The National Board for Technical Education says the new online top-up programm for Higher National Diploma holders to acquire a Bachelor’s Degree for one year, with foreign accredited universities, is meant for HND holders who want to pursue an academic career. THE PUNCH reports.JAMB Portal
The NBTE Head of Media Unit, Hajiya Fatima Abubakar, offered the clarification in a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja on Tuesday.
”This top-up is an alternative to the Postgraduate Diploma (PGD) offered by Nigerian Universities.
”In a democracy such as ours, HND holders should be allowed to make a choice between PGD and the top-up to BSc,” he said.
He said the clarification came on the heels of misunderstandings about the programm in a section of the media.
According to him, the top-up is not bringing an end to HND programs in Polytechnics but rather provides choice to HND holders wanting to go for an academic career.JAMB Result
”The choice of starting it with foreign universities is to show its universal acceptability perchance the Nigerian universities may eventually buy into it in due course.
”The cost is reasonable, just about 10 per cent of what regular face-to-face students pay.
”NBTE has come up with the programm to enable interested Polytechnic HND holders to be at par with their counterparts with Bachelor’s degree holders.
”And make it easy for them to go for their Master’s and Doctorate degrees for those interested in pursuing their career in academics,” he said.
Bugaje, during the unveiling of the programm earlier this month, said the initiative would ease the suffering of HND holders in the country.
He said the board had to find an alternative route, which was for HND holders to do a one-year top-up, in conjunction with some foreign universities.informationguidenigeria
”Presently there are many PhD holders who academically progressed with HND through the PGD coming back to enroll for BSc (after their PhD) in Nigerian universities, a very retrogressive step indeed.
“The HND qualification in itself represents something unique and this top-up shall be an encouragement for candidates to apply for polytechnic education since there is a pathway for progression into academics.
”This will never dilute the essence of technical education but rather enhance it,” he emphasized.
