194 make first class as UNIZIK graduates 16,842

By Vincent Ujumadu AWKA — Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Awka, Anambra State, will graduate 16,842 students at its 20th and 21st combined convocation ceremonies scheduled for November 15 to 20, 2026, with 194 of the graduands earning First Class honours. The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Ugochukwu Bond Anyaehie, disclosed this during a pre-convocation press briefing in Awka, where he also highlighted the institution’s academic, administrative, technological and infrastructural achievements.

Anyaehie said the graduands comprised 14,803 first-degree recipients and 2,039 postgraduate students from the 2025 and 2026 academic sessions. A breakdown of the results showed that 4,230 students obtained Second Class Upper Division, while 7,992 graduated with Second Class Lower Division. Another 1,936 students obtained Third Class honours, while 65 graduated with Pass degrees.

A further 486 earned unclassified medical and professional degrees. At the postgraduate level, 603 candidates obtained Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees, 29 earned Master of Philosophy/PhD degrees, 1,113 obtained Master’s degrees, while 294 graduated with Postgraduate Diplomas (PGDs). The Vice-Chancellor described the forthcoming convocation as an opportunity to celebrate the university’s growth and showcase achievements recorded under his administration’s vision of making a greater UNIZIK possible.

He said the university had been ranked joint fourth among Nigerian universities in the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings. He also disclosed that UNIZIK’s debate team won the 13th All Nigerian Universities Debate Championship (ANUDC), marking the first time the institution had clinched the title. Anyaehie recalled that the university’s athletes also won silver and bronze medals at the 12th Federation of African University Sports (FASU) Games held in Cairo, Egypt.

On digital infrastructure, he said the university had been selected for the Federal Government’s $617.7 million Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises (iDICE) programme, supported by the Bank of Industry, Agence Française de Développement and the African Development Bank/Islamic Development Bank. He said the institution had expanded its internet bandwidth to 2Gbps through the Agence Française de Développement-Nigeria Research and Education Network (AFD-NgREN), adding that equipment supplied by Galaxy Backbone had been installed to activate an additional 300Mbps.

The Vice-Chancellor further disclosed that his administration had established a TETFund ICT Experience Centre at Hall 2 of the university’s Digital Library to support training and research in artificial intelligence, robotics, cybersecurity and software engineering. He said the university had also upgraded its computer laboratories with 200 all-in-one desktop computers, 20 high-performance laptops, interactive smart screens, servers, enterprise network switches and video conferencing equipment.

On administrative reforms, Anyaehie said the institution had introduced an online graduate clearance system to eliminate delays associated with physical clearance procedures and accelerate the issuance of statements of results. He added that the university had digitised its historical registries, academic results and transcript archives to make students’ academic records easier to retrieve.

According to him, the administration had also revamped the Vice-Chancellor’s student portal to provide direct and real-time communication between students and the university management. On medical education, Anyaehie said the university had secured full re-accreditation from the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN), leading to an increase in its annual admission quota for Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) students from 100 to 300.

He added that the university was upgrading its Medical Centre to operate as a 24-hour emergency facility and provide residency programmes. Other interventions, he said, included expanding closed-circuit television (CCTV) coverage and perimeter lighting to strengthen campus security, rehabilitating hostel water systems and restrooms, and providing weekly diesel allocations for hostel generators.

The Vice-Chancellor urged the graduating students to uphold the values of discipline, self-reliance and excellence as they prepared to face challenges beyond the university. He said their academic achievements reflected the institution’s commitment to producing graduates worthy in character and learning. UNIZIK became a federal university in 1992. It was named after Nigeria’s first President, Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe, and evolved from the former Anambra State University of Technology (ASUTECH).