Campus News

UNIVERSITY OF ILORIN, NIGERIA

P. M.B. 1515, ILORIN, NIGERIA.

Website:www.unilorin.edu.ng E-mail:pgschool@unilorin.edu.ng

Phone: +234-803-361-6086, +234-806-551-3950

POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSIONS INTO POSTGRADUATE

PROGRAMMES IN THE 2025/2026 ACADEMIC SESSION (GENERAL ADVERT)

Applications are invited from suitably qualified candidates for admission into various Postgraduate degree programmes at the University of Ilorin.

IMPORTANT NOTICE:

(I)        Only courses available for the session are advertised, and as such, candidates are advised to select courses available in this advertisement.

(ii)        Candidates are advised to PRINT out the advertisement and STUDY thoroughly before COMMENCING the application procedure.

(iii)       Applicants are to note that the University will not be liable or responsible for any mistake made arising from a wrong application

(iv)       The Postgraduate academic session for Postgraduate programmes is 12 calendar months, commencing on 2nd October and ending on 30th September of the following year. The 12 calendar months start to count automatically from the date of first registration. 

(v)        Applicants are to note that programmes automatically lapse at the expiration of the prescribed maximum duration for each programme.  A candidate may, however, apply for an extension of not more than 12 months, in the first instance, subject to a maximum of two such extensions.

POSTGRADUATE PROGRAMMES OFFERED

1.         Ph.D. Degree Programmes

            These are available to holders of M.A.; M.Ed.; M.Eng.; M.Sc.; LL.M; and M.P.H degrees, with a minimum score of 60% or a minimum of 4 points on a 5 points Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) scale in their Master degree programmes.  A Ph.D. degree programme runs for a minimum period of 36 calendar months and a maximum period of 60 calendar months for full-time candidates OR a minimum period of 48 calendar months and a maximum period of 72 calendar months for part-time candidates. Relevant Courses will be taken for the Ph.D. studies where prescribed, and a Thesis is required at the end of the Ph.D. programme.

2.         M.Phil./Ph.D. Degree Programmes

            Candidates who scored between 55.00 and 59.99 percent or 3.50 – 3.99 CGPA score on a 5-point scale can apply for admission into the Master of Philosophy (M.Phil./Ph.D.) degree programme. The M.Phil./Ph.D. degree programme is available only to full-time candidates. It runs for a minimum period of 12 calendar months and a maximum period of 24 calendar months, and a Dissertation is produced after the research work. Candidates in this category are eligible for conversion to Ph.D. programme, following a progress assessment report to be made by a Panel of Examiners at the end of the first session of registration. To be eligible for conversion to the Ph.D. program, candidates are expected to score not less than 60% (aggregate) at the end of the first session.

3.         M.Phil. Degree Programmes

            Candidates who scored between 50.00 and 54.99 percent or 3.00 – 3.49 CGPA score on a 5-point scale, can apply for admission into the Master of Philosophy (M.Phil.) degree programme. The M.Phil. degree programme is available only to full-time candidates. It runs for a minimum period of 18 calendar months and a maximum period of 24 calendar months on a full-time basis, and a Dissertation is produced after the research work.

4.         Master Degree Programmes

            M.A.; M.Ed.; M.Eng.; M.Sc.; LL.M and M.P.H. degrees run for a minimum period of 18 calendar months and a maximum period of 24 calendar months for full-time candidates OR a minimum period of 36 calendar months and a maximum period of 48 calendar months for part-time candidates. All Master degree programmes are by course work. This is in addition to a research report at the end of which a Dissertation is produced.

        5.     Postgraduate Diploma Degree Programmes

      Postgraduate Diploma degrees are available to candidates with Third Class (honours) degrees.

