How Nigerian Regulators Treat Degrees Earned in Ghana and Benin Republic

NUC decides what counts back home

A degree earned outside Nigeria does not automatically count for jobs, further study or professional licensing inside Nigeria. The National Universities Commission (NUC) is the body that evaluates and recognises foreign university qualifications, and it maintains lists of both approved foreign institutions and illegal degree mills it has identified and shut down.

NUC has repeatedly named institutions and satellite learning centres operating in Benin Republic and parts of Ghana , including centres in Porto-Novo, Cotonou and Ho, as illegal operations. Some of these centres claimed affiliation with real Nigerian or foreign universities without any approved arrangement, and issued certificates that NUC does not recognise for any purpose in Nigeria.

Ghana's accreditation is not the same as NUC recognition

Ghana runs its own accreditation system through the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) , which absorbed the former National Accreditation Board. A programme fully accredited by GTEC is legitimate under Ghanaian law, but that alone does not guarantee NUC will recognise it in Nigeria. In practice, degrees from well-established Ghanaian public universities like the University of Ghana and KNUST, and from long-running accredited private universities, are widely accepted by Nigerian employers and used for postgraduate admission. The risk sits with newer or smaller private colleges, and especially with any franchise arrangement where a Nigerian promoter markets an affiliated programme that is not directly delivered or fully accredited by the Ghanaian partner institution.

Benin Republic carries the highest risk

Benin Republic has become known as a hub for degree mills targeting Nigerian students, particularly for professional courses like law, medicine and nursing where Nigerian demand outstrips local university capacity. NUC has closed multiple centres there and warned that some operators run short, compressed programmes and issue certificates styled to look like they come from a recognised university, when no such recognised delivery took place.

Before you commit money to any Benin Republic institution, confirm two things separately: that the institution is licensed by Benin's own higher education ministry, and that NUC has not listed it or its Nigeria-based recruiting partner among unapproved operators.

Medical and dental degrees need MDCN clearance too

If your goal is to practise medicine or dentistry in Nigeria, a foreign degree needs a second layer of recognition from the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) , on top of any NUC position on the awarding institution. MDCN evaluates foreign medical schools separately, and even graduates of NUC-recognised foreign universities typically sit a qualifying assessment before they can register to practise. Confirm a medical school's current MDCN standing directly with the council before you enroll, not from a recruiting agent's claim.

Other professions have their own gatekeepers

Medicine and dentistry are not the only regulated fields. Nursing and midwifery graduates need clearance from the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria before they can practise, and law graduates from a foreign system typically still attend the Nigerian Law School and pass the bar exam regardless of where they studied. Engineering graduates register with the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), which runs its own checks on foreign engineering programmes. Treat NUC recognition of the awarding university as the first gate, not the only one, for any regulated profession.

How to request an NUC evaluation

If you already hold, or are close to completing, a degree from Ghana or Benin Republic and want written confirmation of its standing, contact NUC directly and ask about its foreign credential evaluation process. Expect to submit your transcript, certificate, and proof of the institution's accreditation status from GTEC or Benin's higher education ministry. Start this process early. Evaluation takes time, and a recognition problem is far worse to find out about after you have accepted a job offer or applied for postgraduate study.

How to protect yourself

• Search the specific institution and programme on the NUC website before applying, not after

• Cross-check the same institution against GTEC's Ghana accreditation portal, or Benin's higher education ministry for Benin-based schools

• Be wary of any programme marketed as a Nigerian affiliate or franchise campus rather than direct enrollment at the foreign university

• For medicine, dentistry, law and similar regulated professions, confirm the relevant Nigerian professional body's position before you pay any fees

• Keep every admission letter, transcript and certificate, NUC and MDCN evaluations both require original documents