Abstract:

In the globalized knowledge-based economy, retention is recognized as the key element for competitiveness and economic growth. In the University system, retention practices have played a substantial role in nation-building and economic affluence. The early decades of the Nigerian university system were characterised by impressive achievements. Today, Universities in Nigeria are subdued by limited access to resources, inadequacies in facilities for teaching, learning and research; inadequate funding; deficits in teacher quality and quantity (including quality of professors); governance deficits (including stemming the tide of strikes); depressed quality of graduates; inadequacies in access; deficiencies in research and postgraduate training; academic corruption and other social vices. Hence, this study examines the determinant of academic staff retention practices in the Nigerian University system. Articles indexed in Google scholar, NUC, EBSCO, Science direct, Sage, Elsevier and Scopus database were reviewed. The underlying theories adopted for this study were Expectancy theory, Fredrick Herzberg Two-factor theory and Job embeddedness Theory. The study concludes that we need as a nation (Nigeria) to adopt the UNESCO recommendation on spending 25% GDP on Education. This study recommends that increased academic staff retention can be achieved through the implementation of systemic regulatory functions by NUC and professional bodies, promotion of ICT-driven universities, fostering skills development and entrepreneurship, and gender issues.

Keywords:

Retention, Academic, Research, Reward, Practice, Determinant, University, System.