Miva Open University, a part of the uLesson Group, has received an Open Distance eLearning License from Nigeria's Federal Executive Council. CEO and Founder, Sim Shagaya, disclosed this on his social media pages today.
Miva Open University launched in 2023, four years after uLesson began its operations, and Shagaya says this has always been in the works.
According to the university's website, it would offer undergraduate courses in Computer Science, Cyber Security, Data Science, Software Engineering, Public Policy and Administration, Economics, Accounting, and Business Management.
Shagaya also disclosed that Miva Open University would soon expand its course offerings to include nursing and law. In doing so, it would be competing with the likes of AltSchool and Nexford University.
In 2022, 1.8 million candidates registered to write the examination administered by the Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board (JAMB). However, if the outcomes of previous years are anything to go by, at least half of them would not gain admission to universities in the country.
Those who get in have to deal with the poor teaching standards and facilities in many universities across the country, and after graduation, often have to deal with a workplace that they are unprepared for.
This gap between academia and the business world has served as inspiration for entrepreneurs to launch ventures that solve this problem. AltSchool, for example, offers a one-year diploma that promises to fast-track graduates into tech jobs. Some of its courses include product marketing, product design, data engineering, and cloud engineering.
Still, there's a long way before these upstarts make up for the numerous candidates who will not make it into conventional universities. By operating largely online, organisations like Miva Open University can take on more students since they do not need a physical space. However, they struggle with acceptance as many Africans are not yet wedded to the idea of an online university.