As the world celebrates the Rivers State University, Nkpolu Oroworukwo, Port Harcourt for its emergence as the 6th Best University in Nigeria, Vice Chancellor, Professor Nlerum Sunday Okogbule has said that the goal of his administration is to be reckoned as first choice University in the world.

Prof. Okogbule, who disclosed this in a telephone interview with Kristina Reports over the weekend, stated that this was in terms of academic content delivery, scholarship, optimized facilities, and every other aspect of tertiary education rating. 

“What we want to achieve is that we get to a level that we are regarded as the university of first choice in terms of proficiency, in terms of facilities that we have, in terms of performance of our students and all the other areas of what we are doing and this is not just at the national level we are looking at also becoming nationally and internationally competitive.”

The National Universities Commission (NUC) came out with the 2020 Nigerian Universities Ranking with Rivers State University (RSU), Port Harcourt emerging 6^th position ahead of institutions like Obafemi Awolowo University, University of Ilorin, University of Port Harcourt, and Ahmadu Bello University, amongst others.

Established in 1972 as a College of Science and Technology (CST) and upgraded to a University of Science and Technology (the first in Nigeria) in 1980 by the then Governor Melford Okilo administration, and recently renamed Rivers State University by the incumbent Governor Nyesom Wike administration, the University has remained notable as a harbinger of firsts.

It is the first Technological University in Nigeria, the first State-owned University in the Niger Delta region, rated recently as the best University in ICT deployment, and now the 6th best University in Nigeria.

The erudite Professor of Law, who was expressively elated with the new status of his University, declared that the institution’s new status was “a testament that, as a university, we have been able to attain this height through consistency, hardwork and commitment in the past 11 months I have been in charge as Vice Chancellor”.

“That this kind of achievement has been recorded within this period is a recognition of hardwork and also indicative of the support we are getting from the Governor.”

“That means that cumulatively these things are panning out as indicative of what we are doing as a University and where we are going. Of course, we are not going to relent on our oars.”

The RSU Vice Chancellor reiterated the focus of his administration to sustain the trajectory of deploying astute resource management, contemporary technology and stakeholdership to push through with the goal of assailing the institution’s current attainments.

“We are going to work hard and ensure that the university improves we get to where we are aspiring to be which is the first given all the facilities that we already have and our facilities are almost world class.”

“We have deployed ICT in a number of things in terms of admission records. For now, we have online academic activities of the PG School, we are having external defence online, that is something that is quite novel. At least, people are defending for their Master’s and Ph.D. online.”  

“We are looking forward to a brighter future for the University. We started well and we are working with stakeholders, we have the support of the students. We are working with the four unions on campus. We are all working together to ensure that we are going to greater heights in the university and even the neighbouring communities to ensure that we carry them along in what we are doing.” 

Some stakeholders opine that achieving these credentials in a highly competitive environment as the Nigerian tertiary education spectrum underscores the sterling factors of critical provision of resources by the Visitor to the school and Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, and leadership deployment by the incumbent Vice Chancellor, Prof. Nlerum Okogbule, since he assumed helmsmanship of the institution on March 5, 2020.