Unbundling Mass Communication Degrees Makes Graduates More Employable – Prof Pate

The National Universities Commission( NUC) has unbundled Mass Communication programmes in Nigerian tertiary institutions, and broken it into seven separate fields of study.

In a press briefing on Thursday, the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission, Abubakar Rasheed, disclosed that Mass Communication has been split into seven new programmes, adding that it would take effect from the 2020 admissions.

The list of the seven new programmes or departments are Journalism and Media Studies, Public Relations, Advertising, Broadcasting, Film and Multi-Media Studies, Development Communication Studies, Information and Media Studies.

The development has been described as ‘good news’ for the media industry.

In an exclusive chat with THE WHISTLER, Umaru Pate, one of those who fashioned the new curriculum and Dean, Postgraduate Studies, Bayero University, Kano, said the new directive is good news for the media industry and the academia because it would produce better media personnel for the nation.
Pate said that the new curriculum would ensure that candidates pick specific area in Mass communication, gets exposed to deeper knowledge and skill in it, thereby becoming exceptional in their chosen field after graduation.

“Mass communication is a very broad field and there are also some specializations and areas; the only thing is that candidates will be deeper trained and will also be exposed to newer trends in specific areas of Mass communications.

“If you care to look at the curriculum, you will see that there are a lot of innovations and we are hopeful that our trainees will actually fit into the industry after graduation and that we are also able to mainstream new trends particularly with the advent of the new media,” he said.

He also said that the new curriculum would “train students in such a way that they will definitely be competitive in the market and also to be able to pursue higher wherever they may find themselves in the world.”

Furthermore, he stressed that splitting the programme would not reduce its efficacy but would make Nigerian students well trained for the market place which is crucial for employability anywhere in the world.

“The aim is to ensure that our candidates are well trained in specific areas. There is nothing to fear, by the time students go through the curriculum, they would understand what we are talking about,” he said.

Teachers, practitioners and other professionals of communication in the country led by Umaru, Idowu Sobowale, Ralph Akinfeleye and Tonnie Iredia, had submitted a new curricula for Communication Studies in Nigerian universities to NUC on Febuary, 2019.