There are 4 top private universities in Abuja and they include Baze University owned by Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, Veritas University owned by the Catholic Church, Nile University of Nigeria, and the first Pan-African University known as the African University of Science and Technology.
These private universities have different fee structures, ranging from about ₦750,000 to over ₦4 million. Most of the fees depend on faculty and program and can be split into semesters or per session. Here is what to know about the top private universities in Abuja and their fees.
Best Private Universities in Abuja and Their Fees
Baze University
- Founded: April 2011
- Location: Plot 686 Cadastral Zone C00, Behind National Judicial Institute, Kuchigoro
Jabi, Abuja. - Fees (Average): ₦2.2 million
Baze University is owned by Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, the 2023 vice presidential aspirant of the Labour Party (LP). The school was founded in 2011 and has since grown to become the 26th highest-ranked among not less than 47 accredited private universities in Nigeria. It is also ranked 57th among all the accredited universities in Nigeria, including Federal and State institutions.
Also, it is rated among the top 5,000 universities in the world. One other thing that stands out about this university is its British standards.
Baze University works with British standards, and while at it, it keeps its school fees at a considerable rate compared to other universities of similar standards in Nigeria.
Its yearly school fee is about $14,000 (₦2.2M), making it one of Nigeria’s most expensive top private universities.
The school offers both degree and postgraduate courses. It has six undergraduate faculties, including Law, Engineering, and Medical and Health Sciences. Similarly, there are about 14 postgraduate schools in the institution.
Baze University, Abuja, has graduated numerous famous people. Some of them include Nigeria’s former minister of aviation, Osita Chidoka, politician Dino Melaye, and Rivers State’s former governor Rotimi Amaechi. All of the politicians graduated with Law degrees.
While Chidoka and Melaye graduated in 2021, Amaechi graduated in 2022.
Veritas University
- Founded: 2002 and accredited in 2007
- Location: Bwari Area Council, Abuja
- Fees (Average): ₦750,000
Veritas University was founded by the Catholic Church in Nigeria in 2002 but was licensed in 2007 by the National Universities Commission (NUC). It started operating in 2008 in its take-off campus in Obehis, Abia State, but relocated to its permanent site in Bwari, Abuja, in 2008.
The school is known for its academic and disciplinary excellence. According to the school’s website, it was ranked among the top 11 universities in Nigeria. Its academic excellence is also evident because it represented African Universities in the intercontinental debate in New York in April 2023. It also represented the continent at the World Universities Debate completed in Spain in June 2023.
These representations came after Veritas University made history by winning the Pan-African Debating Championship in Kenya in December 2022. It became the first time Nigeria would win at the event.
Veritas has 12 faculties, including the School of Post Graduate Studies, Faculty of Law, Pharmaceutical, Health Science, Natural and Applied Sciences, Engineering, Social Sciences, Humanities, Management, Education, and Ecclesiastical.
These faculties have different school fees, which further differ by whether a student is a freshman or returning. Also, Veritas school fees depend on whether a student is running postgraduate studies or an undergraduate.
Whatever the case, Veritas school fees range from as low as 300,000 to as high as ₦1.7 million Naira, this is apart from other charges such as acceptance, accommodation, course registration, internet access, examination, and numerous others.
As earlier stated, Veristas’ fees depend on one’s faculty. For instance, the tuition of new students of the Ecclesiastical Faculty is about ₦330,000, while Arts and Humanities and natural science fees are slightly over ₦700,000. Law and Pharmacy are the most expensive, about ₦1.7 million.
Nile University of Nigeria
- Founded: 2009
- Location: Jabi Airport Bypass, Abuja
- Fees (Average): ₦1.3 million
Nile University of Nigeria is one of the top universities in Abuja. It is located in Jabi, Abuja. The school, which is a member of Honoris United Universities Network, has received numerous awards for academic excellence.
In 2023, about four of its Electrical and Electronics Engineering students received the Technology Innovation Award from The Nigerian Society of Engineers. This is for the design and construction of an Autonomous Plant Disease Detection Drone. In a similar vein, three students from the Faculty of Law won the 12th Annual ICRC International Humanitarian Law (IHL) Moot Competition.
This is just among the numerous other accolades that the school has received for its educational superiority.
More so, Nile University of Nigeria is one of the few institutions in the country that gives students scholarships not just on the basis of academic performance, but also sports.
The school has 6 faculties and a school of postgraduate Studies. Some of its faculties are the Faculty of Engineering, Faculty of Natural and Applied Sciences, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Faculty of Management Sciences, Faculty of Law, and College of Health Sciences.
As in the case of many other private universities in Abuja and Nigeria, Nile’s fees differ based on faculties. At the time of this report, the cheapest tuition in the school is that of postgraduate studies which is at least ₦1.2 million, and at most ₦3.2 million (both per session).
The most expensive school fees is the Medicine & Surgery undergraduate course, which is ₦5.9 million per session. The cheapest undergraduate fee is the Faculty of Arts and Social Science, which is ₦2.6 million.
African University of Science and Technology
- Founded: 2007
- Location: Airport Road, Galadimawa, Abuja F.C.T, Nigeria
- Fees (Average): ₦1.5 million
The African University of Science and Technology (AUST) is one of the top private universities in Abuja. It was established in 2007 and it became the first pan-African University concept developed by the Nelson Mandela Institution (NMI).
The institution is known for its extensive research in different fields. It runs undergraduate and postgraduate studies, Foundation and Remedial Studies, professional certification courses, and diplomas.
AUST school fees for undergraduate students are ₦1.5 million per session and ₦750,000 per semester. This is apart from other fees such as accommodation which is between ₦400,000 to ₦828,000 for a year.
African University of Science and Technology school fees for postgraduate is between ₦1.2 million to ₦4.2 million, depending on the program.
It is worthy of note that the school has a different school fee structure for foreign students.