APPLICABILITY OF FINNISH UNIVERSITY EDUCATION IN NIGERIA
IKEBUDE STEPHEN CHIDIEBERE.
Thesis, Spring 2017
University of Eastern Finland
Joensuu Campus
International Master’s Degree Programme in Border Crossings,
Master of Social Sciences (MSocSc in Social & Public Policy)
ABSTRACT
Ikebude Stephen Chidiebere.
Applicability of Finnish University Education in Nigeria
Language: English. Joensuu, Spring 2017. 83 pages. Appendix: 1
University of Eastern Finland, Joensuu Campus. Degree: Border Crossings:
Local and Global Societies in Transition. Master of Social Sciences (MSocSc in Social & Public Policy).
Nigeria is a developing country with cogent desires and needs for professionals with academic knowledge and educational proficiencies to grow its economy, society and nation through the professional utilization and application of their academic skills and knowledge.
The problem is there are many Nigerian graduates that completed their university degree education abroad (Europe/America & Others) who are professionally unemployed or are in employments that do not recognize or require their academic acquisitions.
This Master’s thesis recognizes the large number of Nigerians who are currently studying in different Finland’s universities but focuses on those that have
completed their university studies from Finland.
In addition, this research involves the opinions of those Nigerians that have completed various university level education from tertiary institutions of higher learning in Finland. The opinionated responses of these Nigerians serve as sources of primary data to know if the Finnish university education acquired by Nigerians is applicable in Nigeria.
The qualitative research methods utilized in this research work include the use of online research questionnaire, sorting, interpreting and representing the
received data in themes for thematic analysis. Electronically, two hundred (200) questionnaires were dispatched to my potential research respondents and fifty percent, a hundred (100) of the targeted research respondents submitted their completed questionnaires
Inferences came from theoretically based discussions that involved the use of scholarly books, academic publications and online materials. These
represented sources of my secondary data.
In conclusion, the results showed that the educational curricula and academic contents of Finnish university education are applicable in Nigeria. In order to attract these Nigerian graduates from Finland, Nigeria needs to improve on the working and living conditions of the country by providing basic infrastructures and enacting policies and regulations to stimulate economic commercialization.
Keywords: Education, Nigeria, Finland, Mobility, Migration, Society, Employment
CONTENTS
CONTENTS ... 4
ABBREVIATIONS ... 5
1 INTRODUCTION ... 1
1.1 Research Background ... 5
1.2 Aim of Research ... 7
2 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ... 9
2.1 Questions and Questionnaire ... 10
2.2 Method of Data Collection ... 13
2.3 Data Analysis ... 15
2.4 Ethical Considerations ... 16
2.5 Research Weaknesses and Limitations ... 18
3 RESEARCH THEORY ... 23
3.1 Finland and Nigeria: crossing borders through educational mobility ... 27
3.2 Finnish Educational System ... 28
3.3 Nigerian Educational System ... 34
4 FINDINGS ... 38
4.1 Finnish University Qualification ... 39
4.2 Finnish Educational Contents and Study Disciplines ... 40
4.3 Applicability in Nigeria ... 41
4.4 Relocation to Nigeria ... 42
4.5 Jobs and Security Concerns ... 43
4.6 Money and Currency Values ... 43
5. DISCUSSION ... 45
5.1 Finnish Education and Societal Advantages ... 48
5.2 European Countries and the Western Culture ... 53
5.3 Nigeria and the Nigerian Factors ... 57
6. CONCLUSION ... 61
REFERENCES ... 69
ABBREVIATIONS
BSc – Bachelor of Science
CIMO – Centre for International Mobility FCT – Federal Capital Territory
FSHS – Finnish Student Health Services OND – Ordinary National Diploma
HND – Higher National Diploma MSc – Master of Science
NBD – National Bureau of Statistics NUC – National Universities Commission PhD – Doctor of Philosophy
UAS – University of Applied Sciences
1 1 INTRODUCTION
This Master’s thesis examines the applicability of the academic knowledge Nigerians acquire from Finnish universities and how the knowledge acquired from these higher institutions of learning can be practically applied in Nigeria to grow the Nigerian society.
Finland is a global educational domain for international students due to the tuition free educational opportunities offered to international students. The academic provisioning of the country is highly renowned and globally recognized. Many Nigerians have completed some forms of university education from Finland and some have become Finnish citizens based on their continuous residence after their education.
Due to the availability of tuition free university education in Finland, some Nigerians are currently in one university program or the other and many others are yet to begin their studies. Although, Finland has introduced tuition fees for non-EU/EEA citizens/students from the 2017 admission/academic year. The effects of the tuition fees introduction on future university applications and admissions are unknown or yet to be ascertained. (StudyInFinland, 2017.)
In this Master’s thesis, it is my plan as a Nigerian and a current student of University of Eastern Finland to study how the educational wealth Nigerian students procure or have procured from Finland are useful to Nigerians in Nigeria.
In addition, to know how best these educational proficiencies can grow the Nigerian society just as education is hailed as one of foundation for the societal growth in Finland. (Haila 2014, 77.)
The unfortunate state of under-development of the Nigerian state needs people with academic expertise, especially Nigerians with the knowledgeable wherewithal, to revamp the dying economy and infrastructures that are available in her country. This is the right way to further the discourse regarding the Nigerian
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society and community. Thereby shaping the learning of the game and its rules and how rewards can be given to those with the best application of the rules (Armila 2016). It is in this pursuit that I use this medium to seek the importance of this Finnish university education to Nigeria.
During my residency in Finland and from my associations with other Nigerians, I realised that most Nigerians that have completed their studies or currently studying in Finland are filled with a desire to utilise the educational acquisitions in Finland or any other part of the Western world. Nevertheless, the reality is that most of them with completed education find it uneasy to get gainful employment in the areas of their educational or academic expertise; they find themselves in employment where they are not using their educational wealth, knowledge and certification.
I feel appalled that a lot of these unemployed skilled Nigerians are currently redundant and their wealth of academic knowledge are kept in a stale state or left to go to waste. By wastage, I mean that the academic knowledge they acquired from studying at universities in Finland are not academically, scientifically or professionally applied or implemented in any way to promote valuable contributions to growth and development of education and science in general.
(Haila 2014, 92.)
