Regnum Medical University Opens Admission, Gets NUC Nod for Six Health Programmes

Regnum Medical University, Anthony, Lagos, has secured approval from the National Universities Commission (NUC) to commence academic operations and admit students for the 2026/2027 academic session into six health professional programmes, including Medicine and Surgery, Pharmacy and Nursing Science.

The approval clears the way for the newly established university to admit qualified candidates into Medicine and Surgery (MBBS), Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D), Nursing Science (B.N.Sc), Medical Laboratory Science (BMLS), Doctor of Physiotherapy (DPT) and Radiography (B.Rad).

The NUC approval followed a comprehensive resource verification exercise during which a team of professors and specialists assessed the university’s academic programmes, infrastructure, laboratories, library resources and faculty strength.

With the approval, Regnum Medical University joins the growing number of institutions seeking to expand Nigeria’s capacity for training doctors, pharmacists, nurses and other health professionals at a time when the country faces a significant shortage of skilled healthcare manpower.

A statement by the university obtained on Friday says for the 2026/2027 academic session, it will admit students into:
1. Medicine and Surgery – MBBS
2. Doctor of Pharmacy – Pharm.D
3. Nursing Science – B.N.Sc
4. Medical Laboratory Science – BMLS
5. Doctor of Physiotherapy – DPT
6. Radiography – B.Rad

These programmes, it adds, were carefully selected to align with national health priorities and are designed to meet global best practices in medical training. Each course combines intensive classroom instruction with hands-on clinical training to produce graduates who are competent, compassionate, and ready to serve.

Regnum Medical University is located in Anthony, a central and secure part of Lagos. The location at Anthony is about 5-10 mins drive to both the International Airport and the Local Airport and is accessible from Maryland, Palmgrove, Ikeja, Oshodi, and a straight drive from the Lagos Island.

According to the statement, the campus has been structured to support modern education in the health professions.
Facilities include adequate lecture room facilities, state-of-the-art basic science, basic medical science and basic clinical science laboratories, simulation centres, digital library, ICT centres, rehabilitation facilities and air-conditioned hostels.

To drive and implement the various health professions curricula, the university has assembled a team of highly qualified and experienced academic faculty.

This will ensure that students receive instruction from professionals with both academic depth and real-world clinical experience. Leading this team of erudite professionals and serving as pioneer Vice-Chancellor is Professor Akin Osibogun, a Professor of Community Medicine, who has been Chief Medical Director at Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) for eight (8) years, and former President, National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria.

The Vice-Chancellor will be supported by other astute and renowned Professors in the Health Professions.

Speaking on the development, the Vice-Chancellor said, “Our goal is to create an environment where learning meets practice,” a university spokesperson said. “We are committed to training healthcare professionals who can compete anywhere in the world.”

Understanding that medicine is best learned at the bedside, for strong clinical practices, Regnum Medical University has secured agreements with hospitals under the Lagos State Health Service Commission (LSHSC) for clinical training and affiliations.

This affiliation ensures that Regnum Medical University graduates will not only be academically sound but also clinically competent and familiar with Nigeria’s healthcare system.

To support student welfare, the university provides comfortable hostels with air-conditioned rooms. The hostels are designed to create a conducive living and learning environment, with 24-hour power, water supply, internet access, and security. Other amenities include a cafeteria, recreation areas, and transport services to and from clinical training sites.

The establishment of Regnum Medical University comes at a critical time when Nigeria faces a shortage of doctors, pharmacists, nurses, and allied health professionals.

By expanding access to quality medical education, the university aims to bridge this gap and reduce medical tourism.

With this development, applications for admission into the six programmes for the 2026/2027 academic session are now open to qualified candidates from Nigeria and other countries.
Prospective students with the required UTME and O’Level qualifications in the sciences are encouraged to apply early as spaces are limited.

Further information can be obtained directly from the University at its campus :Regnum Medical University, 326-330 Ikorodu Road, Anthony, Lagos OR by visiting the University website at regnummed.edu.ng or follow @RegnumMedicalUniversity on social media.

The university will also hold physical and virtual admission counseling sessions for parents and prospective students in the coming weeks. Details will be announced on the university’s official website and social media pages.

Regnum Medical University, Anthony, Lagos is a private university dedicated to excellence in health sciences education, research, and service. Admissions are ongoing.

“Apply today and begin your journey to becoming a competent and confident health professional.”

2027: Atiku vows to review NELFUND, forgive qualifying student loans

Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has promised to review the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) policy and introduce debt forgiveness for qualifying Nigerian students if elected president in the 2027 general election.

Atiku’s position was disclosed by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, in a statement issued on Tuesday evening while responding to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s comments on the economy and the Federal Government’s student loan scheme.

Shaibu said Atiku’s proposed approach would focus on reducing the underlying cost of education rather than relying mainly on loans to help students cope with rising education expenses.

According to him, Atiku believes Nigerian students should not be forced to graduate from higher institutions and immediately begin their working lives under the weight of substantial education-related debts.

“His approach will reduce the underlying cost of education and, after review, provide forgiveness for qualifying student debts so that young Nigerians can graduate with hope rather than repayment burdens. Education should open doors, not mortgage the future,” Shaibu said.

The proposal comes as NELFUND has become one of the major education policies of the Tinubu administration and a significant issue in the emerging policy debate ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

The current student-loan framework was established under the Student Loans (Access to Higher Education) Act, 2024, which replaced the earlier student-loan law and expanded the mechanism for providing financial assistance to Nigerian students in tertiary institutions and vocational and skills-acquisition programmes.

NELFUND was created to administer the loans and provide financial support to eligible Nigerian students for institutional charges and other approved education-related expenses.

