Nigeria is a country with about one hundred and forty million inhabitants: a fast growing country with a near-vibrant economy˳ The Country over the years has been bedeviled by corruption˳ The social fabric has been in deplorable condition, leading to unfanciful placements in the world index standards˳
Education is vital in human existence; it is a tool which helps government, private sector and informal units˳ For Nigeria as a country to forge ahead we need qualitative and substantive education˳ Over the years the educational system has been in disorder and the future of our children is in peril˳ The efforts of our founding fathers to make Nigerian Universities and Polytechnics solid seem to have gone down the drain˳
The latest ranking of World Universities, places the first University in Nigeria- University of Ife, a distant six thousand three hundred and thirty four (6,334)˳Succor seems to have been found in foreign education˳ Countries like: U˳S, UK, Australia, Canada, Singapore, Finland, Japan, etc have good educational system˳ Acquiring education outside the country is expensive per se˳ Average tuition fees (Bsc) of some selected countries (excluding living expenses) for undergraduate are: U˳S $8,000, UK 6,000 pounds, Singapore $4,000, Malta $20,000, Malaysia $1,000, Ireland 6,000 euro, Norway-free, Sweden-free, Germany-free, Denmark-free, Finland-free, etc˳ These fees when converted to Naira is: Malaysia N130,000,UK N1,400,000,US N1,040,000,Malta N2,600,000,etc˳
Free education- in all levels, is available in some countries in Europe-Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Germany˳ In Sweden, all levels of education are free˳ The Swedish system includes not only traditional universities but also different kinds of Teacher Training, Health Care Training, Technical Training; etc˳Education funding is the responsibility of: the Central government, regional authorities and private interests˳ All institutions of higher education fall under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education except the University Sciences (Ministry of Agriculture)˳Higher education is divided into undergraduate studies (combined towards a first degree) and postgraduate studies and research˳ Sweden has 39 accredited institutions of Higher education that offer structured degree programmes˳English language is a mode of study at some universities˳ Foreign students are allowed to work and study˳ Sweden has a boisterous economy with a very high per-capita income˳ Nigerian students should take this opportunity to study in Sweden˳
In Finland all institutions of higher education are subject to the authority of the Ministry of Education, Research and Church Affairs˳ Higher Education in Norway is mainly offered at state institutions: Universities, University colleges, state colleges and art Colleges˳ Bachelors degree is completed after 3yrs of study, Master’s degree is completed after 2yrs duration, and PhD is after 3 years duration˳ Education is free at all levels in Finland˳ Foreign students can study in English since some Universities and colleges offer their courses in English Language˳ Students can work and study in Finland˳ There is no specific minimum wage, because there is no legislation on it˳
In Malaysia there are four kinds of institutions offering higher education, namely: local public University, international Universities, Private Universities, and over 500 Public Higher Educational Institutions(PHEIS)˳The Systematic Education Group of Colleges operates eight Private Higher Educational Institutions(PHEIS)˳ Systematic’s prime objective is to provide training to school leavers for their future career in Accounting ,Business, Computing, Marketing, management, Banking, secretarial and Commerce and industry˳ Systematic has produced world-class students in professional courses such as LCCI, ACCA, CIMA, ICSA, CIMA, ABE and CIM˳ A good reason why international students should study in Malaysia is that the holders of student pass or permit are allowed to work while studying to supplement their living˳ Students are allowed to work part-time for a maximum of 20 hours per week˳ Students have options to work in: local companies, multinational companies and embassies˳ Getting jobs in the multinational companies will depend on your prior qualifications and the salary range from $1,500-$2,500 per month˳ Students getting jobs in a local company is easy: the salary is from $800-$1,500˳Accomodation is from $65/month-$150˳The country is so affordable to live in˳ Lots of Nigerians are already in Malaysia studying for different programmes˳
Singapore has an Educational system similar to that of the UK˳ At Tertiary level it has three Universities and 7 other institutions affiliated to both local and foreign Universities, and 4 polytechnics˳ The full-time enrollment of the Universities is about 40,000, of which 20,000 are female˳ Tuition fees of international students are generally 10% more than that for Singapore students˳ Tuition depends on the discipline you offer˳Specialised disciplines like medicine and dentistry costs more than that of science, humanities, and law˳ Medicine goes for between $8,500 and $10,000/session: humanities, law, social science etc go for between $2,500-6000 for bachelor’s degree˳ The tuition fee for the 4-year Polytechnic is between $1,350-2,500˳ Singapore government highly subsidizes its higher education through the tuition grant˳ The tuition fee Loan Scheme helps pay 75%-80% of tuition fees, which makes higher education accessible to almost everyone˳ If after graduation you can’t afford to pay your loan, you will have to work an extra year or two to enable you pay the balance˳ The economy of Singapore is so boisterous˳ It is placed 20th in the table of the richest countries with a per capita income of $24,500/year Living in Singapore is inexpensive compared to income earned; and it seems higher education in Singapore is affordable to all able students˳
Scholarships helps students who want to study abroad actualize it with less financial burden˳ Some examples are: British council fellowship programmes, Commonwealth Scholarship and fellowship plan, Commonwealth science council, UNESCO, Ford Foundation, African Education Trust, The Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial scholarship etc˳ British Chevening Scholarships -is funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (the British Ministry of Foreign Affairs)˳They give out scholarships every year in over 150 countries world-wide˳ This scholarship scheme provides fully funded Master’s Degree programmes to talented graduates and young Nigeria˳Chevening has since inception produced over 800 Nigerian scholars˳ This figure puts the country first in Sub-Saharan Africa˳ British Council Fellowship Programmes- nationals of about 70 countries are eligible for full study at postgraduate level through the British council fellowship scheme, which is administered through its offices overseas˳ The scheme is advertised through the British Council in countries in which it operates˳ Details are available from British Council Offices˳ Ford Foundation-the international Fellowships programme (IFP) provides support for up to three years of formal graduate level study˳ Fellows must be nationals from Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana, Chile, Peru, Russia, and Vietnam˳
Overseas certificates are rated very high in the country˳ Most people when they come back to the country with their certificates always get higher positions˳ A friend of mine who works in a bank went to UK for his MBA˳He spent one year in UK before coming back˳ When he came back his bank promoted him and not up to two weeks after, he got another job (paying twice his salary in his former office)˳
The dream of studying abroad can be achieved through proper planning˳ With free schools in Germany, Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Norway, you can study for your PhD, MSC, MBA, Diploma, BSc, LLB etc without paying for tuition˳ Your first step towards studying abroad is to get adequate information: browse universities sites, countries sites, scholarship sites, and etc˳Get prospectuses of Universities or colleges, go through the courses and curriculum˳ Get many admissions before choosing˳
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