Engineering programmes in Nigerian universities will now admit students strictly according to approved admission quotas following a joint endorsement by the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), the National Universities Commission (NUC), and the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB). The move is aimed at improving the quality of engineering education by ensuring institutions admit only the number of students their facilities and academic staff can effectively support.
Speaking ahead of the 34th COREN Engineering Assembly in Abuja, COREN President, Professor Sadiq Abubakar, described the approval as a major milestone for engineering education in Nigeria. He explained that universities will no longer be allowed to exceed the admission capacity determined by the availability of laboratories, workshops, equipment, classrooms and qualified lecturers.
According to him, the new policy places engineering education on the same footing as medicine, law and pharmacy, where admissions are regulated to maintain high academic and professional standards. He noted that the engineering profession had advocated for this reform for many years because unrestricted admissions had overstretched facilities and weakened practical training in many institutions.
Abubakar said the quota system is expected to produce graduates with stronger practical skills and better professional competence, enabling them to compete globally. He added that COREN is also collaborating with the National Board for Technical Education to introduce similar admission controls for engineering programmes in polytechnics.
Beyond admission regulation, COREN announced several initiatives to strengthen engineering practice in Nigeria. These include the reintroduction of mandatory student indexing and oath taking for engineering graduates, as well as a compulsory one year Engineering Residency Programme for university and Higher National Diploma graduates before they proceed for the National Youth Service Corps. The residency programme is designed to provide structured industrial exposure and practical experience before graduates begin their professional careers.
The council also revealed that it has trained and certified 239 engineering infrastructure failure and forensic investigators to examine engineering failures such as building collapses, bridge failures and industrial accidents. Additionally, 839 engineering programme evaluators from academia and industry have been trained to strengthen accreditation and quality assurance across universities and polytechnics.
Professor Abubakar said COREN has intensified nationwide compliance inspections, expanded its regional offices, digitised its registration processes and reactivated its disciplinary tribunal to ensure greater accountability within the profession. He stressed that many engineering failures result from non compliance with professional standards and expressed confidence that the new measures would improve public safety and enhance the credibility of Nigerian engineering qualifications internationally.
The new admission quota policy is expected to improve the quality of engineering graduates, strengthen practical training and align Nigeria’s engineering education with global best practices, while ensuring institutions maintain standards that match their available resources.
SOURCE: PUNCH
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