The University of Lagos (UNILAG) has taken steps to alleviate the challenges that students and parents/guardians may face as a result of the recent increase in its compulsory fees.
The fee hike, which was announced in July, was scheduled to take effect from September 1.
Under the new fee structure, the sessional mandatory charges for new undergraduate students without lab or studio-based courses are ₦126,325, while those with lab or studio-based courses are required to pay ₦176,325 for one academic session.
Returning students without lab or studio-based courses face charges of ₦100,750, while those with access to labs and studios have charges set at ₦140,250. Medical students at UNILAG are required to pay ₦190,250.
The fee increase had sparked outrage among students, leading to protests. However, the protests were met with police force, including the use of tear gas.
Addressing journalists on Saturday, Folasade Ogunsola, the Vice-Chancellor of UNILAG, emphasized that the fee hike was necessary to maintain the quality of education provided by the institution.
To ease the financial burden on students, the university has introduced several measures.
These measures include allowing students to make installment payments, providing assistance to adopted students, offering a work and study program, and implementing an indigent package for students in need.
Ogunsola explained, “The other thing we did is to introduce installment payment. So they will pay 50% when they come in. They will pay another 20% by exam time, and then 30% when they come in for the second semester. Once you come in, you can apply for accommodation, which will not be stopped.”
Furthermore, Ogunsola assured that with the new measures in place, no returning student would be forced to drop out.
She stated, “No UNILAG student will drop out if they come to us. They will not. None of our students will drop out. If they see the DSA, they will not drop out.”