I am of utmost concerns that this wealth of educational knowledge that Nigerians procure from Finland deserves to be utilised to grow somewhere else like Nigeria, since there are limited opportunities of applying them in Finland or other Western countries. With a high level of encouragement into the entrepreneurship systems of Finland, it is also not easy to access startup funds and needed information because materials are mostly available in Finnish and Swedish languages only.
(Malik 2016, 56.)
Accordingly, Katri Haila (2014, 80-81) opinionated that the idea of education in Finland is the continuing transfer of knowledge, skills and expertise from one person to another for use that promotes more development, growth and
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prosperity of the Finnish society. She outlined this as the reason for the extensive educational networks and autonomy that is existent in Finland. A trend opposite to that idea of education signifies an anomaly, an educational irregularity that should be discouraged.
Though, there are numerous reasons why immigrants with Finnish educational skills find it difficult to professionally apply their skills in professional employments in Finland. One of the most notable reasons is poor Finnish language fluency. In Finland, Finnish and Swedish languages are the official languages of instruction and communication. Most Nigerians studied in Finnish universities using English language but to work and practice professionally in Finland, it is therefore a plausible advantage to possess the Finnish language skills. (Hakumäki 2014, 5- 7.)
In Finland and other Western countries, a lot of attention is paid to language and linguistic skills in the formal employment market. The ability to write, speak, listen, understand and communicate in a language, especially the country’s official language(s) is considered as a necessitated skill or advantage for professional employment. Language skills are more likely to give one an advantage in conditions where employment is scarce. (Abdulkarim 2013, 36.) This is the dilemma most Nigerian graduates with Finnish university education find themselves in in Finland.
This is the focus of my research work. I think the problems currently faced by Nigerian graduates from Finnish higher institutions of learning can be ameliorated through professional application of their knowledge in Nigeria. The aim of this Master’s thesis is to discover how applicable the Finland-based university education received by Nigerians is when contextualized in Nigeria. Furthermore, I intend to unravel the academic areas of disciplines of the Finnish university education that are useful to the Nigerian society and how Nigerians in Nigeria can benefit from the applications of these academic expertise.
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It is my belief that the kind of scholarly materials and tools that are used to tutor university students in Finland are standardized and the contents and curricula are applicable in any professional environment, but, this belief requires data to back it up. Finnish style of university education has received appraisals and good ratings from professional educational evaluators and academic agencies around the globe. These ratings cannot be biased in their entirety, to some extent, they denote the level of applicability of the Finnish university education in developed countries but its applicability in Nigeria is yet to be ascertained.
Currently, a lot of Nigerians have acquired some levels of university education from Finland and more are still desirous to come to Finland and acquire this highly rated Finnish university education. But, the negative trend is, most of the Nigerians that acquired this Finnish styled university education are not interested in applying the educational expertise they got from Finland in Nigeria. They are mostly interested in using these educational skills in Finland or any other Western-like environment.
These trends of events worry me as a Nigerian, and, as a concerned social science student that is socio-anthropologically inclined in finding out people’s trend or cultural ways of life. Every human trend is linked to an existing or pre- existing event (Carrithers 1992). If the trend for Nigerian graduates from Finland is to seek employment in Finland or to apply their educational skills only in the European countries, then something must have occasioned this trend.
In this research, I hope to find the events or factors that encourage Nigerian graduates in Finland to seek professional employments available in Finland or other Western countries. I also want to compare and contrast the various indicators that discourage Nigerian graduates from Finland from seeking to professionally apply their skills in Nigeria.
Using the data that has been collected through the online surveys, I got firsthand opinions about how these Nigerian graduates feel about the necessity of relocating to Nigeria and how best they think the educational capabilities they
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acquired from Finland can be applied there. More so, this research serves as the methodological path for me to know the different study disciplines of the Finnish university educations that can be applicable to Nigeria and why.
1.1 Research Background
On a yearly basis, the Finnish university school leavers graduate with qualifications ranging from bachelors, masters, licentiate and doctorate degrees.
An academic cycle is synonymous with many other countries- developing or developed. For the sake of this research, my emphasis is on the Finnish university educational system and how it works to serve the educational desires of its students.
The university educational system of Finland is a multicultural one which comprises of people from different parts of the world including Nigerians.
Nigerians are part of the number of people that graduates from the Finnish educational system on a regular basis depending on the schools and study programs. When these graduates leave schools, they are deemed qualified to begin another phase of their lives in forms of employments or further studying.
Many Nigerian graduates with these Finnish university qualifications find it quite difficult to use these qualifications professionally. This apparent difficulty of getting employed in Finland have led to many joining employments that do not require the educational skills and qualifications they have acquired from the Finnish university educational system, leading to the redundancy of the educational wealth of these Nigerian graduates.
I find this trend disturbing. Nigerians are not the only group of foreign graduates in Finland with this problematic trend of inability to apply their educational proficiencies. Many foreigners with Finnish educational expertise find it difficult to apply their Finnish educational wealth in Finland. (Abdurasak 2016, 27.)
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It is no longer news that education is a source of liberation and a resource for societal growth and development. The liberation of an individual or a society begins from the willingness to embrace learning or education. Education can be formal, informal or semi-formal depending on the nature of the learning environments. (Iglis & Aers 2008.)
Nigeria as a developing nation requires these educational qualifications and capabilities of these Nigerian graduates from the Finnish university system to grow itself and become a member of the developed nations. Instead of allowing the wastage of these educational wealth to redundancy, Nigerian graduates from Finland should be motivated towards the development of their home country.
In the buildup to this research, there is no academic literature detailing how applicable the Finnish university education received by Nigerians is in Nigeria. It is therefore imperative for me to concern myself with researching ways of alleviating this trend of knowledge loss and irregular use of scientific wealth that is ravaging the Nigerian graduates with Finnish educational expertise in Finland.
It is my desire to open a scholarly discourse on this trend and find possible solutions that could be of benefits to the Nigerian society.
Most importantly, it will do Finland and Nigeria a lot of good if both countries benefit from the mobility of knowledge, information, expertise and personnel leading to more internationally beneficial ties and educational collaborations between the two countries. It is not in the interests of Finland, Finnish university personnel or those concerned with Finnish educational contents and curricula that Finnish universities’ tutored Nigerians are unable to apply what they have been tutored. In a likewise manner, it does no good to the Nigerian graduates nor Nigeria as a society.
