In a country where education is often touted as the great equaliser, recent tuition hikes in federal universities have become a wrench in the machinery of social mobility. Historically, public universities in Nigeria were designed to offer affordable higher education to all, irrespective of socio-economic status. However, the steady increase in fees has begun to tilt the balance, reinforcing the very class divisions the education system was meant to dismantle.
Tuition hikes in federal universities are not just numbers on a fee schedule, they are barriers that push a growing number of young Nigerians to the margins. At a time when Nigeria faces deepening poverty levels and rising youth unemployment, access to affordable, quality education should be a national imperative. Yet, what is emerging is an education system that increasingly favours the few who can pay, while leaving behind the many who cannot.
For decades, federal universities served as the lifeline for children from low-income families to access quality tertiary education. These institutions were funded with the intent to democratise knowledge and create equitable pathways to personal and national development. However, the growing pressure on these universities to generate internal revenue, driven by dwindling federal allocations and inflationary pressures, has led to a shift from this founding mission.
In the last few years, students have faced fee increases in hostels, registration, acceptance, and departmental charges. Though authorities often maintain that ‘tuition’ remains free in federal institutions, the cumulative cost of attending university tells a different story. When acceptance fees climb above ₦50,000, and accommodation, departmental dues, lab fees, and other “ancillary charges” push the total cost of admission well beyond ₦150,000 in some cases, it is clear that affordability has been compromised. This financial burden is crushing for families earning less than ₦100,000 monthly, the reality for a significant percentage of Nigerians.
The most immediate consequence of this trend is exclusion. More students are deferring admissions or dropping out because their families cannot afford the rising costs. What used to be an open door for academic advancement is becoming a locked gate. While affluent families can absorb the costs or seek private alternatives, those from working-class and rural backgrounds are left behind, further perpetuating cycles of poverty. It is not just the student who loses, it is the nation that loses skilled workers, innovators, and professionals who could have contributed meaningfully to its development.
More insidiously, these tuition hikes are stratifying the university experience itself. Within the same federal institutions, economic divides are becoming more pronounced. Students from wealthier homes can afford laptops, study materials, transportation, private accommodation, and nutritious meals, while their less privileged counterparts struggle with basic needs, resorting to part-time jobs, skipping meals, or sleeping in lecture halls. The psychological toll of navigating this economic divide daily within the academic environment undermines academic performance and mental well-being.
Furthermore, tuition hikes have a disproportionate impact on female students from poor households. In many Nigerian communities where educating the male child is still prioritised, parents often pull out their daughters when educational expenses rise. This reinforces gender inequality and denies the country the benefits of empowering its female population through education.
The funding gap in Nigeria’s tertiary education system is real, and universities do require better resources to function optimally. But solving this problem by transferring the cost to students only entrenches inequality. What is needed is a strategic, sustainable rethinking of education financing. If the government must raise funds for universities, it should explore models that do not compromise access, such as alumni endowments, public-private partnerships, or a transparent and efficiently managed student loan system with clear repayment structures tied to employment after graduation.
The introduction of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) is a step in the right direction. However, its success depends on equitable access, efficiency, and transparency. Many fear that the loan scheme may become inaccessible to those who need it most or be mired in bureaucracy and corruption. The government must ensure that the fund doesn’t become another failed policy but a true lifeline for poor students struggling to stay in school.
Moreover, there must be a renewed commitment to education as a public good. Budgetary allocations to education, which have remained consistently below UNESCO’s recommended benchmark of 15–20% of total national budgets, must be significantly increased. This increase should be targeted toward infrastructure, staffing, research, and student support systems, so that universities do not rely solely on student fees to stay afloat.
In the long run, addressing the inequality in Nigerian universities requires more than just resisting fee hikes. It requires a deliberate effort to design an education system that supports students from admission to graduation, regardless of their socio-economic background. Scholarships, grants, accommodation subsidies, meal vouchers, and mental health support must become institutionalised in every university. Universities should be places where talent and hard work determine a student’s future not the financial status of their parents.
In essence, the tuition hike crisis is a microcosm of Nigeria’s broader socio-economic disparities. If left unchecked, it threatens to widen the educational gap between the rich and the poor, undermining national cohesion and economic growth. By making federal universities financially inaccessible to the average Nigerian, the system fails in its most fundamental role: to empower every citizen with the tools to build a better future.
The class divide reinforced by rising education costs is not just an academic issue, it is a socio-political emergency. In a country with a rapidly growing youth population, ignoring the call for equitable access to education is both short-sighted and dangerous. Policymakers, university administrators, and civil society must urgently align on a vision of education that is inclusive, equitable, and truly transformative. Anything less is a betrayal of the promise that education holds for Nigeria’s future.
