Funding, Misappropriation, and Mismanagement as Predictors of Tertiary Education Management in Nigeria

This study examined how poor funding and misappropriation impacted tertiary education management in Nigeria. Three research questions and three null hypotheses guided the study, the survey research design was adopted for the study, purposive sampling technique was used to select the tertiary institution and respondents for the study. A total of 109 senior management staff of the University of Calabar formed the population and sample for the study. The instrument for data collection was a 4-point response type scale developed by the researchers and titled “Effect of Poor Funding and Misappropriation Questionnaire (IPFMQ)”. It was validated by experts in the department of Test and Measurement and Educational Management and pre-tested for reliability purposes with a good reliability estimate of .76 using Cronbach's alpha reliability. The results obtained revealed that poor funding, misappropriation and mismanagement of funds have a negative impact on the management of the tertiary institution, but misappropriation of funds have the most significant negative impact on tertiary education management in Nigeria. Based on these findings, a conclusion was drawn and recommendation that adequate funds should be made available for public institutions of tertiary education, while corruption and embezzlement should be reduced to the barest minimum. Premised on the findings of the study, it deduced that, funds sent for the management of high institutions are inadequate, and at the same time, misappropriation of such funds contributed more to poor management of the high institution. It was therefore recommended that competency issues should be taken seriously to ensure the appointment of tertiary institutional leaders and managers with requisite skills for prudent financial management and fund sourcing to complement government effort