Polytechnic Degrees Will Stop HND Discrimination – NBTE executive Secretary

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – Idris Bugaje, the executive secretary of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), has opened up concerning the clamour for polytechnics to award bachelor’s degrees.

According to Bugaje, the move would eliminate the long-standing discrimination against higher national diploma (HND) holders.

It is worth recalling on Tuesday, the bill seeking to award bachelor degrees for Polytechnics passed second reading at the green chambers.

Speaking in an interview with journalists, Bugaje described the perceived superiority of university graduates over their HND counterparts as a “Nigerian mentality” that has reduced the career growth of polytechnic graduates.

He alleged that HND holders in the public service cannot go beyond grade level 14, while university graduates can attain directorship positions irrespective of having similar qualifications.

Bugaje said: “At the moment, an HND holder in public service cannot go beyond grade level 14, whereas a university graduate can rise to become a director. There is no real practical reason for this.

“This will be a degree different from a university degree. In universities, you give degrees based on character and learning. In polytechnics, we shall give degrees based on character, learning, and skills.

“In South Africa, the polytechnic where I did my sabbatical 21 years ago was offering both HND and bachelor of technology degrees concurrently. It is the choice of the candidate.”

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