Ohio Omiunu, lecturer at the Leicester School of Law, De Montfort University, the United Kingdom, says the institution can raise the capacity of Nigerian entrepreneurs and key leaders in various sectors of the economy.
DMU is the most improved university in the United Kingdom, climbing 32 places in The Times and Sunday Times 2015 league tables. The institution was in the top 25 UK universities for graduate employability (according to DLHE 2013/14 report) and is ranked in the top 50 for student satisfaction by major newspapers.
According to Omiunu, the institution can support key economic leaders and stakeholders in Africa’s biggest economy, where up to 90 percent of businesses are in the SMEs category. The law lecturer says the institution has a lot of roles to play for the oil-dependent economy, which is now exploring ways of diversifying away from crude.
“We just introduced a programme dealing with practical issues of the world,” says the law lecturer, in a press briefing in Ikeja, Lagos.
“The programme has courses relevant to the world and developing nations, focusing on specific challenges,” he says.
According to him, DMU was originally a polytechnic, focusing basically on the practical side of learning, but only transformed into a university in 1992.
He says this is a testament that the institution can provide the most relevant knowledge in an ever-changing world.
He says students and entrepreneurs, who wish to be relevant, should look to DMU, which is now among the best in the UK and Leicester City.
“We have an arrangement with the Federal University of Technology Akure, to help develop architecture in terms of practice, not just theory. We are here to provide practical and functional education. We also have partnership with Yabatech to develop vocational and technical education in the country,” he explains.
He says DMU offers a number of courses relevant to Nigeria, adding that Master’s Degree applicants from Nigeria have £3000 automatic discount once they are admitted.
He further says certain categories of applicants can earn money while studying, stressing that DMU has people with PhD involved in cutting-edge research. He says the institution also has cost-effective online programmes for busy executives or those not willing to come to the UK immediately.
‘In addition we have people that practise as consultants to law firms in the school of law, who are actively involved in teaching. This creates a balance between teaching and practice,” he states, stressing that he is in Nigeria to sensitise people about the value created by DMU, while urging higher institutions to explore ways they can work together with the first-class school.
“We have a number of exchange programmes with Nigerian institutions in the works. We already have arrangements with the University of Ibadan and the University of Lagos. We are speaking with private universities to be able to roll out more exchange programmes,” he adds.
ODINAKA ANUDU
