Effectiveness and Desirability of Private Higher Education in Nigeria

The influx of the establishment of private higher educational institutions in Nigeria since the inception of the present democratic dispensation in 1999 is unprecedented. Their effectiveness compared to public institutions is the focus of this paper. Content analysis method was used in this study and the focus was on private universities. Most of these private institutions were established purely for business motives as costs are beyond many Nigerians. The shortcomings in respect of dearth of qualified personnel and infrastructural facilities are more pronounced in these institutions. The unusual interferences of proprietors were common in academic affairs and academic freedom is nonexistent. The fear of the public in respect of acceptability and performance of the outputs to the challenges of graduate unemployment is being allayed by the outstanding performances of some of these graduates in open competitive labour markets. The regulatory and supervisory organs for universities should properly monitor these institutions in order not to turn them to either glorified secondary schools or intellectual prison yards. These private institutions should concentrate on courses that can address the challenges of the time as the liberalisation of higher education will go a long way to ameliorate the social welfare of the citizens like what is being witnessed in the telecommunication industry