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Varsity collaborates with partners, industries on curriculum review

By Iyabo Lawal
07 June 2018   |   3:32 am
As part of efforts to bridge the skill deficiency gap between graduates and the industry, Technical University (TechU) Ibadan, has begun moves to review its curriculum to meet up with industry standards.

Vice Chancellor, Technical University Ibadan, Professor Ayobami Salami

As part of efforts to bridge the skill deficiency gap between graduates and the industry, Technical University (TechU) Ibadan, has begun moves to review its curriculum to meet up with industry standards.

At a meeting attended by some professional bodies including the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) as well as seasoned academics, the vice chancellor, Prof Ayobami Salami reiterated that the university is committed to addressing the daunting challenges of youth unemployment in the country.

This, he said is not only through conventional education but as elaborated in the strategy for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), through the incorporation of entrepreneurial as well as technical and vocational education training, that is education, training and skills development relating to a wide range of occupational fields, production, services and livelihoods. He explained that the institution would provide the kind of education that helps youth and adults develop technical and vocational skills needed for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship.

The vice chancellor disclosed that the review meeting was premised on “the bold and daring ambition of university to change the narrative about deficiencies in the employability and entrepreneurial skills of the majority of Nigerian graduates”. He said, “The Technical University intends to champion the mainstreaming of TVET into university curricula as a means of skilling graduates to create employment rather than to seek employment upon graduation. The achievement of the goals requires a close collaboration between the academia and labour market stakeholders as well as strong linkages with employment agencies and employers”.

He also pointed out that the parties were selected for their vast experience either as regulatory authorities, professional associations or as employers of labour in which positions they can bridge the gap between ivory tower and the larger society that graduates are prepared to serve.

The VC agreed that the world is no longer in a competition of knowledge but of independent thinking. “The future is not knowledge driven. It is experience driven and that is what we should focus on”, he said.

“Today, you have to think outside the box but in the future, you will need to think without the box. Our current curricula cannot prepare students for the job of the future. We have to change from now the education of the future. It is no longer competition of knowledge but of creativity, learning and independent thinking”.

In his remarks, Thomas Adewale Toye of TAT Engineering posited that with his over five decades of practice, emphasis must be placed on apprenticeship.He also challenged the authorities of the university to look inwards. “Now we are suffering because of electricity. Without it we cannot do anything but this university can have its own electricity. There is a river somewhere close by, they can dam it and generate electricity. In Germany, students did everything they needed and companies were there to support them. What we need to do is to re-orientate our students. He also advised that the university should consider admitting people that have undergone apprenticeship after their school certificate exams.

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