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Abstract
This study is an evaluation of the national youth service corps (NYSC) program of the federal government of Nigeria. It assessed the input, process and output indices of the programs to determine the extent to which the program has been successfully implemented and what it has achieved so far. To the researchers’ knowledge this study is the first to comprehensively analyzed the program since its launch. A total of 19,278 Nigerian graduates who were serving and those who had served in the national service from 2012 to 2021 participated in the study, which covered the entire 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory of Nigeria. An online survey, developed by the researchers with Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficients ranging from 0.87 to 0.90 across the four subscales, was used for data collection. Data collection followed a snowball approach. Descriptive statistics were used to analyzed the data collected. Among others, the findings revealed that most corps members had positive experiences during the orientation course, such as active participation, clean facilities, and access to basic needs and social activities. However, some challenges, such as inadequate bedding, limited water supply, and high costs of products were reported. At their places of primary assignment (PPA), many corps members accepted postings without objection and received regular stipends, though issues such as poor welfare, rejection without reason, and posting outside their field of study were common. Community development service (CDS) was marked by high attendance and cooperation with host communities, but corps members expressed concerns about restricted group selection and limited funding support for personal CDS initiatives. It was concluded, based on these findings, that the orientation course was viewed favorably, while the PPA and CDS components were seen as needing improvement. Based on these findings, it was recommended, among others, that the government should strengthen some of the grey areas of the NYSC scheme and consolidate on the current areas of strengths, revealed in this study.
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Article Type: Research Article
PEDAGOGICAL RES, Volume 10, Issue 3, July 2025, Article No: em0246
https://doi.org/10.29333/pr/16808
Publication date: 22 Aug 2025
Article Views: 15
Article Downloads: 9
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