The University of Medical Sciences (UNIMED), Ondo State has disclosed that it has not increased its school fees for returning students as has been speculated, stressing that only the fees for fresh students were marginally increased.

According to the vice chancellor of the institution, Prof.

Ebunoluwa Adejuyigbe, the institution has made contact with the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) to ensure that verified indigent students are included in the programme.

Adejuyigbe, while speaking during a media briefing, emphasised that there is no 149 per cent increment, stressing that there are courses whose fees are as low as N150,000.

She said: “There are a lot of incorrect narratives in some sections of the media on tuition at UNIMED.

We find the incorrect depiction of fees for our programmes by some fifth columnists hiding under the media as an attempt to discredit a rapidly growing institution.

“Let me set the records straight that the university did not increase fees across the board as being peddled; we only adjusted the fees of freshers to be able to give them the best in the face of the current economic realities.

“As a transparent institution, our fees are available on the university’s website for all to see. The fees are competitive compared to other institutions. They are highly subsidised by the government of Ondo State.”

The VC, while speaking on the transfer of the Akure complex of the University of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital to the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), maintained that the move would not affect UNIMED.

Adejuyigbe said that, according to the signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), UNIMED students would have unhindered access to all facilities and the lecturers at the facility.

“The ceding of the Akure branch of UNIMED Teaching Hospital to FUTA will not adversely affect UNIMED, Ondo. It is a gesture meant to kick-start the medical science programmes at FUTA while the university prepares its main teaching hospital. I must add that UNIMED, as a rapidly developing medical school, has facilities that can relatively cater for the needs of its students at the teaching hospital in Ondo,” she said.

“Please note that UNIMED believes that collaboration and cooperation are necessary for a 21st-century university to thrive. So, while we maximise the facilities we have in Ondo, we will continue to collaborate with relevant institutions locally and internationally to deliver the best medical and health sciences education,” the VC further said.

The Vice-Chancellor of Chrisland University Professor Oyedunni Arulogun, has urged the Federal Government to extend the opportunity of TETFund grants to private universities in the country to improve research and nation-building.

Speaking ahead of the institution’s 7th convocation ceremony, she disclosed that artificial intelligence cannot replace natural intelligence, stressing the need for students to draw on their natural intelligence to excel.

She stated that since the last convocation, the university has recorded significant achievements in academic expansion, research innovations, and institutional partnerships, stressing that the institution has also strengthened its digital learning infrastructure.

The Professor of Health Promotion and Education explained that, in the line-up of academic, spiritual, and social events, the activities will culminate on October 29, 2025, when degrees will be conferred upon deserving graduates across various programmes of study.

She said, “There are four colleges: the College of Arts, Management and Social Sciences, which has nine accredited programmes. We have Accounting, which is one of our flagship programmes, and one of the reasons why parents want their children to come for Accounting is that when they finish, their children are already chartered accountants. We have Business Administration, Criminology and Security Studies, Economics, English, International Relations and Diplomacy, Mass Communication, Political Science, and Psychology.

“Then we have the College of Law. The College of Law is another flagship programme, and we have the leader of the flagship programmes — that’s Nursing and Nursing has four accredited programmes. We have Medical-Surgical Nursing, Maternal and Child Health, Community Health Nursing, and Mental Health Nursing. The best graduating student this year is from the Department of Criminology and Security Studies. He has a CGPA of 4.95 — Popoola Israel Oladayo, the best graduating student this year.”

She noted that the institution will be graduating 252 students this year; 44 will be graduating with first-class honours, 133 with second-class upper, 63 with second-class lower, and 12 with third-class.

She added, “We have been able to achieve accreditation for our Postgraduate School. That is one of our achievements in the past year, and we are commencing academic programmes in the new session. We already have applicants who have been screened for admission.

“We have professional exams for Medical Laboratory Science students who scored 100% in the council exam. Also, the Faculty of Nursing scored 100% in their exams. One of the reasons why people want their children to come for Nursing in Chrisland University is that by the time they graduate, they already pass the Nursing Council exam. Also, the Department of Physiotherapy, which is graduating Doctor of Physiotherapy students for the first time, also scored 100% in their professional exams.”

“In terms of TETFundTETFund, we know that private universities don’t enjoy TETFund. Our belief is that it should be extended to private universities because there is also a need for research, and a series of research projects are going on in private universities. These different research efforts also contribute to the growth and well-being of Nigerian citizens. It would be a fantastic idea if that kind of fellowship is also extended to researchers in private universities.”

On the comment about Mathematics no longer being compulsory for Arts, she said, “The truth of the matter is that every one of us makes use of Mathematics in our everyday lives. I think personally that Mathematics is key; some levels of reasoning require Mathematics. The only challenge I have with that policy is the tendency of the students not to take it seriously anymore. I think the policy should remain so that they don’t lose the value embedded in the subject Mathematics.”

“In Chrisland University, the flagship courses are Nursing, Law, and Accounting, and we can boldly say that in the nearest future, if anyone thinks of sending their children to the university to study any of these courses, they would think of Chrisland first.”

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has released the results of 85 underage candidates (less than 16 by September, 2025) who successfully completed the comprehensive screening process established by the board for exceptional admission.

This was contained in a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja on Monday by the spokesperson of JAMB, Dr.

Fabian Benjamin.

Benjamin said that after meticulous evaluation, 85 candidates who were adjudged to be qualified had been duly notified to proceed to their respective institutions to complete the admission process and print their individual JAMB admission letters.

He said the policy of exceptional admission was consistent with global best practices, where such cases were treated as rare exceptions rather than the norm.

“It is to be noted that in the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), of the 2,031,133 applicants, a total of 41,027 candidates sought consideration under this special category of which 599 score the 80 per cent threshold in the UTME.

“These 599 were subjected to further scrutiny of school certificate and PUTME screening, which led to the emergence of 182 candidates (178+4).

“After due verification, interviews, and screening, 85 candidates were found to have met the criteria and have consequently been cleared for admission.

“Any of the 182 finalist-candidates with valid reason missed the final interview is advised to submit a formal request through the JAMB Support Ticketing System under the newly created category titled – 2025 Underage Complaint.”

Benjamin said that such complaints would be reviewed individually, and decisions would be made strictly on their own merit.

According to him, this window is for only the 182 finalists who might for one reason or the other missed the final interview.

In addition, he said that candidates who score 320 and above in UTME but failed to upload O-Level results and were subsequently disqualified from proceeding were now given a chance to upload no later than Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025 and notify the Board of such through the ticketing.

He reiterated the Board’s commitment to ensuring that the admission process remained credible, transparent, and inclusive, while also maintaining the integrity of academic standards across all tiers of tertiary education in Nigeria.