Nigerian students and the “allure” of Foreign (UK) Education: A Curious Reflection

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to highlight the duality in the appeal of UK higher education degrees vis-à-vis the poor perception of African degrees (notably the Nigerian degree). We relied upon an online focus group of African academics and professionals outside the UK, in a bid to provide deeper insights on the problems and reasons why Nigerian students opt to study overseas - notably in the UK. Key questions discussed with our respondents revolved around the allure of foreign (UK) education, the challenges of higher education infrastructure/resources, employability concerns, and the growing security issues in the Nigerian higher education (HE) landscape. Finally we provide policy prescriptions in the light of recent developments in the UK HE sector – notably the “London Metropolitan University (i.e. LondonMet) saga,” - whose licence was recently revoked and immigrant visa powers stripped by the UK Borders Agency. © 2013 Adonis and Abbey Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.