Skip to main content

THE SAD STORY BY A NIGERIAN ACADEMIC: THE JOB, THE PASSION, THE DISAPPOINTMENT


I travelled home in 2012 after my PhD and one of my older cousins asked when I would become a Professor. 

I laughed and told him it would still take some years and I jokingly told him I was not keen on becoming a Professor. 

He became angry at my response and said I should get the Professor for them even if I don't want it. 

After I left him I began to wonder what is in that rank that some people want at all cost.

I can still remember the huge congratulatory messages I received after my friend and colleague shared on Facebook the news of my promotion to that rank. 

Sometimes I reflect on those messages and imagine how rich I would have been if those congratulatory messages could be transformed into cash. Here we are struggling and some of us can't even drive our cars any longer. 


The Nigerian Professor.

Becoming a Professor, the peak in academia is something most academics look forward to. 

The title still comes with some prestige and perceived false benefits attached to it by outsiders. 

I once read a post on Facebook that said professors are stingy. 

Poor professors, and the public want them to spend the money they don't have. 

I went to buy a seat cover for my car a few years ago and the seller said lecturers have money but refused to spend it. 

I asked how much he thinks a professor is earning and he said it can't be less than N700,000. 

I laughed very hard. 

I have written a lot on the remuneration of academics in Nigerian public universities but many still don't believe the figures.

Yeah!  

Too bad to be true as compared with their perception. 

I had a discussion with one of our PG students who is a lecturer in a state polytechnic about salary disparity in the Nigerian public sector yesterday and the salaries of university lecturers came into the discussion. 

I told him the figures and the smile on his face showed that he didn't believe it but couldn't say I was lying. 

So, I logged-in to the university portal and showed him my payslip. 

The gross, the deduction, and the net. We met again today and he said till yesterday, he never believed that a Professor on step 4 was earning less than N600,000.

Again this is the salary of academics in any federal government university in Nigeria.

 

The quoted value is for step 2 the rank:

~The Assistant Lecturer's net salary with all his allowances is N118,279 (105 USD). 

~Lecturer II's net salary with all his allowances is N129,724 (115 USD). 

~Lecturer I net salary with all his allowances is: N160,809 (142 USD)

~Senior Lecturer's net salary with all his allowances is: N222,229 (197 USD)

~Reader (Associate Professor) net salary with all his allowances is: N277,179 (245 USD)

~The professor's net salary with all his allowances is N332,833 (294 USD).

The University workers are perhaps the only federal government workers whose salary is yet to be reviewed since 2009, that is for 14 years despite inflation. 

Those who were already professors in 2009 are still receiving the same salary since then to date. 

Your comfort is key to your output. 

Aside from the academic work, and the research and publication work that forms the bulk of your promotion criteria, you are loaded with administrative responsibilities without responsibility allowance. 

They call it 'community services'.  

You can be denied promotion if you don't have enough of the said "community services". 

If you happen to travel outside the University for a conference and you are lucky to be funded, the travel allowance is as follows: 

~Duty Tour Allowance (DTA) for the professorial cadre is N16,000 per night.

~Duty Tour Allowance (DTA) for Senior Lecturer cadre and below is N12,000 per night.

~The transportation allowance is N20 per km.

If a Professor is to travel 200 km for an assignment that lasts for a day,  he will get a DTA of N32,000 for 2 nights for his hotel accommodation for 2 nights and feeding and N8,000 for transportation. 

That is a total of N40,000.

Despite the fact that FG has approved a new DTA for public service in September 2022, the universities can't afford the new rate a year later. 

I applaud the patience of my colleagues, but the patient dogs are dying of hunger.

Meanwhile, education is said to be key to national development. 

Dear prospective academics, I love academia.  

For me, it is not a job but a way of life. 

However, ask questions before you wish to join academia and become a Professor. 

The job as it is at the moment can't pay your bills for a decent life.


©️Amoka

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

GOVERNMENT COLLEGE IBADAN OLD STUDENT DOCKED OVER ASSAULT ON FEMALE LAWYER

  An Iyaganku Chief Magistrate court has remanded in prison custody, a 59 year old ex-student of Government College Ibadan, Debo Adegbola over a three count charge bothering on indecent touching, sexual assault and breach of public peace. The accused, who is an automobile dealer who pleaded not guilty to the charges had on Saturday, 17th February, 2024, at a burial party in a popular event center along poly Eleyele road in Ibadan, indecently touched the victim in sensitive parts of her body publicly without her consent. Adebowale, was also said to have slapped the victim, who is an Ibadan based female legal practitioner countless number of times in the process of the assault. Still not satisfied, Debo Adegbola was alleged to have picked up a bottle and smashed it on the head of the victim, thereby breaking her skull in the process, causing her grievious injury leaving her in a pool of blood before she was rushed to a private hospital around Bodija area of Ibadan for first aid treat...

ALAO-AKALA'S CHIEF PRESS SCRETARY, A.B OJO IS DEAD

  Barr. Abraham Bolaji Ojo the former Chief Press Secretary to late Otunba Adebayo Alao-Akala between 2003 - 2011 is dead. Popularly called AB, who was born over 60 years ago is from in Ogbomoso and he passed on few minutes ago at the Baptist hospital, Ogbomoso. A respected member of the fourth estate of the realm and retired civil servant from the OYO state ministry of Information, A.B Ojo was called to the Bar few years ago and was actively involved in legal practice before his sudden demise.

VIDEO: EFCC BARRICADES GOVERNOR YAHAYA BELLO'S HOUSE IN ABUJA

  Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), have barricaded the house of the immediate past governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello in Wuse, Abuja. Zynga News reports that the EFCC siege is coming days after the former governor held a meeting with President Bola Tinubu, at the State House. It was reliably gathered that there is currently no movement in and around the house located at Benghazi Street, Wuse Zone 4 in the nation's federal capital.  On Wednesday, a top source shared the photograph showing how operatives of the EFCC barricaded the access road to the Bello's house. The source said: "EFCC barricades Bello' house in Abuja.  No movement in the area as EFCC barricaded the house.  They are yet to gain access." Watch Video: Although there was no immediate information available to the reason while the anti-graft agency stormed the former governor's residence, it may be connected with the 84 Billion naira fraud case against him which t...