The National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) has said that some polytechnics and other tertiary institutions are responsible for the delay in mobilising their graduates for the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).
Many Higher National Diploma (HND) graduates from polytechnics across Nigeria have been waiting for several months, and in some cases years, to be mobilised for the national service scheme. Some of the affected graduates say the delay is caused by administrative problems in their schools and the limited number of slots available for mobilisation.
However, NBTE explained that the main cause of the delay is that some institutions do not follow the correct academic procedures and fail to properly document students’ records.
The Executive Secretary of NBTE, Idris Bugaje, made this known through the board’s NYSC Desk Officer, Dauda Baba-Halal, while speaking on Sunday.
According to Bugaje, there is a long-standing rule that students must complete a one-year Industrial Training (IT) after obtaining their National Diploma (ND) before they can move on to the Higher National Diploma (HND) programme.
He said some institutions ignore this rule and allow students to proceed directly to HND without completing the mandatory one-year training.
“This policy has existed for a long time, but unfortunately some institutions still admit students into HND immediately after ND without allowing them to complete the required one-year Industrial Training,” he said.
Bugaje explained that when students skip this training, it creates problems during verification, which can prevent them from being mobilised for NYSC.
“If a student goes into HND without completing the one-year Industrial Training, the NYSC will not mobilise that student because the academic process is incomplete,” he added.
To address the problem, NBTE said it has strengthened its verification process through the HND Admission Portal, which helps confirm that students follow the correct academic path.
The board also explained that its role is to regulate technical and vocational education in polytechnics and similar institutions across Nigeria. It is responsible for accrediting and approving National Diploma (ND) and Higher National Diploma (HND) programmes.
According to Bugaje, only graduates from programmes accredited by NBTE are eligible for mobilisation into the NYSC scheme.
He also clarified that the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) only handles admissions into ND programmes and is not responsible for NYSC mobilisation.
Finally, he advised institutions experiencing mobilisation issues to officially contact NBTE or NYSC so that the problem can be properly reviewed and resolved.
