Daniel Otera
A major shake-up is coming to Nigeria’s education and youth service system. From October 6, 2025, graduates seeking mobilization into the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) will no longer be cleared until they submit their theses or project reports into the National Education Repository and Databank (NERD).
The new directive, signed off by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and communicated through the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, is part of sweeping reforms to authenticate academic qualifications and curb certificate racketeering. Simply put: no thesis, no NYSC.
NERD is designed as a central digital vault for academic workcapturing theses, dissertations, and project reports from every higher institution, whether local or foreign. Each uploaded item will carry the names of the student, their supervisors, and the sponsoring institution, creating a permanent digital footprint of academic contributions. Officials say the move will not only verify academic claims but also hold supervisors accountable for the quality of work they endorse.
“This policy applies equally to all institutions in Nigeria and abroad,” stressed Dr. Tunji Alausa, the Minister of Education, who first hinted at the reform in March. He confirmed that specialized institutions—including schools of nursing, agricultural colleges, and research centres—must all comply.
But beyond authentication, the government is sweetening the deal with incentives. Under the NERD system, students and their supervisors will earn royalties from their deposited works, creating a monetisation model that rewards genuine scholarship and encourages stronger academic mentoring.
NERD spokesperson Haula Galadima explained the bigger picture: “This initiative is not just about digitising records. It’s about improving quality, presentation, and global competitiveness. Every thesis will now stand as proof of serious academic effort, with names permanently linked to the work.”
For thousands of Nigerian graduates preparing for NYSC, the countdown is on. Compliance with the NERD policy will be the final hurdle before donning the khaki. For the government, the reform is being hailed as a bold strike against academic fraud and a step toward protecting the integrity of the nation’s education system.
As October 6 draws closer, one thing is clear: the road to NYSC now runs through the thesis hall.