7 1.2 Aim of Research
The practice of disregarding the educational wealth or expertise Nigerian graduates received from the university educational systems of Finland to engage in professional employments that do not utilize their educational knowledge and academic qualifications proves that higher education and educational knowledge are irregularly used. (Jones & Brown, 2007.)
It also show that the internationalization of education is required to progress the meaningful application and utilization of educational knowledge in different locations and cultural environments. With a universal educational model, borders experienced within the educational peripheries can be eliminated by the universality of knowledge acquisition and application. (Jones & Brown, 2007.)
This trend shows the unproductive cycle of learning for the mere sake of going to school, instead of learning to use the educational knowledge to effect meaningful changes in the society, especially on environments where this education has been acquired (Jakku-Sihvonen & Niemi 2006).
It intrigues me that a lot of those that are underusing their university educational expertise are concerned but unable to effect changes in their dilemmas. My research plans covered only Nigerian graduates that are in these affected groups.
The focus on the Nigerian graduates from the university educational system of Finland pinpoints the issues and creates a platform for me to proffer solutions that could ameliorate the problems.
Academically, I am also interested in this topic to help solve a very worrisome trend of irregular education that is affecting Nigerian graduates with Finnish university education. The quest to test the applicability of the educational contents and academic structure of the Finnish university system that Nigerian graduates received or are receiving from the Finnish universities makes this research an applied one.
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Nigeria is one of such societies that require education and educational resources to grow and industrialize its economy. It is a country whose citizens make up a considerable amount of foreigners acquiring university qualifications from the Finnish university systems. Nigeria and its citizens in Nigeria will need every form of professional expertise and academic skills that will promote societal growth and development in their land.
In this research, I try to answer the research question: Is Finnish university education applicable in Nigeria? The following supporting research questions serve as guides to sharpen the directions of my research. Firstly: What factors discourage Nigerian graduates from seeking to apply their educational capabilities in Nigeria? Secondly: What can Nigeria as a society do to encourage the mobility of Finnish university tutored Nigerian graduates into Nigeria?
Lastly, I hope that this research will serve as a theoretical foundation and document to foster a change and encourage more Nigerian graduates with Finnish university expertise to return to Nigeria and contribute professionally to the growth and development of the Nigerian society. I hope it will encourage Nigerians that are currently studying to direct their studies to academic disciplines that are useable and applicable to the Nigerian society.
I aim that this study will serve as a tool of encouragement to many other groups of foreigners who have come to Finland to study but find it difficult to apply their educational skills in Finland. I hope they will see the innuendo behind this work and propel themselves into possibly, returning home to grow their home-countries with the academic proficiencies they have acquired from Finland (Basset &
Maldonado-Maldonado 2009, 13-14). Borders and cultures are crossable and education and its professional uses have the potentials of increasing the rates of crossing cultural borders in different societies (Baldwin, Longhurst, McCracken, Ogborn and Smith, 1999).
9 2 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Practically, this research is an applied one, conceptualized with an interest to know the applicability of the Finnish university education in Nigeria. As detailed in the previous chapter, many Nigerian graduates living in Finland and within the European shores have one form of Finnish university degree certification or the other. The problem is that most of these Nigerians are unemployed or are in employments that do not take their academic expertise and educational qualifications into consideration.
In this Master’s thesis, I seek to know if the contents of the Finnish university education procured by Nigerians are applicable in Nigeria. I also desire to know the different scholarly disciplines of the Finnish university education that are of high applicability and need. Moreover, the aim is to find out how this applicability can help to ameliorate the problems of unemployment suffered by the Nigerian graduates with the Finnish educational proficiency.
Factually, I based my findings, discussions and inferences on the critical analysis and discussions of the data received from my questionnaire respondents. My respondents are solely those Nigerian graduates that have completed at least one university level education from the Finland university educational system. I have collected the opinions of these Nigerian graduates irrespective of their present geographical location
Methodologically, the qualitative method of performing scientific research ordered the various steps to carry out the different processes and parts of this research.
I chose this method because of the requirements to thematize, analyze, discuss and explain the theoretical and practical concepts of determining the applicability of the Finnish university education in Nigeria. The interpretative nature of this kind of research requires a qualitative method of data collection, analysis, representation, discussion and conclusion. (Merriam 2009, 2-4.)
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My aims of utilizing the qualitative research methodology are to constructively present the trend of irregular education as it pertains to Nigerians and to meticulously discuss the negative effects of this trend on Nigerian graduates with Finnish university education (Merriam 2009, 2). My inferential answers to the research questions were based on the findings from the research data, academic journals and literary books. The scholarly books, academic journals and online materials served as theoretical frameworks and secondary sources for making theoretical discussions and conclusions of the research. (Wakefield 2014, 53.)
2.1 Questions and Questionnaire
My plan to utilize the online survey forms to collect data from my questionnaire respondents warranted me to seek for contents that I could wordily express in texts to question my respondents. Initially, I had a set back because I had planned to perform physical interviews with my respondents. The change of plans happened when I realised the impossibility of traveling to conduct interviews.
The focus of my research played an important role in shaping the directions and kinds of words that I utilised to form the research questions. Because, my research focuses on Nigerian graduates with Finnish university qualifications, it was pertinent that I ask from my questionnaire respondents the levels of the qualifications they had acquired, from which Finnish university or university of applied sciences and what year their degree or degrees were completed.
The applicability factor of the research focus also gave me the hint to find out the different study disciplines, courses, contents and practical internships my research respondents might have completed in their processes of completing their Finnish university education. This is a very important guide because it availed me the chance to question about their opinions and views regarding the quality and academic structure of the university education they have received from the Finnish university educational system.
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More theoretically, the interview questions were structured in a semi-formal way to fit the purpose of the research (Merriam 2009, 89). The semi-structured questionnaire was the most appropriate structure of interview questions because the respondents felt relaxed, un-coerced and comfortable to give their responses without feelings of pressure and unnecessary formality. These responses certainly make up the data required for analytical purposes. (Rowley, 2014.)
