History Made In Mass Comm. Dept, University Of Nigeria

The Department of Mass Communication, University of Nigeria, made history on December 14, when one of its PhD students and lecturer, Michael Ukonu, successfully defended his thesis before a panel of examiners.
The defence was the first time in the 51-year history of the department that a PhD thesis oral examination was ever conducted.

Speaking on Sunday, the Head, Department of Mass Communication, Dr. Nnanyelugo Okoro, affirmed that the department was now ready to show leadership among the respected communication-training institutions in the world.
He said, “The current crop of reputable, scholarly and progress-oriented academics in the department is poised for the best despite the challenges of the past.”
Okoro, who is also the first PhD graduate to be produced in any South-East university, commended the current administration of Prof. Bartho Okolo for its visionary leadership in providing the environment for graduate studies to thrive.
The university recently held a historic maiden orientation workshop for her post-graduate students and supervisors during which it unveiled plans to reposition its post-graduate studies for greater efficiency.
Also speaking, Michael Ukonu commended the head and faculty members of the Department of Mass Communication for their resolve to re-write history.
Ukonu expressed satisfaction with the on-going transformation in  the UNN, which he said was already yielding manifold results in line with the university’s goal of pursuing internationally acceptable standards in education.
UNN Department of Mass Communication was established in 1961 as the first School of Journalism in sub-Saharan Africa. In 1982, the Master’s of Art in Mass Communication was added. However, it took 25 years for the PhD programme to take effect. The first batch of PhD students began classes during the 2006/2007 academic session.
Source: Nigeria Schools Blog