ACCESS GAPS IN UNIVERSITY EDUCATION IN NIGERIA

Abstract

This study considers access gaps to undergraduate education as indicators of uneven distribution of opportunities to acquire higher education among Nigerians and for various disciplines. Secondary data on number of applicants for admission to and new entrants for the various programmes in the ten disciplines defined by the Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board (JAMB) from 2002 to 2007 were used. Simple percentage was used to express access to the programmes, and the differences between national access figure and those of the other entities (e.g. geo-political zones) depict access gaps. Four research questions were raised and answered. Access gaps were generally negative for geo-political zones (in the south and north central) that had high number of applicants. This implies that admission of candidates from such zones were below the national average. The state universities in the geo-political zones with negative access gaps should be encouraged to increase number of new intakes to close or remove the negative access gaps. Providers of university education (private and public) should expand access to programmes in the faculties of sciences, engineering/environmental sciences, law, medical sciences and social sciences as a viable way of achieving higher rate of access to university education in Nigeria.