By Felix Khanoba
The National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) has assured new students that are finding it difficult to complete their admission process not to lose sleep over it as registration can be completed in the next semester.
NOUN stated this while reacting to false reports making rounds in some quarters that the University’s portal has been shut down.
The institution said the false report in some sections of social media linked the purported shut down of the portal to the challenges being faced by some students in completing their admissions process.
A statement made available to The AUTHORITY in Abuja by Mr Ibrahim Sheme, Director of Media and Publicity, NOUN, said the hitch being encountered by affected students in the second leg of the admission’s registration process has nothing to do with any challenge in the portal.
According to the University, while the first process of registration can be done through the internet from any location, a student or candidate for admission is required to visit the study centre of choice to complete the process in the second leg of the exercise.
The statement read in full: “The Management of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) is aware of murmurings this week, especially in the social media, that the University’s portal has been shut down, thereby hampering efforts by students and candidates for admission to conduct their registration.
“The Management hastens to categorically state that the assertion is a mere rumour created by some idle minds.
“The portal of the University remains open.
“However, Management wishes to indicate that the students and candidates seeking admission will definitely encounter a hitch in the second leg of the registration process these days which has nothing to do with the University portal.
“There are two steps in completing registration at NOUN. The first is the one on the University portal and the second is the one at the study centre of one’s choice. Whilst the first can be successfully done from any location, a student or candidate for admission is required to go to his or her chosen study centre to complete the registration.
“Understandably, it has become impossible to finish one’s registration in the second and final leg due to the ongoing lockdown occasioned by the coronavirus pandemic.
“However, students should take note that if one has not been able to complete one’s registration in this semester, he or she can do so in the next semester. This shows that we are flexible, unlike the conventional universities.
“Management calls on all NOUN students to strictly adhere to the stay at home order and other safety protocols in order to curtail the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and survive to continue with their educational pursuits in the near future.”
