The University of Cross River State (UniCross) in southern Nigeria has reaffirmed its commitment to modernising academic administration with the adoption of a new digital examination and results portal.
The Vice Chancellor of the institution, Professor Francesca Bassey, described the initiative as a major step towards efficiency, transparency and improved service delivery.
Speaking through the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academics), Professor Stella Maris-Okey, at a press conference in Calabar, the capital of Cross River State, the Vice-Chancellor assured the students and parents of data safety and integrity.
According to Professor Bassey, the initiative as part of a broader institutional transformation strategy aimed at strengthening systems and restoring confidence.
She said, “We reassure the public that we are on top of the matter. We are not oblivious to concerns about data integrity and safety as we migrate over 20 years of students information and examination results to our new digital portal.
“We are committed to leveraging digital technology to deliver a more efficient, credible and student-friendly academic administration and reposition our university in line with global standards,” she reiterated.
Also speaking, the Director of Examinations and Results, Dr. Anderson Etika, explained that the digital transition processes, which started before the appointment of the present university administration, were comprehensive.
Etika stated, “When the Vice-Chancellor assumed office, the university was already in the process of migrating from the old examination portal to a new one.”
Accuracy
He further explained that due to challenges with the old portal and the determination for accuracy, the university management relied on hardcopies during data inputs on the new platform.
“For accuracy and to safeguard students’ academic records, we retrieved hard copies of examination results from all the departments, covering a period of 20 years and amounting to more than five million records,” he stressed.
Continuing, Dr. Etika explained that although the exercise was demanding, the management prioritised graduating students by uploading results from the 2017/2018 to the 2022/2023 academic sessions.
Explaining further, he said, “Given the scale and complexity of transferring data across different systems, minor inconsistencies were inevitable. However, we have worked diligently to identify and correct these issues using the hardcopies and we are almost done resolving all observed discrepancies.”
He reassured that the new digital portal would significantly improved the administration of examinations and results, enhance record management and reduce delays.
Lateefah Ibrahim