By Auwal Ahmed Ibrahim, Goronyo
Idris Bugaje, Executive Secretary (E.S) of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) said the dichotomy between Higher National Diploma (HND) and Bachelor of Science (BSc) degrees will soon become obsolete as skills qualification overtakes academic credentials in the labour market, according to Idris Bugaje, Executive Secretary of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE).
Bugaje, while speaking to the media, said that within the next 10 to 15 years, degrees will lose their relevance, giving way to skills as the primary determinant of employability.
“The degree will soon be obsolete and of no use. In the next 10 to 15 years, degrees will lose their relevance. Skills qualification is what will give you a job,” he said.
He described the persistence of the HND-BSc dichotomy as what he termed a “psychology of underdevelopment” in Nigeria, where paper qualifications are valued over practical skills. “Countries that have developed don’t look at your papers. It’s a psychology of underdevelopment that is haunting us,” he stated.
To address this gap, he said that the NBTE is advocating for the conversion of polytechnic programmes from HND to Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech) honours degrees, which would encompass learning, character, and skills. He argued that this transition would eliminate the unjustified disparity between HND and BSc holders, particularly in public service.
“At the moment, an HND holder in public service cannot go beyond grade level 14, while a degree holder can become a director. This has no practical justification, as HND holders often possess better hands-on skills,” he said in an interview with The Cable.
Bugaje emphasised that industries increasingly favour candidates with practical abilities over academic qualifications. He cited examples of major national projects like the Dangote Refinery and the Abuja-Kaduna railway extension, where skilled foreign workers were hired due to a lack of qualified Nigerian hands.
The NBTE is also pushing for a National Commission for Technical Education to replace the current board, which would give it more authority to develop schemes of service and secure better budgetary allocations. Bugaje explained that the commission would serve the entire technical, industrial, vocational, and entrepreneurship training (TVET) sector rather than focusing solely on polytechnics.
Meanwhile, the Federal Ministry of Education is supporting the shift towards skills training, with initiatives like NELFUND providing stipends for vocational students.
Bugaje expressed optimism about the proposed changes, noting that they would promote the progression of polytechnic graduates and help Nigeria meet its skilled workforce needs.
“By repositioning technical education and addressing the dichotomy, we will enhance the country’s capacity to deliver on key industrial projects without relying on foreign expertise,” he concluded.
A skills rather than just degree
What are you saying, in Nigeria if you are connected to big man, skills or no skills you will work anywhere in any ministry in government or non governmental institutions, we are in county whereby a prof, who study mechanical engineering lack ability and skills to service his car, prof, of mechanical Eng can not change switch, we believe so much in ethnocentrism that is why I disagree with you,
Mechanical engineering has many disciplines. A Prof. of mechanical engineering who measured in Automobile or Automotive Engineering can handle any part of the vehicle. But a Prof. of mechanical engineering that measured in Robotic or machine design or thermodynamics cannot handle your vehicle because that is not his discipline.
Key Areas of Specialization in mechanical engineering are:
Robotics: Designing and building automated systems.
Aerospace Engineering: Focusing on aircraft and spacecraft design and development.
Automotive Engineering: Specializing in the design and development of vehicles.
HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning): Designing and implementing systems for temperature and air quality control.
Biomechanics: Applying mechanical principles to biological systems.
Manufacturing: Optimizing production processes.
Thermodynamics: Studying energy, heat, and work.
Machine Design: Conceptualizing, building, and analyzing mechanical elements and systems.
Materials Science and Engineering: Understanding and utilizing materials for engineering applications.
A few years ago, China converted over 200 universities to polytechnics. They pointed the direction to follow.
Where will you get the skill without being employed.
God will help Nigeria I support HND to upgrade to B.Tech
God bless Nigeria
We will be really happy if this things happen
Really, BUGAJE this is it, and this is the best way to forward and progress in our country Nigeria, as the developed countries did, they doesn’t care about the certificate only, they considered only on the competency based on the training, and also considering the trades Associations who are training the trade to become competent.
Kudos to Prof Bugaje for what he is doing to uplift poly education and to remove the dichotomy between HND and B.Sc/BA degree. Changing HND to B.Tech in polytechnics will only make sense if the students wouldn’t have to spend additional number of years to acquire the B. Tech. I say this because presently, there is no evidence that the B.Tech is superior to HND. To investigate this, try and give holders of the qualifications the same examination… So I ask that the HND be left as it is but always give every candidate the same examination to do.