The programme is designed as an interest-free student loan scheme, with repayment obligations beginning after beneficiaries complete their studies and the applicable grace period.

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Under the existing framework, beneficiaries are expected to repay their loans after the specified repayment period. The system also provides mechanisms for recovering outstanding debts from beneficiaries who fail to meet their repayment obligations.

The expansion of NELFUND has made the programme an increasingly important component of the Federal Government’s education policy, with a growing number of students receiving financial assistance for tuition, institutional charges and upkeep.

President Tinubu has repeatedly presented the scheme as one of the major initiatives of his administration aimed at removing financial barriers to higher education and expanding access for students from different economic backgrounds.

However, Atiku’s camp has rejected the argument that the availability of loans necessarily means that education has become more affordable.

Shaibu argued that providing loans should not be presented as evidence of affordability when students and their families are already struggling with higher tuition fees and increased living expenses.

“Celebrating NELFUND as proof that education has become affordable under your government is like setting school fees on fire and then boasting that you lent students a bucket of water. What exactly is the wisdom in presiding over dramatic increases in school fees in some institutions, only to turn around and celebrate loans as the solution?” he queried.

The Atiku camp described the policy approach as “witchcraft economics”, arguing that government should not increase the financial pressure on students and subsequently offer loans as a remedy.

“You make education more expensive, lend students money to survive the increase, and then demand applause for the rescue. That is not affordability. It is witchcraft economics: create the burden with one hand, offer debt with the other, and demand applause for the intervention,” Shaibu said.

According to him, Atiku has reviewed the existing student-loan framework and believes young Nigerians should not be forced to begin their working lives with significant education-related debts.

“The good news for Nigerian students is that Atiku has reviewed the current student-loan policy,” Shaibu said.

He added that Atiku’s proposed approach would reduce the underlying cost of education and, following a review of the existing system, provide forgiveness for qualifying student debts.

The proposal is therefore not being presented as an automatic cancellation of every outstanding NELFUND loan. Rather, Atiku’s camp has specifically referred to qualifying debts, suggesting that eligibility conditions would be established under the proposed policy.

Shaibu maintained that the distinction between a student loan and a scholarship should remain clear, arguing that a loan creates a financial obligation for the beneficiary while a scholarship does not carry the same repayment burden.

He said the success of an education policy should instead be measured by whether ordinary Nigerian families can afford to keep their children in school without being forced into borrowing.

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“A student loan is not a scholarship. It is a liability,” Shaibu said.

He argued that government should not “parade the loan itself as evidence that the system is working” when the rising cost of education has placed additional pressure on students and their families.

According to Shaibu, Atiku’s proposed education policy would seek to ensure that young Nigerians graduate with greater opportunities rather than substantial financial liabilities.

“Education should open doors, not mortgage the future,” he said.

The political disagreement has also expanded into the wider debate over energy costs, fuel prices and the purchasing power of Nigerian workers.

Shaibu accused the Presidency of attempting to create fear among students and workers over Atiku’s proposal to reduce energy costs through an intervention involving Nigerian crude supplied for domestic refining.

He challenged the Federal Government to publish its calculations showing how Atiku’s proposed energy policy would affect NELFUND funding, workers’ salaries and other government programmes.

“If your government has the arithmetic, Bola, publish it. Show Nigerians, line by line, how a transparently budgeted subsidy tied to Nigerian crude and domestic refining suddenly empties NELFUND or workers’ pay packets,” he demanded.

Shaibu said Atiku’s energy proposal would instead seek to ease the cost of living by reducing energy and transportation expenses.

“Reduce the cost of energy so that salaries buy more. Reduce transport costs so that less of a worker’s wage disappears merely getting to work,” he said.

He argued that lower energy costs could help households retain more of their income and reduce some of the financial pressures affecting students and their families.

The Atiku camp further argued that the rising cost of transportation, food, accommodation and other basic needs has made it increasingly difficult for families to finance higher education without borrowing.

Shaibu therefore maintained that government should address the underlying causes of financial hardship rather than simply provide loans to help Nigerians cope with the consequences.

“You cannot make life painfully expensive, push students towards debt to survive the consequences, and then frighten those same students that cheaper fuel will take their loans away,” he declared.

The controversy highlights a broader policy difference between the Tinubu administration’s NELFUND model and Atiku’s proposed approach.

While the Federal Government presents NELFUND as a mechanism for expanding access to higher education by providing financial assistance to students who may otherwise struggle to pay for their studies, Atiku’s camp argues that the government should focus more heavily on reducing the cost of education itself.

Atiku is also proposing a review of the existing loan framework and debt forgiveness for beneficiaries who meet conditions that would be determined under the proposed policy.

The proposal could become a significant issue in the 2027 presidential election campaign, particularly as political parties seek to attract students, young graduates and families facing increasing education and living costs.

However, Atiku’s camp has yet to provide a detailed implementation framework explaining exactly which NELFUND beneficiaries would qualify for debt forgiveness, how much debt would be cancelled, the criteria that would be used to determine eligibility or the estimated cost of the proposed programme.

Those details are likely to come under increased scrutiny as the 2027 election campaign progresses and rival political parties present competing economic and education policies.

For now, Atiku’s position is that Nigeria should move beyond simply giving students loans and instead reduce the underlying cost of education, review the existing NELFUND policy and provide debt forgiveness for qualifying beneficiaries.

The proposal puts student loans, education affordability and debt forgiveness firmly on the political agenda ahead of the 2027 presidential election, with Atiku positioning his proposed policy as an alternative to the current approach of financing higher education through repayable loans.

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2027: Atiku vows to review NELFUND, forgive qualifying student loans