Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, has rejected allegations that ethnic considerations influenced its admission decisions for the 2025/2026 academic session, insisting that the process follows approved national regulations and established admission criteria.
The university’s response followed a petition signed by Akin Okunowo, which circulated widely on social media and accused the institution of ethnic marginalisation, discrimination against Yoruba applicants and a departure from merit-based admissions.
In a statement issued on Monday, the university’s Public Relations Officer, Abiodun Olarewaju, said the institution had no policy or interest in denying qualified candidates admission on ethnic grounds.
He explained that OAU’s admission process operates within the policies and regulatory framework established by the Federal Government and the relevant authorities overseeing university education in Nigeria.
Olarewaju maintained that the institution remained committed to academic excellence and would not support any practice intended to disadvantage applicants because of their ethnic background.
He also explained that the principles guiding university admissions were designed to accommodate academic merit alongside broader national objectives, drawing a comparison with the Federal Character principle, which promotes equitable representation in appointments and recruitment across federal institutions.
According to the university spokesman, OAU remains a national institution that welcomes qualified candidates from all parts of the country, with its reputation built on academic distinction, intellectual rigour and excellence.
Addressing concerns about admission into competitive programmes, Olarewaju said selection decisions were influenced by several considerations, including applicants’ academic performance, the number of available spaces, programme-specific requirements and the applicable admission criteria.
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He cautioned against drawing conclusions about the fairness of the process by comparing individual candidates’ scores without considering the full range of factors governing their admission categories and the official records.
The petition had specifically questioned admission thresholds for Law and Accounting, alleging that some applicants with lower scores secured admission while candidates with higher scores were unsuccessful.
Responding to these claims, the university said it would be inappropriate to judge individual admission decisions using selected figures without access to complete official records and the regulatory requirements applicable to the candidates concerned.
Olarewaju advised applicants and parents who believed that admission decisions had violated approved guidelines to submit formal complaints through the university’s established channels.
He said such complaints should contain details of the affected programme, admission session, candidate’s qualifications, relevant admission category and the specific grounds for challenging the decision.
The university assured that properly submitted complaints would be examined in line with its established procedures and the regulations governing admissions.
OAU’s response comes amid public debate over fairness, transparency and the application of admission criteria in Nigeria’s competitive university admission system. The institution maintained that allegations of ethnic bias should be subjected to verification through its official review procedures rather than conclusions drawn from incomplete admission data.
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