In the creation of the questionnaire, I focused on the need to put up questions in ways that my respondents will find it easy to respond and give answers to. I put the research questions in simple words and sentences of English language for quick read and comprehension by the questionnaire respondents. The simplicity of the literary words is to quicken the pace at which respondents assimilate the meanings of the questions of the questionnaire and give detailed responses accordingly.
The questions of the online questionnaire were written without suggestive indicators. By this, I mean that my questionnaire respondents didn’t get their mindset shaped in any such way that will suggestively lead them to answer in a way to suit any bias of whatsoever. This is one way of guaranteeing that the responses are not guided or intrusive in any way by the research questions.
(Rowley, 2014.)
Excerpts of the questionnaire include the following:
1. Have you completed an academic degree program from any higher institution, university or university of applied sciences in Finland?
2. What kind of degree qualification(s) were you awarded when you graduated or completed the academic studies from the higher institution in Finland?
3. What is the name of the Finnish higher institution of learning that awarded you the completed university degree qualification(s)?
4. When did you graduate or completed the university study program from the Finnish higher institution? Give day, month and year.
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5. How would you rate the educational contents and academic skills you acquired from the Finnish academic institution of higher learning?
6. How will you rate the applicability of your Finnish acquired higher education in Nigeria?
The questionnaire respondents responded to the questions using options such as High, Low, Average, Below Average, Above Average and Unsure.
In some other questions, the answer options were Yes/No/Undecided or Unsure.
The questions that had personal details contained the choices for the research participants to choose if they are comfortable to answer. Some of such questions include the following:
1. What are your names (optional)?
2. What is (are) your nationality (ies)?
3. Do you still consider furthering your studies in Finland instead of applying your acquired skills professionally in Nigeria?
4. What are the factors that discourages you from relocating to Nigeria to apply the academic skills and educational proficiencies you have acquired from the Finnish academic institutions of higher learning? Name a few.
5. What are the factors that encourages you to remain professionally unemployed in Finland or other Western countries instead of relocating to Nigeria?
6. The limitations that discourages you from relocating to Nigeria, are they personal, societal or governmental?
Inclusively, I composed questions that enquire to know the opinions of the Nigerian graduates in relocating to Nigeria to apply their academic skills. I also asked questions about their present locations, present employments, further studying plans and professional employment quests. It is also very important to point out that I asked questions that relate to the respondents’ views about
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possible solutions to the unemployment problems, their experiences in Finland and if they will consider other options.
Lastly, I prepared a questionnaire of six pages bearing five sections with a total of one section on each page. The interview questions are thirty in total including the personal and core questions of the research. In total, I electronically dispatched two hundred (200) questionnaires to my potential questionnaire respondents and fifty percent, a hundred (100) of the targeted questionnaire respondents submitted their completed questionnaires.
2.2 Method of Data Collection
Historically, Nigerians are a share of students with foreign background who have or are benefitting from the university educational provisions of the Finnish society.
Many of these Nigerians graduates that have benefitted or acquired one form of Finnish university level education still reside in Finland. Many of the Nigerian graduates live in the Finnish capital regions with the hopeful desires of being closer to the hub of professional opportunities that are inherent in the capital regions. Tampere, Vaasa, Jyvaskylä, Joensuu and Hämeenlinna are also cities where some Nigerian graduates reside.
In addition, another group of Nigerian graduates that participated in my research process are not living in Finland. However, this group of Nigerians possessed the Finnish university educational qualification but later went to other countries to further their education and chances of utilizing their academic skills professionally. Majority of this set of Nigerian graduates with Finnish educational degrees reside in Europe, United States of America and Canada. Only a negligible percentage of these Nigerian graduates with Finnish educational skills live in Nigeria presently.
The above information gives an idea of the locational difficulty I went through to carry out this research. The cardinal focus of my research requires me to seek
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data from Nigerian graduates with university degrees from the Finnish university educational system. Therefore, it is my prerogative to seek this set of Nigerian graduates wherever they might be in other to perform this study effectively.
The use of electronic questionnaire through an internet-based platform is a kind of data collection method utilized in qualitative researches (Rowley, 2014). To achieve enough data to carry out this research, I decided to utilize this kind of internet-based research questionnaire. An internet survey, intended to get to my respondents irrespective of their locations, schedules and timing.
The process of utilizing this internet-based questionnaire eliminated the steep costs of traveling to the different respondents’ locations, alienated the possibility of missing any research participant due to busy schedules and guaranteed me the access to most of my respondents. It also provided me the medium to collect in texts, the opinions, answers and expressions from my questionnaire respondents which are needed as sources of primary data for my qualitative research (Merriam 2009, 86).
The use of this data collection method made sure that the questionnaires of my research were delivered directly to the research respondents to ensure safety, security and proper handling of the online research documents. It also validates the whole process of sending and returning the research questionnaire between me, the researcher and my research questionnaire respondents. (Rowley, 2014.)
The secured electronic means that I used to send the questionnaires to my respondents were also the means my respondents used to return the filled questionnaires. Every research respondent was required to log in using digital login details to ensure their authenticity. It is almost impossible for anyone who is not a Nigerian graduate with a Finnish university degree to fill in responses on the form.
Additionally, the whole processes of sending and retrieval of the questionnaires were timely, secured and internet-based. By timely, I mean that every
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questionnaire respondents knew there was a deadline attached to the process of data collection and the respondents understood the need to fill and return these forms as quickly as possible.
2.3 Data Analysis
The responses I received from my respondents served as sources of primary data for my research activity. The process availed me the firsthand opinions and information from the sets of research participants that are required for my research. The written answers to my questionnaire formed the adequate data required for the qualitative data analysis my research demands. The sourced data came in forms of wordy expressions represented in written texts that were in large quantity.
The respondents gave their responses based on their experiences of living in Finland and Nigeria. Their knowledge regarding the various study disciplines and academic fields in which they have received university qualifications from the Finnish university educational system presented me with advantages. They also shared their opinions on the applicability of the Finnish university education in Nigeria and gave their thoughts regarding which academic disciplines are of high needs to bolster the economic and developmental growths of Nigeria.
The nature and size of the received data warranted that I transcribe them into smaller forms or themes for effective analyses and discussions (Merriam 2009, 171). Unemployable Education, Applicability in Nigeria, Academic Study Disciplines, and Relocation to Nigeria, Job Security Concerns and Possible Solutions are some of the thematic keywords and topical sentences that are conspicuously visible in the responses of the respondents.
