As a student in Nigeria, you may be hearing about a new system called NERD that will affect your academic work. It’s a significant change, but there’s no need to worry. The purpose of this guide is to explain in simple, clear terms what the National Education Repository and Databank (NERD) is, why it matters to you, and exactly what you need to do to comply with the new national policy.
In short, the National Education Repository and Databank (NERD) is Nigeria’s new official electronic library and digital bank for all academic work, records, and credentials from post-secondary institutions.
The core vision behind this new system is simple but powerful:
To act as the official electronic records and documents bank for the education sector in Nigeria where all participants and stakeholders can deposit their data and works for the purpose of preserving them for future generations.
2.0 Why Was NERD Created? The Big Picture
NERD was not created just to add another step to your academic journey. It was designed to solve some major, long-standing challenges in the Nigerian education system. Understanding the “why” will help you see the importance of these new requirements.
2.1. To Protect and Preserve Nigeria’s Knowledge
For decades, countless valuable research papers, theses, and project reports have been lost, misplaced, or simply impossible to find. The lack of a central storage system meant that much of Nigeria’s academic and intellectual output was vulnerable to loss, inaccurate record-keeping, and even deliberate sabotage. NERD was created to solve this by establishing a secure, permanent “National Repository of Knowledge.” This ensures that the hard work of students and researchers like you is protected and available for generations to come.
2.2. To Fight Academic Fraud and Fake Degrees
A major threat to the value of an authentic Nigerian degree is the rise of fake certificates from unaccredited “diploma mills.” NERD introduces a powerful quality assurance check to combat this. The system will maintain a national log of your academic work, such as term papers and seminar reports, throughout your studies. This log provides verifiable, session-by-session proof of your continuous enrollment and scholarship, making it extremely difficult for anyone to fake a degree they did not rightfully earn.
2.3. To Promote Originality and Stop Plagiarism
Enhancing the quality and integrity of academic reports is a primary goal of the NERD system. To achieve this, the system is designed to eliminate plagiarism and promote originality. It does this through a straightforward but effective tool: a mandatory anti-plagiarism check for every single academic work before it can be officially deposited into the databank.
Now that you understand the key reasons for NERD’s creation, let’s look at the specific new responsibilities this places on you as a student.
3.0 What You Need to Do: A Student’s Step-by-Step Guide
This section is your practical guide to what is now required of every student in a Nigerian post-secondary institution. Following these steps is essential for your academic progression and future career milestones.
3.1. The Mandatory Deposit Rule
Every student is now required to deposit an electronic copy of their academic work into the national repository.
What You MUST Deposit:
- Theses
- Dissertations
- Project Reports
- Teaching Practice Reports
- Term Papers
- Seminar Papers
- Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) or I.T. Reports
- Internship Reports
- Journal Articles
- Case Studies
- Credentials, Results, and digital or electronic copies of Transcripts
Note: While you are directly responsible for submitting your authored works like projects and reports, your institution will typically handle the deposit of official records like credentials, results, and transcripts.
Requiring deposits of works like term papers and seminar papers creates a “national log” that serves as yearly proof of your continuous enrolment. This simple step makes it much harder for fraudulent “diploma mills” to issue fake degrees, thereby protecting the value of your legitimate qualification.
3.2. The Mandatory Originality Check
Before your final work (like a project report or thesis) can be deposited, it must first be processed through the NERD system’s official similarity and anti-plagiarism checking tool. This is not an optional step; it is a required part of the submission process to ensure the originality of your work.
3.3. Your Proof of Submission: The NSVC
Upon successfully depositing your work, you will receive a digital receipt called the NERD Submission Virtual Certificate (NSVC). This certificate is your official proof of compliance. You must keep it safe, as it is essential for critical next steps after your studies, most notably for NYSC mobilization.
3.4. Understanding the Costs
There are specific fees associated with depositing your work into the NERD system. The costs are directly linked to official national allowances to ensure fairness.
- Final Academic Output (Project, Thesis, etc.): The fee is a one-off payment equivalent to 12.5% of the gross monthly allowance of an NYSC corps member.
- SIWES/I.T. Report: The fee is an amount equivalent to 7.5% of the gross SIWES fund or refund paid to a student.
Successfully navigating these steps is not just about fulfilling a requirement; it is about securing your academic record and unlocking your future opportunities.
4.0 How NERD Affects Your Future (This is Important!)
Compliance with the NERD policy is not just a graduation requirement; it is directly linked to critical milestones in your life after you leave school.
4.1. CRITICAL: Your NYSC Mobilization Now Depends on NERD
This is the single most important change for graduating students. The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) will now receive an official list of compliant graduates directly from NERD. The policy states unequivocally that the NYSC will only mobilize, exempt, or process refunds for students who have fully complied with the NERD deposit requirement and have an NSVC to prove it. Failure to deposit your final academic output means you will not be cleared for national service.
4.2. A Big Long-Term Benefit: Easy and Fast Credential Verification
For too long, Nigerian students have faced the “pain and agony” of verifying certificates and the “tedious processes” of getting academic transcripts for jobs or further education, especially abroad. NERD is designed to eliminate this problem completely by creating a centralized, credible, and instant verification system.
Here’s how NERD improves the process:
| The Old Way (Before NERD) | The New Way (With NERD) |
| Long, frustrating delays to get transcripts. | Instant transcript processing to anywhere in the world. |
| Difficult for foreign institutions to verify your certificate. | A credible, one-stop-shop for international verification. |
| Vulnerable to lost documents and inaccurate records. | A secure, centralized digital record of your achievements. |
With these key impacts in mind, let’s address some common questions you might have.
5.0 Your Questions Answered (FAQ)
Here are answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about the new NERD system.
1. When does this new NERD policy officially start? The NERD system and its policies are officially effective from the 4th of February 2025.
2. If I submit my project to NERD, do I still own the copyright? Yes. The policy is very clear that ownership of the work remains with you, the original author. NERD’s role is like that of a secure bank or a national library—it exists to preserve your work for the nation, not to take ownership of it.
3. Can I make money from my research on NERD? Yes. The policy includes an “Offtaker’s Monetization Reward” scheme. You can choose to opt-in to commercialize your publications. If you do, you can earn a defined percentage of the revenue generated from any paid downloads of your work.
6.0 Conclusion: Your Role in Building Nigeria’s Knowledge Bank
The NERD system introduces new responsibilities, but it also brings significant benefits that strengthen the value of your education. Here are the three most important takeaways for you as a student:
- Depositing your academic work (projects, theses, seminar papers, etc.) into NERD is now mandatory.
- You cannot be mobilized for NYSC without a NERD Submission Virtual Certificate (NSVC) as proof of deposit.
- This system makes your hard-earned degree more secure and easier to verify globally, adding to its credibility.
Ultimately, this new requirement is more than just an administrative task. It is your personal contribution to building a stronger, more organized, and more credible Nigerian education system for yourself and for all the students who will come after you.