes better education. Ghana is one of such countries, in the past years Ghanaian students have been educated in Nigeria from primary to tertiary levels, now they receive Nigerians as their highest number of foreign students. Education is now one of Ghana’s highest gross domestic products (GDP) due to incessant strikes in Nigeria.

                Suffice you to note that countries that cannot be compared to Nigeria in whatever level of indices used are receiving thousands of Nigerians as students.

                Recently the Sudanese Ambassador to Nigeria Ambassador Tagelsir Mahgoub Ali in a courtesy call to the former Minister of youth development Alhaji Inuwa Abudulkadir says about 1600 Nigerians are currently studying in Sudan.

                Nigeria’s best brains through this migration has been lost to many of this countries  a point  the head cultural affairs Section US embassy Abuja Bill Strassberger was quick to debunk  at a media briefing on Education USA recently.

                ‘ we’ve been accused  sometimes of a brain-drain but we don’t see that in Nigeria so much, we’re not grabbing your best students, educating them and making it easy for them to stay, but the Nigerians are choosing to come back cos there’s so much opportunity in the county.’

                The United States Mission to Nigeria has in the last 14 years organised annual EDUCATION USA COLLEGE AND CAREER FAIRS; where prospective Nigerian students are given the opportunity to explore the vitality and diversity of U.S colleges and Universities. Admission officers and other U.S university representatives and their alumni are available to provide hands on information on their institutional requirements for admission and financial aid.

                This programme has over the years helped in giving Nigerian students admission in the US.

According to the head Education USA Abuja Jennifer Onyukwu

                ‘Nigeria is currently the number one largest sender of students from sub-Saharan Africa to the U.S with about 7000 students studying at over 700 institutions in the U.S’

                The programme has in the last five years witness students who benefitted in over $ 40 million in scholarship and financial aids from U.S colleges and universities both for undergraduate and post graduate studies.

                ‘we are looking forward to do more in the upcoming year, scholarship are very competitive, we are looking for academically stellar students, students who obtain a first class in their undergraduate degrees and students with 8 distinctions in their SSCCE.’

                This year’s edition of the colleges and career fairs is expected to begin on the 7^th and 8^th October, in Lagos while that of Abuja takes place on the 9^th and 10^th October,2013

                A consular officer at the media briefing on education USA Elise Brombach advised intending students to present only genuine credentials during visa interview and applications. She further adised students to make sure they fill out all the required forms themselves.

                ‘if any student present a fraudulent material it’s going to affect their application negatively by negatively I mean you may permanently not be granted entry into the united states.’

                It is true that the Nigerian Educational system has declined from the days of the great University of Ibadan and the Ahmadu Bello University Zaria to become a shadow of itself now, it is also a fact that the federal government has not lived by its words by funding adequately tertiary education in Nigeria.

                For the sake of the Nigerian Students, sheath your sword Asuu ! sheath your sword Federal government! Go back to the negotiating table with an improved package for education in Nigeria.