NBTE Orders Conversion of Academic Staff Without Master’s Degree to Non-Teaching Roles

Kaduna, Nigeria – September 10, 2025

The National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Nigeria’s regulatory authority for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), has issued a landmark directive that is set to reshape the employment structure in Polytechnics and Colleges of Technology across the country.

In a circular signed by the Executive Secretary, Prof. Idris M. Bugaje, NBTE expressed serious concern over the continuous engagement of Bachelor’s degree and Higher National Diploma (HND) holders as academic staff without academic progression. According to the Board, many such lecturers fail to pursue higher qualifications, thereby undermining educational standards in TVET institutions.

The Five-Year Window

To address this, NBTE has approved a moratorium of five years from the date of employment for academic staff to acquire a Master’s degree. After the expiration of this period, any lecturer who fails to obtain the required postgraduate qualification will automatically be converted from teaching staff to non-teaching staff.

In the words of the circular:

“Any Academic staff who fails to acquire a Master’s degree after five (5) years of employment shall be converted from Academic staff to Non-Teaching staff.”

Directive Takes Immediate Effect

The Board emphasized that this directive is to take immediate effect, calling on all Rectors and Provosts of Polytechnics and TVET centres to ensure strict compliance without delay.

Implications for Stakeholders

For Academic Staff: Those with only first degrees or HNDs face mounting pressure to enroll in Master’s programmes within the stipulated timeframe, or risk losing their lecturing status.
For Institutions: Management must set up monitoring mechanisms to enforce the directive. This may also lead to a reduction in academic manpower if large numbers of staff fail to meet the requirement.
For Students and Education Quality: NBTE maintains that the reform will enhance the standard of teaching, research, and innovation, thereby aligning Nigeria’s technical education system with international best practices.

NBTE’s Position

While acknowledging the challenges of the policy, NBTE insists that a Master’s degree is the bare minimum requirement for effective knowledge transfer in today’s competitive academic environment. Prof. Bugaje, in his closing remarks, urged all TVET institutions to adhere strictly to the directive, reaffirming NBTE’s commitment to raising the bar of technical education in Nigeria.

Author: Prince O. D. Agbedeyi PhD
Publisher: Global Egberi Media International

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Tags:

#NBTE #EducationPolicy #Polytechnic #TVET #MasterDegree #NigeriaEducation #ProfIdrisBugaje #GlobalEgberi

Comments

Anonymous said…

It is inappropriate that the Board issued a directive for implementation without first providing a compliance timeframe. Such an approach is not consistent with practices expected in a civilized society.

The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) National should critically consider this matter in order to safeguard the interest of its members. Issuing directives in this manner amounts to putting the cart before the horse.

11 September 2025 at 06:28