The National Universities Commission (NUC) has called on Nigerian universities to embed quality assurance as an enduring institutional culture while tasking fresh graduates to harness their knowledge to solve societal problems and drive national development.
  
The commission’s Executive Secretary, Prof. Abdullahi Yusufu Ribadu, made the call  on Friday at the 5th Convocation Ceremony of Trinity University, Yaba, Lagos.
 
Ribadu, represented by Head of the NUC Lagos Office, Dr. Ayoteju Ogun, said the light of a university shines brightest when its graduates establish themselves through knowledge, integrity, innovation and service to humanity.
 
He said: “The world you are entering will demand more than certificates; it will demand competence, creativity, integrity and resilience. Do not wait for every opportunity to come your way, develop the capacity to create opportunities for yourselves and others.”
 
Reaffirming the commission’s commitment to strengthening the quality and global competitiveness of Nigerian universities, the NUC boss emphasised that quality assurance must transcend mere regulatory compliance to reflect effective teaching, credible assessments and entrepreneurial solutions.
 
Aligning with the NUC’s vision for societal impact, the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of Trinity University, Pastor Samuel Olatunji, delivered a passionate charge to the 323 graduating students, urging them to stay in the country, build resilience and lead the process of national renewal.
 
“To the youth of Nigeria, you are not helpless. You are gifted, creative and resilient. Do not trade your hope. Build where you are, serve where you are and lead where you are. The future of this nation will be written by those who refuse to give up on it. Go into this country and heal it; go into its economy and build it,” he charged graduands.

The Vice Chancellor, Prof. Clement Kolawole, presented the breakdown of the 323 graduands across three faculties: 161 from the Faculty of Basic Medical and Applied Medical Sciences, 109 from the Faculty of Arts, Management and Social Sciences, and 53 from the Faculty of Nursing Sciences.
   
According to him, the figure reflects a 61.5 per cent year-on-year growth compared to the 200 graduates produced in the 2024/2025 academic session.
 
Highlighting academic excellence, two graduating students achieved a perfect 5.00 Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA): Osazuwa Osayuwar Tioluwalase (Department of Political Science) and Esezobor Osemen Joy (Department of Computer and Information Sciences).
  
Kolawole said with the NUC’s approval of three new degree programmes, namely Environmental Health, Community Health and Public Health, the Senate has restructured the institution into four distinct faculties.   They are the Faculty of Management and Social Sciences, Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, Faculty of Nursing Sciences and Faculty of Natural and Applied Sciences.
 
To support this expansion, the Governing Council recently acquired a six-storey annex facility at No. 42/44 Commercial Avenue Road, Yaba, providing 850 bed spaces, new laboratories and additional lecture spaces.
 
Reiterating the university’s strict stance on moral character, Kolawole disclosed that a final-year student involved in theft was withheld from graduating, reinforcing Trinity University’s commitment to conferring degrees only on candidates found “worthy in character and learning.”
  
Also, the university Chancellor, Prince Samuel Adedoyin, urged the graduates to ground their future endeavours in five core values: godliness, creativity, industry, drive and discipline.
 
“My charge to you is simple: in everything you do, do a little more,” Adedoyin counselled, encouraging the new graduates to adopt an entrepreneurial mindset and go the extra mile in their career pursuits.