The School of Nursing, Gwagwalada, FCT-Abuja, has registered 11,600 candidates digitally for its examination this year compared to the previous ones that was conducted manually.
The Principal of the school, Mr Lakereks James, who said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Abuja, noted that the digital registration was the first of its kind since the inception of the school.
The principal said that the computer-based examinations has helped in the area of registering and marking of scripts.
He explained that this was the 43rd set of FCT School of Nursing since its inception and the computer based exams is a success with the support of the management.
“I will give kudos to the honourable Secretary, Health and Human Services, Mrs Amanda Pam, for the wonderful thing that she has done. She has really shown us a distinguished exemplary leadership.
“It is only in 2018 that we have really seen and observed a very significant change in the issue of planning and implementation of the ongoing admission processes.
“We have a total number of 11,600 students that registered for this exams and it was something we could not do before but with the help of the digital platform, we are able to do so.
“If you can observe it from the look of things as if we have 10 years experience in conducting this kind of examination even with the challenges,’’ he said.
James, therefore, applauded the secretary for repositioning the school for greater achievements.
Mr Mohammed Suleiman, Head of Education Unit of the school, said that the digital examination had its various challenges in the area of funding and having to rent computers for the exercise.
Suleiman said that the use of computers simplified the process of registration down to the screening as every data they needed about a student was registered there.
“It has saved us a lot of stress from when we were doing it on paper. So many errors here and there; stress here and there but the innovation had simplified the whole thing.
“We have been able to accommodate more students; we have 600 students sitting for the exams in a day.
“The challenges we have are more of technical and the funding of the software but with the help of the secretary measures are put in place to avert the challenges,’’ Suleiman said.
On her part, the Director of Nursing, FCTA, Mrs Onukwe Oyinye, expressed optimism that the system would overcome the challenges over time.
She said that the school admitted only 50 students per academic session before but 100 was approved by the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria with the help of Pam.
“It was when Pam came and saw the facilities we have here she said that we are supposed to have much more than this.
“She helped us get the approval of 100 students. Before we were admitting 50 students per session, then she worked with councils and brought it up,’’ she said.
Also, Mr Rimamtsab Jerry, who was screening the candidates, said that the process was to confirm the real applicants so as to avoid impersonation, adding that the exams is based on merit.
He explained that the screening was hitch free as the computers have software that contained each candidate’s details.
FCT Nursing school conducts digital registration for 11,600 candidates
