A transcript of a degree provides detailed information about a degree, including the subjects studied, the exams taken, the grades received, and the institution where the degree was earned.
Many graduates of Benue State University have expressed their frustration with the process of obtaining their transcripts, citing extortion by non-academic staff of the school as a major issue.
SaharaReporters gathered the procedure is so corrupt that if one is not willing to “compromise” or “bless the hands of those in authority”, obtaining transcripts from the school may take an eternity, even after paying the lawful amount charged by the school management – N15,000.
One of the graduates, Solomon, said, “As a graduate of Benue State University, I can attest to the difficulties that come with obtaining one's academic transcript. The process is plagued by the extortion of non-academic staff, which can be incredibly frustrating and disheartening for students.”
Solomon told SaharaReporters that the situation has caused many of his mates to lose good opportunities because of the corruption in his alma mater.
He continued: “It will be practically impossible to get your transcripts from that school without bribing those people in charge. I have helped a lot of my mates to obtain their transcripts and I can tell you for a fact that you must budget around N50,000 to have your way.”
“I even knew a lady that was extorted over 100,000 during the process. It depends on individual cases,” he added.
A transcript of a degree provides detailed information about a degree, including the subjects studied, the exams taken, the grades received, and the institution where the degree was earned.
Solomon went on to explain that the bribe is not demanded by a staff member but rather paid in batches to the majority of non-academic workers as the student's file gets to their tables during the process.
“Imagine submitting the file to an office and the worker is telling you to pay some money. Something like paying for fuel. Some will even demand it directly, giving it different names. They are just extorting the student out of pure wickedness. We are paying them for what they are being paid salaries for,” he added.
‘I’m Yet To Get My Transcript Because I’m Not Ready To Bribe Anyone’
Joy is a graduate of Mass Communication from Benue State University. She said that despite paying all the legal fees to obtain her transcript from the school, she is yet to get it five years after her graduation from the school.
She said, “I could not understand the reason for this delay at first, not until some of my mates who applied after I applied got theirs and I engaged them on what they did differently. It was then they told me that they paid some amounts of money to the workers of the school to hasten the process.”
“But me I am not ready to pay any bribe to anybody and this is why I could not get mine up till now,” she told SaharaReporters.
Another victim of the corrupt system is a man who assisted his brother, a law graduate from the school, in obtaining the transcript in 2019. He described how, despite paying for it, the school did not send his brother's transcript to the US school requesting for it in 2019 to further his legal education.
“I only pay N20,000 to obtain the transcript but to my surprise, the school did not send the transcript to the US university and this was how my brother lost the opportunity,” he said.
Some Lecturers Always Give Exam Scripts To Students To Mark
An increasing number of students at this institution have also expressed their frustration at a common practice among some senior lecturers. These lecturers have been known to distribute examination scripts to students, tasking them with grading and evaluating their fellow classmates.
This approach has caused a great deal of dissatisfaction among students, who feel that it is an unjust and unsuitable way to evaluate their performance.
One of the students told SaharaReporters that the practice is very common among lecturers in the Department of Mass Communication and other art courses. He said, “These lecturers always give their script to students to mark and this is giving the students the chance to apply biases and sentiments to grade others. It is a very bad habit and urging the school management to look into this matter.”
School Management Reacts
When SaharaReporters contacted the Principal Assistant Registrar (Information and Public Relations) of the university, Tse Vanger on the telephone to address the issues, he described the allegations as untrue.
He said the school does not tolerate any form of extortion from students by workers.
He said, “no student is expected to pay more than the normal fees charged by the school management to obtain their transcripts.”
He added that he did not believe that some lecturers give out test scripts to students to mark.
He continued: “There is nowhere in Nigeria that such a habit will be tolerated. And it is against the principles of the university. Lecturers are not allowed to give their scripts to students to mark for them.”