FG Mandates Final Year Project Submission Before NYSC Mobilisation
Graduating students eager to don the khaki uniform for the National Youth Service Corps may need to slow down and double-check their files. A new directive now makes final year projects and theses mandatory for mobilisation into the NYSC scheme.
The move follows President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s approval of a reform that ties the mobilisation process directly to the National Policy for the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank (NERD). By referencing Sections 2(4)(4) and 16(1)(C) of the NYSC Act, the President has ordered that no graduate—whether from Nigerian or foreign institutions—will be mobilised or exempted from NYSC without complying with the NERD requirements.
According to a circular from the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, the directive will take effect from October 6. Under the NERD system, graduates must submit academic works such as theses and project reports, part of a national initiative to safeguard intellectual property and crack down on certificate fraud.
The policy, detailed under Section 6.1.23, frames this requirement as both an independent quality control measure and proof of actual enrolment in academic programmes. Back in March 2025, during the official declaration of NERD’s effectiveness, the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, affirmed that mandatory submissions under Sections 2.3, 4.3(1), and 7.6.11(c) had become binding obligations for students nationwide.
NERD spokesperson Haula Galadima clarified that every student’s uploaded project will include details such as the student’s full name, supervisor, co-supervisor (if applicable), and Head of Department, along with the institution and department involved. This framework ensures transparency, while also holding academic staff accountable for the quality of work they endorse.
The digitisation push isn’t just about storage—it aims to elevate the standards of academic content and supervision across Nigeria’s higher institutions. The logic is simple: once lecturers know their names will be publicly tied to students’ research on a global platform, they are less likely to settle for subpar output. In effect, NERD hopes to raise academic integrity and encourage lecturers to earn their supervisory allowances through diligence and thoroughness.
For students, this means their projects will no longer gather dust in departmental archives. Instead, their work will become part of a national digital resource, doubling as evidence of academic credibility and a guardrail against fraud. The NYSC journey, it seems, now begins with a well-documented project file.
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