Strong Industry-Academia Relationship: A Tool to Improve the Quality of Geoscience Education in Nigerian Public Universities

Abstract

Time and again, geoscience graduates are being churned out of Nigerian universities, yet when job vacancies present themselves, employers of labor still find it challenging to recruit Nigerian graduates because they are often found unemployable. The acquisition of industry-based skills is not supported by the Nigerian geoscience education curriculum. Therefore, this paper examines geoscience students' exposure to geoscience facilities, participation in industry-oriented programs for undergraduates and the Strength of the industry-academia relationship. Literature reviews were carried out, after which a survey research design was adopted, which sought to assess students' industry-oriented programs. The sample comprises 150 final-year students from 31 Nigerian public universities offering geoscience courses in Nigeria and ten companies from different geoscience sectors. Data collected through an online questionnaire were qualitatively and systematically analyzed through an inductive approach. Although, the study reveals a weak relationship between the industry and academia, it highlights that a healthy industryacademia relation can improve the quality of geoscience education in Nigerian public universities.