Additionally, I decided to theme the indicators of the data in words that were conspicuously visible and reflective in the responses to the online survey that was utilized to question the respondents. The themes utilized helped in the
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management, sorting, detailing, representation and interpretation of the received data. The themes mentioned above served as umbrellas for further theoretical explanations, giving me the opportunity to understand and critique the concerns of the respondents regarding the trend and possibly, assert conclusions that will simultaneously serve as answers to the research questions and solutions to the problems. (Merriam 2009, 182.)
Methodologically, thematic data analysis presented me the advantage to understand the series of ideas and individual rationality that clouds the opinions, expressions and decisions people make when asked to respond to a questionnaire The respondents of my questionnaire are people with ideas, opinions and concerns about the topical areas of the research and their rationality was a needful requirement. (Merriam 2009, 182-185.)
My research respondents were experientially active participants in the processes that this research focuses on. The Nigerian graduates were actors in the Finnish university educational system that awarded them their academic qualifications.
Using this research to present their views, opinions and perspectives, the data collected also enabled me to understand their positions and create analysis that theoretically prove useful in finding possible answers to my research questions.
The idea of presenting my discussion and data findings ensured that the research participants and everyone who reads this research paper clearly understand the theoretical viewpoints of this research and how my perspectives were carefully presented using the findings of the collected and the analysis from secondary sources to help solve a societal problem (Agunbiade and Ikebude, 2015).
2.4 Ethical Considerations
The quality of any research process is dependent on the quality of the ethics and values observed during the processes of performing the research. Ethics are features or qualitative stipulates that protect the tenets, guidelines and standards
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of the principles of researching. Principles of researching are adhered to because of the authenticity and quality it gives to a research (Lo Piccolo and Thomas 2009, 178).
Respecting and observing the ethical rules of research during a research process are actions that depict the transparency of a research. It also ensures that all persons and personal information involved in the research are properly taken care of. Every research process requires a set of ethical considerations and for the findings and inferences of the research to be reliable, such ethical considerations must be observed (Lo Piccolo and Thomas 2009, 178-9).
In the processes of my research; I observed quite a few of these ethical considerations to ensure the standardization and quality of my research. One of the key ethical features of my research was the anonymity demand of my respondents. Before the respondents responded to my questionnaires, I reached an agreement with each and every one of them that their information and personal data would not be used in the analysis of the research nor will they be published in the final research publication.
Additionally, the respondents to my online surveys had the freedom to fill and submit their responses without adding their names or other personal details of identity. I took this approach to ensure that the respondents completely hold the rights to control the levels of anonymity they preferred while filling out the research questionnaires. It is also to prevent any form of leakage of private information in the case of internet hacks or mistaken exposure of responses.
Thereby, giving the choice of personal information safety to my respondents to make.
I considered the ages of the respondents during the data collection process. It is important to state that it would have been ethically wrong to get responses from minors without the physical and outright consent and approval of a parent or guardian (Oliver 2010, 22). In a move to avoid ethical issues surrounding minorities, I decided to collect responses from those who are adults. More so,
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there was no consensual requirements from a parent or guardian in this research because everyone that participated in this research process were adults. With the age ethics in mind, I also ensured that the adult respondents were treated with respect during and after the research process. (Reamer, 2006.)
The fact that my responders are adults and do not need any parental guidance and supervision before they give their opinions and answers to my research questionnaire further perfected the process of my data collection. The quality based opinions and unsolicited answers improved the contents of the respondents. These are the kind of responses that I require to perform this kind of scholarly discourse. It is easier to deal with adults than minors who require additional adults and services before they could be questioned or interviewed.
(Oliver 2010 & Paoletti, Tomas and Menendez, 2013.)
The nature of my ethical consideration was also extended to the protection of my respondents and their details. The need and importance of this research was properly explained to my survey respondents and they understood the rationales behind this scientific adventure. I know the importance of creating a research environment by winning the trust and confidence of my research questionnaire respondents. I got this by giving my research participants every important detail about the research in written formats. (Paoletti et al, 2013 & Merriam 2009, 233.)
2.5 Research Weaknesses and Limitations
The process of conducting this research work is one that happened with certain levels of hindrances, restrictions and limitations. I started having few of these limitations from the moments I conceived the idea to research on this topic of the applicability of Finnish university education in Nigeria. It is a huge topic and finding out ways of performing the dissertational work broadened my horizons to some possibilities of limitations and theoretical misgivings.
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This part of my report details the limitations of my research and the whole theoretical processes I undertook to perform this scholarly task. Also, I use this medium to emphasize on the areas that my research focus did not cover, the difficulties that I experienced during researching and areas of the research focus that could have played an advantageous contribution to the output of the research.
The geographical or locational limitation of my residency in Joensuu created a problem that I did not anticipate before the commencement of my research process. Most Nigerian graduates with Finnish university skills reside in the Helsinki region of Finland. They are mostly there due to the high possibility of securing employment, professionally or otherwise.
My travel to Nigeria to interview some of the Nigerian graduates from the Finnish higher institutions of higher learning also proved abortive. My plans of meeting with them during their holidays in Nigeria did not go as scheduled for one reason or the other. Nigeria is a very big country and navigating around it can be highly expensive and problematic.
I could not perform my research by covering all the cities in Finland and Nigeria where there are many Nigerian graduates from the Finnish universities. There were no possibilities of conducting any form of interviews with them due to this locational hindrance. Finland and Nigeria are quite big countries and traveling around them can be demanding. More so, finding Nigerian graduates in Finland is not an easy exercise because Nigerians are minorities when compared to other major groups like Russians and Swedes.
The use of the internet platform also alienated the problem of financial limitation or transportation costs. These costs could have been damning if I had carried on my initial plans to visit and interview every respondent. Nigerian graduates with Finnish university education or degree reside in and outside of Finland. The budgetary costs of carrying out facial interviews with more than ten people made me to reconsider those plans.
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Even with the theoretical and practical benefits of the internet survey platform to my research processes, my research still suffered. One the suffrages is the limitation of asking open-ended questions to get more critical answers that will be very reflective in my analysis. Another area is the timeframe utilized by respondent to respond and submit the questionnaires. The rate of submission was poor when compared to a facial interview scenario.
