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Who we are

From its establishment in the 1970s to the development of NCE and undergraduate degree programmes, FCE Yola has grown as a teacher-education institution in Nigeria.

The history of the Federal College of Education, Yola dates back to 1974 when the Federal Ministry of Education planned to open three Federal Advanced Teachers’ Colleges (later to be known as Federal Colleges of Education) to produce well qualified middle-level teachers for Nigerian Secondary Schools. The Colleges were established to train teachers for three years, at the end of which successful students would be awarded the Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE).

The College was charged with the responsibility of providing full-time courses in the sciences, vocational education, arts and social sciences as well as the professional preparation of teachers for the award of NCE. It was expected to organize workshops, seminars, conferences and in-service courses to update and widen the academic and professional knowledge of practicing teachers. The College was also expected to engage in research and the application of theoretical knowledge to concrete situations for the overall development of the country.

The first studentsBy September 1974, recruited staff and principal officers had started work. The first set of 155 students was admitted during the 1975/76 session.

With the promulgation of the Federal Colleges of Education Decree No. 4 of 1986, the College became autonomous. It began to enjoy real autonomy with the promulgation of the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE) Decree No. 3 of 1989.

Leadership history

1974–82

Mr. C. Pollock, pioneer principal.

1983–84

Chief M.C. Okoye

1984–86

Mr. W.O. Shittu

1987–94

Professor Gidado Tahir

Jan–May 1995

Mr. Samuel M. Gogura, Acting Provost.

1995–96

Mallam Sa’ad B. Jika, Acting Provost.

1996–2004

Professor Mustapha Abba

2004–12

Dr. Aminu Chiroma

2012–20

Professor Abdul-Mumin Sa’ad

2020–date*

Mr. Johnson Blo Malgwa, Acting Provost, as stated on the supplied legacy page.

The legacy page states that the 7th Governing Council was inaugurated on 20 April 2021, and that the College has seven schools, forty-one academic departments, five directorates, Consultancy Services Limited and a Centre of Excellence.

The seven schools

Secondary EducationArts and Social Sciences Programmes
General EducationSchool of General Education
Secondary EducationLanguages Programmes
Secondary EducationSciences Programmes
Secondary EducationVocational Education Programmes
Adult, Non-Formal & Special EducationTeacher education
Early Childhood Care & Primary EducationECC & PED

Undergraduate degree programmes

The College also runs degree programmes on a full-time basis under affiliation arrangements with the University of Maiduguri. The supplied page states that approval to commence undergraduate courses was granted in 2013 by the National Universities Commission (NUC), following recommendation of the NCCE and resource inspection visits.

The undergraduate programmes took off in the 2014/2015 session with 399 students. The legacy page states that the programmes received NUC accreditation before the graduation of the first set in 2018.

The institution seeks to maintain programme quality through peer review, relevant curricula and oversight.