The admission process of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, has come under scrutiny following allegations by parents that the institution’s use of catchment-area criteria disadvantages some candidates despite their academic performance.
The university, however, has denied allegations of ethnic discrimination, insisting that its admission decisions are guided by approved regulations, available spaces and programme-specific requirements.
The controversy arose after a parent petitioned the university’s Vice-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council, Akin Okunowo, on October 23, alleging irregularities in the admission process for the 2025/2026 academic session.
The petition, which has gone viral on Facebook, accused the institution of ethnic marginalisation and questioned whether candidates’ ancestral origins were being used to determine their admission prospects.
According to the petitioner, his son, who was born, raised and educated in Lagos, scored 63 per cent in the admission assessment for accounting but was unsuccessful because the cut-off mark for his category was 63.20 per cent.
He alleged that the candidate’s great-grandparents’ origin in Ogun State contributed to the outcome.
The petitioner further claimed that another candidate in Lagos secured admission to study accounting with a score of 55 per cent because the candidate’s great-grandparents were from the state.
“You call this a federal character? We call it a secret ethnic agenda,” he wrote, demanding that the university make its admission criteria public before the conclusion of the admission process.
He argued that withholding such information prevented parents and candidates from understanding the requirements and assessing the fairness of admission decisions.
The allegations prompted other parents to share their experiences, with some questioning whether the application of catchment-area considerations was consistent with the principle of merit.
One of them, Odumosu Wasiu, said his daughter scored 72.4 per cent for nursing but was unsure of gaining admission into the programme.
Wasiu criticised what he described as double standards in the use of catchment areas, arguing that the policy could disadvantage candidates with higher scores.
He also questioned whether federal universities in northern Nigeria applied similar admission requirements to those in the South.
Expressing concern about the implications for the country’s healthcare sector, he argued that the admission process should not make it more difficult for qualified candidates to study nursing and other critical medical disciplines.
Another parent, Adewoyin Francis, called for an investigation, alleging that his daughter, an indigene of Ile-Ife, scored 72 per cent but failed to secure admission to study nursing.
He described the process as unfair and urged the Federal Ministry of Education to examine the petition.
University rejects allegations
Responding to the controversy on Monday, OAU spokesperson Abiodun Olarewaju dismissed claims that the institution was pursuing an ethnic agenda or deliberately denying admission to qualified applicants.
He said the university operated within the framework of national policies, regulatory requirements and admission guidelines established by the Federal Government and relevant statutory authorities.
“The University unequivocally rejects any suggestion that its admission process is driven by ethnic hostility, a secret agenda against Yoruba students or a deliberate attempt to compromise academic standards,” Olarewaju said.
He maintained that the institution had no interest in discriminating against applicants based on their ethnic backgrounds.
“OAU has nothing to gain from denying admission to qualified candidates arbitrarily; it also does not have any institutional interest in discriminating against Nigerians on ethnic grounds,” he added.
The spokesperson described OAU as a national institution whose reputation was built on academic excellence and intellectual rigour, stressing that it welcomed qualified candidates from all parts of Nigeria.
Olarewaju explained that admission into competitive programmes was determined by multiple factors, including applicants’ performance, the number of available places, programme-specific requirements and other applicable criteria.
He warned that comparing the admission outcomes of individual candidates without considering the full details of their applications could lead to misleading conclusions.
According to him, a proper assessment of the allegations would require an understanding of the approved admission categories, available spaces and the rules applicable to the candidates concerned.
The university advised parents and applicants who believed that admission decisions were inconsistent with approved guidelines to lodge formal complaints through its established channels.
Olarewaju assured them that complaints submitted through the appropriate procedures would be examined in accordance with university regulations.
The dispute has brought renewed attention to the role of catchment areas and other considerations in admission decisions at federal universities, particularly for courses with limited places and high demand.
While the parents are demanding greater transparency and a review of the alleged disparities, the university insists that its admission process is governed by established rules rather than ethnic considerations.
The allegations have not, however, been independently verified, and the university’s response did not specifically establish whether the individual cases cited by the parents were assessed under identical admission categories and requirements.
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