INTRODUCTION
First of all, you are most welcome to the Department of Microbiology, where men and microbes mutually co-exist. Here, microbes are managed and manipulated for the maintenance and promotion of human health and environmental safety.
The Department was established in 1981 as one of the foundation Departments of the then Imo State University, now Abia State University, Uturu. It was then a unit in the School of Biological Sciences in the erstwhile college system. When the university adopted the faculty system in 1996, the unit became a de jure Department in the Faculty of Biological and Physical sciences.
The Department runs a four – year degree programme leading to the award of Bachelor of Science (B.Sc) Honours Degree in Microbiology. The discipline of Microbiology was established to produce well-grounded and versatile, knowledgeable and skilled graduates, as well as to service other allied Departments, who of necessity require the assistance of microbiology in running their programmes. For example, students of the departments of Optometry, Biochemistry, Plant Science and Biotechnology, Animal and Environmental Biology, Food Science and technology, as well as Education Sciences take some courses in Microbiology. In Microbiology, a balance is usually struck between the theoretical and practical aspects of the course during teaching. This is in line with the views of Rosenberg and Cohen (1983) that educators in microbiology should always “strike a balance between the theoretical and applied aspects of Microbiology”. This is because, “scientific progress is motivated by both a desire to know and a desire to use the knowledge in practical ways. And nowhere is this more evident than in Microbiology”. Thus, in all our interactions with our students, we consciously endeavour to fulfill this founding philosophy of the department, namely “to strike a balance between the theoretical and applied aspects of microbiology”.
PHILOSOPHY
The programme in microbiology is designed to enable students to acquire broad– based knowledge of general Microbiology, in addition to those of specialized branches of microbiology. The knowledge and skills acquired will then be employed in solving problems in specific areas medical/veterina diagnosis, in agriculture, biotechnology, and in the protection of the environment, in food, chemical and Pharmaceutical industries; Brewing , Alcohol and Diary factories, as well as in the position of scientific officers in the relevant health and research institutions.
The degree programme consists of course works with relevant practical exercises, tutorials, project reports and industrial work experience to enable students practicalize the acquired knowledge by themselves. The re-emergence of old and emergence of new pathogens in recent years have increased the challenges posed by microorganisms to physicians, health-care providers and research scientists and recent advances in molecular biology and genetic engineering are being employed in the study, investigation and diagnosis of these microbes. For these reasons, the courses in the areas are made to help the students acquire up-to-date knowledge in the relevant areas of microbiology application in the various fields of Microbiology and related areas. In general, the programme in microbiology is designed to produce graduates who can use the knowledge acquired for self-actualization and sustenance.
In addition to the four- year B. Sc degree programme, the Department runs postgraduate programmes leading to the award of Postgraduate Diploma (PGD), Master of Science (M. Sc) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph. D) in Microbiology.
VISION
To produce knowledgeable and skilled graduates that will contribute not only to the prevention and control of diseases but also to the agricultural, industrial and technological growth of the country through research and development.
MISSION
To contribute to the agricultural, industrial and technological development of the country and the maintenance of a healthy environment through the production of top quality and highly specialized graduates and scientists for the extension of the frontiers of knowledge based upon discipline, integrity and social responsibility. On the whole, we have largely fulfilled this founding philosophy, vision and mission since our products compete favorably with their counterparts from other Universities. Graduates of this department are employed in various institutions, industries and establishments including health and research institutes. In spite of these successes, there is still room for development and improvement. And the academic staff and laboratory staff of the department are ever ready to meet the challenges of the contemporary scientific world.
CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
Graduates of microbiology have a wide range of career opportunities. In addition to their need in the overall improvement of health care delivery in the local governments, states and Federal establishments, Microbiologists are in high demand in the following areas:
Medical diagnostic and research laboratories
Pharmaceutical industries and research centers
Epidemiological and disease control centers.
Quality control units of food, beverages, textiles and leather –tanning industries
Biodegradation of industrial wastes in government and private sector environmental protection agencies
Genetic engineering / biotechnological research institutes
Brewing industries and oil companies
ADMISSION REQUIREMENT
Candidates seeking admission into the department must have 5 credits in the following subjects at WASC examination, GCE ‘O’ Level or their equivalents: English language, Mathematics, Chemistry, Biology and physics. The candidates will then proceed to have a pass score (at a level determined by the university) in JAMB examination in which the candidate would have taken, English language, chemistry, Biology and either mathematics or Physics. The candidate must also pass the University Post –JAMB UTME screening test, direct entry admission can be offered to a student with two (2) ‘A’ level passes at GCE involving Biology and Chemistry . Candidates with Chemistry and any other one of Botany, Biology or Zoology at ‘A’ level will also be considered along with candidates with OND from recognized institutions.
NAMES OF SOME PROMINENT ALUMINI OF THE DEPARTMENT
| 1.
Dr Ekperechi S. Amadi |
Associate professor/Head of Department of Microbiology, FUTO.
|
| 2.
Dr C. Jason Ogugbue |
Lecturer, Microbiology Department, UNIPORT
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| 3.
Ositadinma C. Ugbogu |
Professor of Microbiology at Abia State University
|
| 4.
Odede Preye |
Gospel Artist renowned for the hit track Ebezina |
| 5.
Dr. (Mrs)Blessing Nwadike (Nee Okoli) |
Lecturer, Department of Microbiology, UI.
|
| 6.
Dr (Mrs) Chioma Blaise Chikere (Nee Azubuike) |
Lecturer, Department of Microbiology, UNIPORT
|
| 7.
Dr. Frank Anayo orji |
Federal Institute of Industrial research Oshodi, (FIIRO).
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| 8.
Mrs Uche Uzoebo
|
Lecturer , Department of Food Science
|
| 9.
Dr T.V Balogu |
IBB University Lapai |
CONCLUSION
The course content, which is in line with the NUC’s BMAS, is designed to enable our students acquire optimum and relevant knowledge through theoretical instructions and practical exercises in various aspects of Microbiology. This programme also involves a six months students’ industrial practical exposure period (SIWES) during which students are attached to a variety of relevant industries, institutes and health care establishments to enrich their practical knowledge and at the same time apply the theoretically acquired ones. In addition, we also encourage the students to be resourceful and to make the most of all the available instruments. We make them to understand, as Winston Churchill reminded all serious minded students, that success is in the student, not in the institution, greatness is in the individual, not the library, that knowledge flow from the pen, not from the paraphernalia, that a great student will make great opportunities even out of the commonest situations. In short, every student that passes through the department is theoretically and practically encouraged to excel in the discipline of Microbiology.
