Nigeria’s Study Centres Need Urgent Oversight
By Mohammed Mohammed Sabi
Academic study centres have done something truly remarkable across Nigeria: they have brought higher education directly to the doorsteps of everyday people. By taking learning into rural communities, these satellite campuses have helped thousands earn Degrees, Diplomas, NCEs and health‑related certificates such as CHEW and JCHEW. They have also provided real financial relief. Students in villages no longer spend small fortunes on long‑distance travel or expensive city accommodation. Meanwhile, host communities enjoy an economic boost as new students settle in and spend locally.
Yet beneath these clear advantages, a serious problem is quietly growing. While these centres generate steady income for their parent institutions, many have been left to run on autopilot, without proper supervision or accountability.
People within the system see these flaws every day. Some look the other way. Others feel powerless to speak up. And a few intentionally remain silent because they benefit from the lack of oversight.
Much of the problem stems from weak administrative leadership. Because main campuses are far away, they rely on local coordinators or provosts to manage day‑to‑day operations. Unfortunately, many of these appointed heads lack basic administrative skills. You might find someone with excellent medical training running a health technology study centre despite having no experience in school management.
Without close supervision, these local heads often operate like sole rulers. In many centres, a single coordinator acts as director, exam officer, bursar and administrative secretary all at once. This is not a sign of dedication; it is often a deliberate attempt to keep financial matters and internal dealings hidden from other staff. As a result, administrative tasks pile up, records become disorganised and the quality of education suffers under a workload no single person can manage.
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This concentration of power directly affects classroom learning. When centre heads are given free rein over hiring, many avoid recruiting enough teachers just to keep operational costs low and save money. Students are left facing severe teacher shortages. It is now common to see one lecturer handling four or five different courses in a single term—even when qualified teachers live nearby. Expecting one person to teach that many subjects without leaving half the syllabus untouched is simply impossible.
Worst of all is the widespread financial exploitation of students. Operating far from the eyes of main‑campus auditors, some centre managers routinely charge illegal, undocumented fees. They create mandatory “special programmes” that serve no real purpose other than squeezing extra money out of students. Many students now complain that studying locally has become just as expensive—if not more so—than attending a university in the city. This greed destroys the original goal of making education affordable for low‑income families.
We cannot stand by and watch such a noble idea collapse under poor management and hidden fees. Bringing education to the grassroots should uplift communities, not exploit them or offer substandard learning.
Parent institutions must step up and take back control of their study centres immediately. Management boards, Senates and governing councils should form dedicated oversight committees to carry out regular, unannounced visits. They must establish direct online payment platforms so students never have to hand over unapproved cash locally. They must ensure qualified teachers are hired and administrative leaders are held strictly accountable.
Nigeria’s study centres were created to expand access to education, not to become breeding grounds for mismanagement and exploitation. It is time for parent institutions to clean up these centres and restore the quality, dignity and fairness that grassroots students truly deserve.
Mohammed Mohammed Sabi is a PRNigeria Fellow.
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