ELIGIBILITY FOR ACADEMIC PROGRAMMES

General Requirements:

i.          All entry certificate requirements shall be available at the point of purchasing the application form. The National Youth Service Corp Discharge Certificate OR Exemption Certificate should be dated and presented on or before September 30th, 2025.

ii.         Applicants are expected to submit their application forms online, together with scanned copies of their credentials.

iii.        After the submission of the application forms online, as stated in (ii) above, all supporting documents in (i) above and the hard copy of the application form should be forwarded to the Secretary, Postgraduate School, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria between Monday, 2ndJune 2025 and Friday, 6thJune 2025, while the submission of Transcripts of Academic Records should be addressed and forwarded to the Head of Department where the admission is being sought. The Postgraduate School will not be held liable for any misdirected transcript. 

iv.        All applicants must have 5 O/L Credit passes in the relevant subjects, which must include English Language and Mathematics. In line with Senate directives, applicants who had their O/L results before the year 2015 may have a pass in English or Mathematics depending on the programme applied for.

v.         Applicants for the Master degree programmes who are graduates of the University of Ilorin and other recognized universities must have a minimum of Second Class Honours Degree (Lower Division) and must be applying for programmes in which they had their first degrees. However, applicants with Second Class Honours Degree (Lower Division) and those with higher classes of degrees seeking admissions into programmes outside those in which they had their first degrees may be admitted, provided they satisfy the University of Ilorin Senate’s requirements in a qualifying examination to be conducted. The least class of first Degree for all academic programme applicants is Second Class Honours Degree (Lower Division).The Bachelor degrees should be obtained from the University of Ilorin or any other university recognised by the Senate of the University of Ilorin. ALL applicants shall apply early for their official Bachelor degree transcript to be sent to the Head of Department where the admission is being sought, before the expiration of the stated deadline in B (iii) above. Again, the Postgraduate School will not be held liable or responsible for any misdirected transcript.

vi.        Applicants for the Ph.D. degree programme shall have obtained a relevant Master degree of the University of Ilorin or from other recognized Universities, with an average weighted score of at least 60% or a 4.0 points CGPA on a 5-point scale. Short-listed applicants would be required to satisfy the Postgraduate School in the qualifying interviews and assessments by the relevant Department. Applicants are, therefore, expected to interact with the department to which they have applied to ascertain the interview date for the Ph.D. degree programme. Regardless of the institution where the Master degree was obtained, all candidates must apply early for the official copy of their academic transcripts to be sent to the Head of Department where the admission is being sought for the purpose of this admission and before the expiration of the stated deadline. Applicants must note that the Postgraduate School will not be responsible for any misdirected transcript.

vii.       All Higher Degree applicants that attended foreign Universities, where English language is not the medium of instruction, should submit to the Head of Department where the admission is being sought, evidence of their English Language proficiency, e.g. TOEFL or IELTS scores obtained within the validity period of such certifications.

viii.      Applicants for the Postgraduate Diploma and Master Degree Programmes will be subjected to a qualifying examination, irrespective of the class of degree obtained. However, applicants from the University of Ilorin with a First Class or a Second Class, Upper Division (Honours), provided such applicant is not applying to a department that is different from the one in which he/she graduated from at the undergraduate level, will be exempted from the qualifying examination.

ix.        International applicants (who are domiciled outside Nigeria and non-Nigerians applying from outside the country) shall be exempted from the qualifying examination irrespective of the class of degree. All applicants are requested to submit a proposal of not more than 5 pages, giving details of their intended areas of research interests. This should be sent electronically to pgschool@unilorin.edu.ng no later than Friday, 3rdMay 2024.

x.         Applicants applying for any of the full-time programmes of the University are expected to present a letter of release from their employers at the point of registration.   

            APPLICATION FEES

The non-refundable application fee for all programmes is N25, 000.00 (Twenty-five Thousand Naira) only for applicants within Nigeria OR $200.00 only for international applicants.

PLEASE NOTE:

While this advertisement serves as the invitation for the Qualifying Examination, which will be held on Saturday, 21st June 2025, all applicants are strongly advised to provide their functional GSM number and e-mail addresses for further information and necessary communication. The University shall not be held responsible for any disappointment occasioned by wrong information on the part of applicants. You are hereby required to be checking your e-mails and phones frequently.

            METHOD OF APPLICATION

Application forms are to be completed online and will close on Friday, 23rd May 2025. Note that the latest date for receipt of supporting documents is Friday, 6th June 2025.  Successful applicants will be notified through their University of Ilorin application portal.

*Interested applicants are advised to check the University website: www.unilorin.edu.ng for details on available programmes.

M.A. Alfanla

Registrar