The Federal Government has dismissed reports suggesting that a medical fellowship is now considered equivalent to a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in Nigeria.
The clarification followed reports claiming that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) had approved the recognition of medical fellowships as equal to PhD qualifications.
In a statement issued on Thursday by the Federal Ministry of Education through its Director of Press and Public Relations, Folasade Boriowo, the government explained that the reports were a misinterpretation of the council’s decision.
According to the ministry, the FEC only approved an amendment to the Act governing the Nigerian Postgraduate Medical College, allowing the institution to seek accreditation from the National Universities Commission (NUC) to award PhD degrees in relevant medical and research fields.
Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, emphasized that a medical fellowship remains a distinct and highly regarded professional qualification in clinical medicine. He explained that the fellowship is awarded to physicians only after they complete rigorous residency training and meet strict postgraduate requirements for specialist certification.
Alausa said the new approval simply expands the academic mandate of the Nigerian Postgraduate Medical College, which has traditionally focused on awarding fellowships to qualified medical practitioners.
“With this approval, the College will be able, subject to accreditation by the NUC, to offer PhD programmes to candidates interested in pursuing advanced academic research alongside professional medical training,” he said.
He added that doctors undergoing postgraduate medical training may, under the proposed framework, choose to integrate a structured doctoral research pathway into their fellowship programmes where applicable