In the course of doing this research, I got to know that not all the Nigerians that I know have a Finnish university degree. Nigerians belong to the group of minorities living in Finland according to Finnish population system. The rationale to interview this minor group of Nigerians living in Finland made the search for Nigerians with Finnish university skills necessary but also difficult.
Most Nigerians with Finnish university skills came to Finland to study and after the completion of their university studies, most of them emigrated from Finland for some reason or the other. Some left in search of professional jobs outside Finland while others changed their locations within Finland to further their completed education.
Due to the above reasons, I was not able to question as many Nigerians as I had initially planned. The scarcity of Nigerian graduates reduced the number of respondents and responses I had anticipated for this research work. One thing this limitation affects is the density and depth of the research.
The diversity of opinions is affected by this reality. It is a theoretical ingredient to have diversity of responses, ideas and opinions from many interview respondents. Academically speaking, no respondent had a doctoral degree from a Finnish university institution. An interview from such a category would have contributed to the idea of diversity in responses that I wanted for my research.
(Rowley, 2014.)
The idea of this thesis work was received with mixed feelings by the questionnaire respondents. According to a few of them, the contents of my questionnaire subtly
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suggested a possible need of relocation to Nigeria in order to end the trend of irregular education that affects them in Finland. This suggestion sounded quite unfamiliar and unpopular because they were not considering such thoughts.
Many Nigerians consider Finland a home even though they are not gainfully employed to work with their hard-earned educational proficiency. They consider the security, safety and functionality of the Finnish social system most important to the developments of their home country. Another group with Finnish spousal connections is also uninterested in the idea of relocating to Nigeria on the basis of employment.
This unwarranted suggestion of relocation to Nigeria also created a discord of interest for some respondents who are not interested in relocating to Nigeria.
Additionally, it made it impossible for some to fill the questionnaire because they do not want to remember some of the negative ordeals they went through while residing in Nigeria.
The scope of this research work is primarily to find a working solution or suggestion that could help Nigerian graduates with Finnish university skills who are in employments that do not use their educational expertise to find ways of developing themselves by professionally using their education in an environment that needs this education (Jones and Brown, 2007).
The suggestive emigrational stance of this research will have adverse effects to Finland. As a nation, it will encourage the loss of educated people and skilled labor. The encouragement this research suggests, as a solution to end irregular education among Nigerian graduates is one that indirectly reduces the educational, academic and scholarly potentials of the country that educated these people by bearing their tuition costs.
The ideological perspective of encouraging Nigerian graduates with Finnish university skills to relocate to Nigeria promotes the growth and development of Nigeria by the in-flux of skilled labor and educated professionals into the country.
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However, Nigeria did not train or educate these sets of people; she stands to benefit from the services and scholarly works performed by these professionals in her country.
Initially, I had planned to personally and facially conduct interviews with all my respondents in order to get more responses and fully opinionated commentaries from them. A physically conducted interview would have availed me the media to directly channel more personalized questions that would advantageously contribute to the contents of my data and better the focus of my research.
Unfortunately, I could not carry out these forms of personalized facial interviews with my responders before and during the researching periods. The reality of interviewing Nigerians with Finnish university education was blur. During the period of booking appointments with my respondents, they informed me of their absence from Finland. Most of them were away for holidays and few of them have relocated out of Finland for prospects of finding professional employments.
The unfortunate situation made it impossible for me to carry out facial interviews with them. It also denied me the personal accesses I needed to critically question the respondents and procure more reflexive answers and responses that would have contributed meaningfully to the analysis and inferences of my research (Rowley, 2014).
The inability to have appointments and facial interview times with my respondents during the processes of preparing for the research and data collection created an impossibility of physical interviews. The impossibility to hold physical interviews with my research respondents was a limitation, a limitation that emanated the idea to use internet questionnaires to collect responses as required for this work.
23 3 RESEARCH THEORY
The process of performing this study required the inputs of certain scientifically proven theories to serve as tools for guidance and analysis of the research data.
The various opinions from my questionnaire respondents served as the research data. The respondents have the required information concerning the core areas of my research. Their opinions, inputs and views created the framework and materials for my analysis. (Paoletti et al, 2013; Merriam 2009.)
In a research like this, the opinions of research participants with experiential knowledge of the core focus of the research are key to more scholarly discovery (Wells 1999). Such knowledgeable discovery emanated the need for the comparison between the different structures of university education of Finland and Nigeria. The various perspectives on the educational differences of Finland and Nigeria are required to depict the current statuses and to challenge Nigerian graduates from Finland into developing Nigeria with their academic acquisitions.
In scientific discourses, it is almost impossible to discuss a social trend or a human activity without analyzing from different perspectives using the opinions and academic inputs of existing materials (Carrithers 1992). In this case, I used academic books, educational journals and online publications to serve as the sources of my secondary material. This is needful to juxtapose the positions of my primary sources against those of the secondary sources for better analysis and academic discussions.
Topically, this research is contextualised on two major geographical locations, Finland and Nigeria. In this study, I tried to underline, embolden and discover the possibility of academic mobility between Finland and Nigeria via the possible transfer, sharing and application of the academic contents, study curricula and educational proficiencies of the Finnish university educational systems acquired by Nigerians.
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Although, there is a presumed foundational idea that emphasizes the needs of education and how the latter is rated to be a powerful and empowerment tool for all. Most educationists and scientists have suggested that education is the right tool for shaping a good economy, society and branding of a culture. Academically, many researchers and theorists have suggested that higher education in itself is man’s way of rebranding, redeveloping and redefining nature. (Barnett 1990;
Basset and Maldonado-Maldonado, 2009.)
If higher education is so important and instrumental to knowledgeable societal development, then, anyone with a university level education should be geared towards practical utilization of his or her skills. The development of Nigeria should top the prerogatives of Nigerian graduates from the university system of Finland.
Nigerians who have completed their university studies at Finland’s universities should seek to contribute to the developments of Nigeria by practically using their higher educational skills in Nigeria.
