Top 5 Countries Outside the US that Offer Opportunities to Nigerian Students

It is no longer news that a large number of Nigerian students are now seeking alternatives to the faulty educational system in the country elsewhere. Topping the list of alternatives is the United States of America. You’ll likely be met with a barrage of schools from the US when you begin the search for the most appropriate school. This could leave you feeling like your options are severely limited. The poor exchange rate and high tuition fees of many American schools do not make things easier.

However, with people constantly promoting schools in the US to Nigerian students, you might feel like you don’t have a choice but to spend your parents’ life savings on your education. If you feel that way, we’re happy to tell you that you couldn’t be farther from the truth.

There are several countries outside the US that offer excellent opportunities for Nigerian students. In this article, we’ll be exploring some of them.

In no particular order, they are:

1. Germany

Germany is one of the best places for Nigerian students for several reasons. One of them is that the country is highly regulated and organized.

The crime rate in the country as of 2019 was as low as 6,548 per 100,000 people. At the time, that was the third year in a row that crime was declining. Mathematically speaking, that’s less than 7%.

As such, you can rest assured that you wouldn’t have to worry about your safety nor would you have to constantly look over your shoulder. What’s more, the country offers free education in all its public universities, including the highest ranking ones. At most, you’ll have to pay administrative fees of £100/£200 per year.

While the tuition fees are quite low, the cost of living might be a source of concern for some. It differs from place to place but, on average, you can expect to spend around 850 euros monthly. This would cover feeding, housing, clothing, etc. While this might seem high, especially when converted to naira, there are certainly ways you can work around it and save money. For example, you wouldn’t be buying clothes everyday and you can cook instead of buying food daily, too.

Regarding the language, you wouldn’t have to worry much about that either. Upwards of 220 universities in Germany offer programs in English for their students.

The country’s most popular universities include:

• University of Bonn
• Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
• RWTH Aachen University
• Georg-August-Universität Göttingen

2. Norway

One of the major problems that comes alongside being an international student is that you have to cope with the language barrier. Your classes might hold in English but you’ll likely have trouble understanding the locals. This could affect your feeding and socialisation, among others.

But this isn’t a problem in Norway. Why? Norway is largely an English speaking country. You might have some difficulty with the heavy accent of the locals. Other than this, you’ll have no trouble communicating in and out of class. Alongside this, Norway has incredibly accommodating citizens. So, while homesickness might be an issue, it would be much easier with people who are accepting and friendly.

Some of the most popular universities in the country are:

• The University of Bergen
• Norwegian University of Life Sciences
• University of Oslo
• Norwegian University of Science and Technology

3. Finland

Much like Norway, Finland is a North-European country that offers several advantages to Nigerian students.

One of the most notable is the ease of getting a job as an international student. Granted, professional jobs might be harder to come by as a student because you might not meet the required qualifications. However, part-time jobs are a’plenty.

Also, Finland can be quite cold. But it has excellent living conditions that make up for the weather. So, while you might have to wear a winter jacket more often than you’re used to, you’ll still have access to quality accommodation.

Some of the most popular universities in the country are:

• Tampere University
• University of Jyväskylä
• The University of Helsinki
• University of Oulu

4. Canada 

Right after the United States, Canada is another country that many Nigerians want to get into for high-quality education.

For starters, Canada has quite the reputation for having friendly citizens. So, while you’re a foreigner, you wouldn’t necessarily feel like one. Additionally, the country has excellent healthcare. Nobody prays to get under the weather. But if you ever do, you’ll be in good hands.

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Some of the most popular universities in the country are:

• University of Montreal
• The University of Toronto
• McGill University
• The University of British Columbia

5. Italy 

Do you want to know one of the best things about Italy? It’s amazing educational history. The University of Bologna could easily be the oldest university in the world and ranks as one of the best. Of course, you’re not going there for cultural fascination, but even while chasing your education, it is hard not to notice how exquisite the country is.

It’s educational quality is top-notch. Famous people like Vivaldi, Da Vinci and Versace, among others, revolutionised music, architecture, fashion, etc in this country. With that much excellence attached to Italy, you can only expect the best from the country.

Some of the most popular universities in the country are:

• Sapienza University of Rome
• Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa
• Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies – Pisa

At this point, you can see that you don’t necessarily need to go to the United States to get quality education. Several countries around the world offer the same privilege with some doing it at much cheaper costs. Now, all you have to do is begin to choose where you want to go from the myraid options before you!

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