Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU), Ago-Iwoye looks set to consolidate on its excellent academic records as the National Universities Commission (NUC) Accreditation Teams rounded off their visits to various Colleges and Faculties of the University.
The Accreditation Teams were despatched to the institution recently to reassess 49 out of the 75 academic programmes of the University. The exercise commenced on Monday, March 29 and was concluded on Friday, April 30, 2021.
The programmes presented for reaccreditation include Microbiology, Plant Science, Psychology, Geography, Home Economics, Fisheries, Accounting, Banking and Finance, Geology, Mathematics, Statistics, Computer, Biochemistry, Sociology, Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry.
Others are Physics, Economics, Mass Communication, MSc Industrial Relations and Human Resources Management, MSc Transport Management, Political Science, Public Administration, Pharmacy, Pharmacology, Urban and Regional Planning, Agriculture, Medicine and Surgery, Anatomy and all Education programmes. However, Civil Engineering, Nursing, Music and Linguistics which had earlier enjoyed resource verification assessment also witnessed accreditation for the first time.
Accreditation Team for Music on arrival at his office
It should be noted that accreditation of programmes are usually carried out by the NUC with a view to ensuring compliance of tertiary institutions with the laid down minimum academic standards. Some of the criteria for assessment include philosophy and objectives of programme, curriculum, library resource, human resources, physical facilities, funding and administration of departments, among others.
Welcoming the teams at various times in his office, the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Ganiyu Olatunji Olatunde, expressed the readiness of the University Management and officials to cooperate with the assessors to enable them to effectively accomplish their assignments. He described accreditation as an important exercise that provides the framework to have quality assurance evaluation of the University programmes from accredited body through peer review activities.
The Vice-Chancellor informed the team members about how OOU was founded in 1982 as Ogun State University and later renamed Olabisi Onabanjo University on May 29, 2001 after the first Civilian Governor of Ogun State.
“The University runs a conventional multi-campus system with four campuses in the four divisions of the state. The Main Campus is located at Ago-Iwoye while other campuses are in Ayetoro, Ibogun and Sagamu,” said Prof Olatunde. He stated further that the University has three (03) Colleges, thirteen (13) Faculties and fifty-three (53) departments with seventy-five (75) academic programmes. According to him, all programmes run by the University have full accreditation status with the exception of two that have interim/denied status.
The Vice-Chancellor further told the visiting teams that the University had, in its quest for world-class status, established a Quality Assurance Directorate to enable the institution to put things right and compete favorably in a global knowledge economy. He also revealed how the University had, since his assumption of office, invested huge resources on training of both academic and non-teaching staff to enhance and develop their capacities for optimal performance.
“We have a robust staff development and training in this University. If you don’t train your staff, they may not understand the current trends and concepts in governing the institution. I want to assure you that the University will continue to develop on that,” he added.
Prof Olatunde stated that the University had implicit confidence in the accreditation teams and believed they would discharge their duties objectively. He thanked the various teams and assured them that they would observe tremendous improvement in the varsity since the last NUC accreditation.
of the e-library during the visit of NUC Accreditation Team for Psychology
He submitted that the University has done well within the economic reality of the country. “We will continue to do the best we can so that we can produce globally competitive graduates,” the Vice-Chancellor added.
After visiting the various Departments to assess their respective programmes, the accreditation teams usually came back to the Vice-Chancellor’s Office to submit their Exit Reports. In their briefings, many of the Panel Chairmen admitted that there were marked improvement in the University in terms of infrastructure and facilities. They expressed satisfaction with the prevailing ambience and serene environment of the campus as well as the safety arrangements put in place by the Management.
They confirmed that the admission requirements for the different programmes in the University were perfect while the academic regulations were adequately captured in the students’ handbooks. They also observed that course evaluation of the Departments were generally good because of the presence of comprehensive marking schemes.
On Library facilities, virtually all the accreditation teams commended the University. They noted that most of the books and journals in the Faculties and Departments visited were current and highly relevant, adding that the University e-library was functional and up-to-date in subscriptions. The Panel Chairmen also said they were impressed with the speed and connectivity of the internet service.
They also remarked that the curriculum were adequate and met the minimum benchmarks as prescribed by the NUC.
At different times, the Team Leaders praised the University for the internal quality assurance system emplaced in the various Departments. They also saluted the institution for its commitment to developing human resources which, they noted, were manifest in the teaching and non-academic staff.
Although the accreditation teams generally commended the University for striving to meet and surpass the Benchmark Minimum Academic Standard of the NUC, they observed few inadequacies in the area of funding, staffing and record keeping in few Departments. They also stressed the need to provide adequate furniture for junior lecturers just as they called for recruitment of technical and support staff for some Departments. The panelists further recommended the imperative for the University to institute research grants outside the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund). According to them, the essence of accreditation is to improve standards in Universities and not for undue witch-hunting.
In his response, the Vice-Chancellor thanked the teams for their comprehensive, objective and thorough assessment of the various programmes and said all the observations they made would be corrected in no distant future. Prof Olatunde disclosed that, already, efforts were ongoing to ensure that more staff offices were renovated and adequately equipped.
The Principal Officers of the University, including the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Academic, Prof Deji Agboola who at times stood in for the Vice-Chancellor; the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Administration, Prof Charles Adekoya; the Registrar, Mr Femi Ogunwomoju; the University Librarian, Dr Adebambo Oduwole; the Bursar, Mr Semiu Makinde, and some high-ranking officers usually joined the Vice-Chancellor to receive the various Accreditation Teams during their respective courtesy visits and presentation of their Exit Reports.
