INTAKE CAPACITY ISSUES IN NIGERIAN UNIVERSITIES: THE WAYS FORWARD

Although there has been continuous growing demand for university education in Nigeria from the 70s because of its perceived social and economic benefits, there have been no commensurate provision/plans to absorb the ever teeming and yearly applicants. This paper uses the qualitative research techniques by engaging secondary sources of data to look at the problem of intake capacity in Nigerian universities that has left many qualified candidates without admissions and also seeks alternative ways forward. Specifically, this paper looks at the concepts of Internalization and Deregulation as the ways forward for tackling admission issues in Nigerian University system. The deregulation of education means breaking the monopoly of government on the provision as well as management of education; it implies removal of legal and governmental restrictions on the operations of university education business while Internalization amongst others implies that courses could be offered online through e-learning whereby students from different parts of the world and the country could attend which breaks down the barriers of funding in getting structures.