The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Benin, Prof Lilian Salami, on Friday, said that 14,254 students graduated with first degrees, with 178 bagging First Class honours, while one got a distinction.
She stated this at the 48th Convocation and 53rd Founders’ Day ceremonies of the university for the award of first degrees, diplomas and certificates to the 2020/2021 graduands.
Prof Salami said her administration had in the last four years been consistent in its pursuit of academic excellence and maximum growth in all spheres as a way of rewriting the narrative of the university for the better.
“This drive has placed us on a high pedestal in the comity of higher institutions and attracted a lot of respect to the Institution and its graduates. That is why today (Friday), we are proud to turn out men and women adjudged worthy to earn the university’s degrees and diplomas at the first-degree level.
“The University of Benin continues to hold its head high as ‘Unibest’. This is because of our commitment to standards set for us by the founding fathers and standards that we have maintained and elevated,” she added.
In his address of welcome, the Chancellor of the university, Prof James Ortese Iorzua Ayatse, said the institution had continued to make giant strides in providing quality education for the teeming populace and had demonstrated commitment to the provision of modern facilities for the training of first class products who are responsive to the needs of their society.
Meanwhile, a total of 1,568 students would receive various academic degrees at the 15th convocation of Ajayi Crowther University, Oyo, Oyo State.
Speaking at a press conference held on recently as part of the activities heralding the ceremony, the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Timothy Adebayo, said 36 students finished in the First Class category while 30 would receive doctorates.
He said three Nigerians, Taiwo Afolabi, Kate Isa and Sir Gbolahan Folayan would receive the university’s honorary doctoral degrees in recognition of their contributions to humanity.
The VC noted that although the university had achieved giant strides in terms of the quality and quantity of its academic programmes, there was hope that soon, more courses would be accredited by the National Universities Commission for the institution.
“The university has been visited for resource verification in some cases, and accreditation concerning some others, by the professional councils of our academic programmes in the Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences. We have received very positive outcomes from the exercises; and it is our hope that, in no distant time, the university will begin to reap benefits of enlargement of (its) coast from the outcomes”, he added.