Majority of the Finns with Finnish university skills contribute to the developments of Finland by being a part of the professional workforce of Finland. In the discharge of their university skills, they develop their profession and sharpen their professional skills too. By being a part of their society and interacting with other society members, innovative ways to serve, grow, and better the society are devised through ideas, implementation and participation. (Jäppinen 2015, 85 &
86.) The country of Finland also benefit from the outputs of these Finnish professionals in forms of taxes, duties, revenues from export and incomes from the services rendered through technological advancements. (Oleg, 2012 &
Infopankki, 2017.)
Nigerian graduates from Finland need to emulate this majority of Finns who are also graduates from the same Finnish university system by finding ways to contribute to Nigeria. Educational capabilities and application are not restricted to particular regions, countries or locations where they have been acquired. Far from that idea, university education is now globalized and the idea of higher learning has crossed borders and boundaries. (Jones and Brown, 2007).
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A student from Asia can receive higher educational lectures and certification through virtual classes and online media. The contents and educational materials are now easily available on the internet and can be accessed electronically without the restrictions of time, location and physical presence. (Barnett 1990 &
Jones and Brown, 2007).
This is one of the fascinating and attractive aspects of the Finnish university educational system. The use of technological materials such as centralized online library, electronic dictionary, scholarly eBooks and electronically published journals and articles have contributed to the growth in the Finnish educational model. More so, there are virtual courses and lectures because of efficient and stable infrastructures. Every university in Finland has its own physical library equipped with computers, books, copy and reading rooms for students. (Study In Finland, 2017.)
A study by The International Graduate Insight Group, a British consultancy and benchmarking service suggests that 89% of international students are happy or very satisfied with the Finnish university institution and the above mentioned provisioning contribute to the reasons why international students are very happy with the contents and value of university education they received from Finland.
(CIMO, 2017.)
The Nigeria university educational system on the other hand is yet to introduce these kinds of technological materials. University students face the difficulties of doing everything manually. Students are required to purchase course books with their money because there are no electronic or online provisions of eBooks, articles or journals for students’ use. Aside the inadequacies of libraries in the Nigerian universities, there is also a problem of inadequate course books.
Students do not get the provisions for copying or printing and reading rooms are substandard and inadequate. (Ebehikhalu and Dawam, 2017.)
The states of infrastructures in Nigerian universities discourages. Poor power supply, inadequate funding by the government and security contribute to the
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woes of the educational system. The building of the university of Ile-Ife and some other universities are in dilapidated states requiring immediate renovations. Most Nigerians prefer to study abroad because of the above enumerated challenges.
(Omotehinshe, Dabara & Guyimu, 2015.)
In the employment workforce, a Nigerian graduate with foreign, European or Western educational background is preferred and considered better educated and more employable than a Nigerian graduate from the Nigerian university system. If this is the situation in Nigeria, why would any foreign student be interested in studying in a Nigerian university when a foreign certification is highly wanted and valued? (Ebehikhalu and Dawam, 2017.)
The above is not the case in Finland. The Finnish university system is completely funded by the government. The funds from the government are utilized for researches, development of study curricula, purchase of scholarly books, technological upgrades, recruitment of qualified teachers and training of academic staffs. These provisioning standardizes the higher educational framework and contents of the Finnish universities. All these contribute to resolution of the Finnish higher education to internationalize, make efficient and increase the functionality of the Finnish university system. (MinEdu Website, 2016.)
In as much as I cannot debase the amount of accolades and theories that have praised the benefits and usefulness of university education and formal learning, my theory emboldens the importance of educational applicability. If acquired education are not put to use, then, of what use is the acquired education? The attraction the Finnish university system get from across the globe have been praised on the basis of the contents and structure of the Finnish university education. The Finland university educational system will not be attractive or praised if the application of its educational contents have not been productive and international students will not be satisfied with their acquired education. (MinEdu
& StudyPortals Websites, 2016.)
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When foreign students acquire this valuable education from Finland, they are expected to utilize them meaningfully and developmentally, possibly in Finland or elsewhere. This is the expectation. This is what I expect from myself at the end of my studies too. The importance of education in its originality can never be overemphasized, but until the benefits of such education are practically applied, the substantial values of the used educational resources are all in nullity. This means that the idea and resources of higher education is wasted if the acquired higher education is not practically used for the growth and development of a society. (Barnett 1990.)
Another perspective is the cycle of migration of people and education in and out of Finland. Nigerian students migrate to Finland to study at Finland’s universities but at the end of their education, they find reluctance to return to Nigeria with their educational acquisition. If these sets of Nigerian graduates can return to Nigeria and apply their acquired Finland’s university skills, there is a possibility that less Nigerians students will come to study in Finland. Instead of new Nigerian students migrating to Finland for studies, the new Nigerian students will learn in Nigeria from those Nigerian professionals that have acquired their knowledge from Finland, thereby encouraging sharing of educational knowledge and expertise between Finland and Nigeria.
3.1 Finland and Nigeria: crossing borders through educational mobility
Nigeria is a sub-Saharan country with a population of about one hundred and sixty million people. It is a democratically led country, located in the West-African sub region of the African continent. The country shares borders with Republic of Benin to the west, Cameroun and Chad to the east, Niger to the north and Guinea to the south. A country with vast lands with thirty-six states plus the FCT and six geopolitical zones. (Agunbiade and Ikebude 2015.)
Economically, the fortunes of Nigeria are in growing mode with many prospects based on its population and increase in the use of technological and internet-
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based facilities. Nigeria secured its independence in1960 but it is yet to join the ivy league of developed nations even with the 1970s oil booms. Presently, the economy of Nigeria is receding even with a tertiary educational literacy rate of 68% of the country’s population. Among this literate population, educated men (75%) are higher than educated women (61%). (NBS 2016.)
Finland is a developed nation with a high rate of literacy among its citizenry (Niemi et al 2012, 14). The governmental provisioning of the country towards education is one of the best in the globe. Bearing in mind the introduction of tuition fees to the university education received by non-EU/EEA citizens, Finland was among the few European countries offering university education freely to everyone. The educational capabilities, provisioning and educational autonomy receive applause locally and internationally. (Haila 2014, 78-79.)
The involvement of women in the functionality of the Finnish society has also be globally praised. An average Finnish woman is professionally involved in one managerial, clerical or administrative institution or the other, contributing evenly to the development of the country. The educational structures in Finland are equitable and they reward both males and females. Moreover, everyone understands the importance of literacy, thereby promoting the necessity of education in the country. (Haila 2014, 82-84.)
