Bauchi College Of Education Gets Approval For Independent Degree Programmes

The Bauchi State Government has approved Aminu Saleh College of Education, Azare, to run independent degree programmes alongside its existing National Certificate in Education (NCE) programmes.

Deputy Governor Auwal Mohammed Jatau disclosed this on Thursday while inaugurating visitation panels for the college and Abubakar Tatari Ali Polytechnic (ATAP), Bauchi.

Representing Governor Bala Mohammed at the ceremony, Jatau said the approval would end the institution’s longstanding reliance on external affiliations for degree programmes.

He, however, warned that the new dual mandate came with greater responsibility to maintain academic standards.

“A dual mandate requires dual responsibility,” the deputy governor said, stressing the need for strict quality assurance.

Jatau said the visitation panel would assess the college’s academic programmes, laboratories, workshops, e-library facilities, administration, finances and relationship with regulatory agencies.

He said the government’s decision to expand access to higher education was driven by its desire to make tertiary education more affordable and accessible to residents.

According to him, the state has maintained highly subsidised tuition for indigenes and restructured its scholarship scheme to support students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

“Higher education must not be a luxury. We want the child of a peasant farmer to dream of becoming a doctor, engineer, or tech entrepreneur,” he said.

The deputy governor said the state had also invested in infrastructure across its tertiary institutions, including lecture theatres, hostels, laboratories and ICT facilities.

He added that the government had resolved accreditation backlogs in collaboration with NBTE, NCCE and NUC.

Jatau urged staff and students of Aminu Saleh College to cooperate with the visitation panel, saying its findings would help strengthen the institution ahead of its expanded academic mandate.

The panel is chaired by Prof. Mohammed Ahmed Abdulaziz, a former Vice-Chancellor of ATBU.