This kind of functionality of the Finnish society is what most Nigerians wish for Nigeria. In this regards, Nigeria needs to learn from Finland how Finns built their society and developed their country. Ways of achieving these are by living among Finns and learning the Finnish-styled university education knowing well that university education is a denominating factor of the Finnish society.
3.2 Finnish Educational System
The university educational system in Finland continues to transform itself technologically, structurally and by curricula. The use of internet, online study
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materials and curricula modifications have contributed to the growth of the higher educational contents of Finland’s universities. The system of higher learning in Finland is a kind that have received many accreditations and appraisals from local, regional, national, international and global individuals, educational institutions and professional educationists. (Haila 2014, 78-79.)
The fulcrum of the Finnish educational system is the creation of an environment that gives all an equal footing irrespective of age, social stratum, sex orientation, gender, nationality, parental influence, family affluence and religious affiliations.
Insofar, the above mentions when critically placed in perspective, can only be afforded to citizens of Finland or foreigners with permanent residential statuses.
(OPH Series 2012, 2-3.)
At the Finland’s educational systems, students acquire bachelor, master, licentiate, doctorate and post-doctorate academic degrees. The different higher institutions of learning in Finland include professional colleges, university of applied sciences and universities. In terms of funding, the Finnish educational institutions also enjoy financial funding and provisioning from the various levels of government of Finland. (OPH Series 2012, 18&20.)
The Finnish educational system sets a special standards and standardization for itself and its professionals. Due to the importance placed on the teaching, curriculum and structure of the educational contents of the Finnish university education, it became pertinent for such scrutiny to be extended to the teaching professionals in the Finnish educational system. By this I mean that all teaching professionals undergo different stages of education, professional training, assessment and academic certifications before they qualify to teach especially at the university levels. (OPH Series 2012, 26.)
The educational leaders in different stages or strata of the Finnish educational system are required to be highly educated, qualified with high academic qualifications and impeccable in character and behavioral history. In the university educational system, a university rector must hold a doctorate, post-
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doctorate or professorship qualification. This isn’t the same for universities of applied sciences where rectors are allowed to hold Licentiate or doctorate degrees. (OPH Website, 2016.)
This kind of standardization is applied to all other categories of the Finnish educational system. In addition to the emphasis of the required academic qualifications, the Finnish university teaching professionals are required to establish their growth and development in their respective fields of focus. For example, a social policy professor is not permitted to tutor computer engineering course to computer engineering students. (OPH Series 2012, 25.)
The Finnish educational system is structured to make educational governance and curriculum development near to the education givers and administrators (Haila 2014, 78). The Finnish educational system gives out the powers to organize, arrange and scheme the educational curricula to the local administrators of education (OPH Website, 2017).
In the Finnish educational systems, university lecturers are recognized as the major and pivotal components for the educational structuring of the curriculum, syllabus and teaching. These same teaching professional are responsible to build, upgrade and update the level of quality in the educational structure and frameworks of the Finnish educational system. (OPH Series 2012, 27.)
Lastly, there are specifications for each of the higher academic learning institutions of Finland. The vocational and professional institutions focus on students’ competence, handiworks and workmanship. Universities of applied sciences utilize the concepts of practical and applied learning to educate its students and the universities are structured to create models, scientific practices and far more specialized and advanced learnings. Note, only universities in Finland hold the rights to award students with licentiate and doctoral degrees.
(OPH Series, 21-13.)
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The structure and educational contents of the Finnish university education is designed to fit the Finnish society and context. The practical application of the Finnish university education encapsulates the working conditions, lifestyle and culture of the Finnish society and its people. Major components of the educational materials are sourced from researches and observations from the daily living activities and conditions of Finland. (Haila 2014.)
Although, there are many foreign academic materials that are available in foreign languages but the core components of the educational materials in Finland are available in Finnish language. Due to adequate funding, the Finnish society is a developed one due to the benefits of sponsored researches. University students are sponsored by the government, public and private institutions to perform academic researches that are valuable to the Finnish society and economy.
(Haila 2014, 82-84.)
The Finnish educational system play an important in sensitizing the Finnish society with researches that promote equitable gender and sexual roles. The equal educational opportunities in the Finnish educational system contributed to the reduced sexual discrimination and promoted an environment for expertise and skills instead of gender in the Finnish society. (Haila 2014, 83.)
The system of education in Finland is a unique one. In terms of tuition, the government takes care of all tuitions thereby providing university education to all using taxpayers’ money. Indigenes of Finland and their foreign counterparts enjoy quality university education and educational resources without the payment of school fees or tuition related levies or bills. (OPH Series 2012, 6.)
However, the stance of the government towards the provision of tuition free university education to foreigners changed in 2016. The laws regulating the university educational systems in Finland was amended and the new enactment prohibits foreigners from tuition free university education in the bachelors and master’s levels of university education. (MinEdu & Studyinfo, 2016.)
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Students of foreign backgrounds except those with permanent residence in Finland are now mandated to pay tuition fees if they want to study bachelors and master’s degree programs at Finnish institutions of higher learning in English language. The only foreign students who are exempted from paying tuition fees to study at Finnish universities are those seeking doctorate and post-doctorate studies at Finnish academic institutions of higher learning. (StudyinFinland, 2016.)
Additionally, citizens of Finland are completely exempted from paying tuition fees irrespective of what levels of studies they are in pursuit of. A foreign student is also exempted from paying tuition if he or she intends to study in Finnish language provided he or she resides permanently in Finland or can prove enough financial support means.
All university students are required to pay semester registration fees. The fees are paid by semesters or for a full academic session comprising of two semesters.
The registration fees qualifies a student to enjoy healthcare services provided by the FSHS. The registration fee also adds the student to the membership of the higher institution’s Student Union.
The government of Finland makes provision through funding to supply academic materials and resources for students to use in their scholarly works. These resources are in forms of computer rooms, structures, online books and published materials, purchase of computers and other services that keep the school environments safe for students, school authorities and other users of the school premises.
The educational provisioning of the Finnish university and higher learning institutions also include health care services for students of university, UAS and other higher institutions. These health care services are given based on agreements with the Finnish Student Health Service systems. The medical health service system also provide health services to other professionals within and outside the Finnish educational systems.
