THE NEED FOR GUIDANCE AND COUNSELLING SERVICES AMONG TERTIARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

ABSTRACT

This research work assessed the need for guidance and counseling services among Tertiary school students. The general purpose of the study is to determine the need for guidance and counseling services among students in Nigerian universities, to ascertain the need for guidance and counseling services in Nigerian Universities, to identify the need for university students to embrace guidance and counseling services, to identify how the University can effectively and adequately provide guidance and counseling services to the University students, to identify bottlenecks that might militate against the establishment of guidance and counseling services in universities as well as those bottlenecks that might prevent students from accessing such services. Descriptive research design was used for the study. The population of the study comprised studentsin the University of Benin, Benin City, Edo State. There are fifteen (15) faculties in the university, three faculties were randomly selected and it utilized a sample of one hundred and fifty (150) students from the randomly selected faculties in university. The instrument for the study was questionnaires, which were designed based on the research questions raised. The instrument was validated by three experts. For reliability of the instrument, a Cronbach's Alpha method of reliability was used to determine the consistency of the instrument. A reliable Alpha value of 0.83 was x obtained, of the need for guidance and counseling services among undergraduates in tertiary institutions. The results of the demographic characteristics of the sex of the respondents showed that 47.33% were males while 53.67% were females. Average number of the respondents agreed that guidance and counselling services were available and accessible to undergraduate students of the University of Benin (item means were greater than criterion mean 2.5; to all the items). The items means ranged from 2.65– 2.94. The respondents, on the average, were satisfied with the current guidance and counselling services provided by the University of Benin (item means were greater than criterion mean 2.5; to all the items). The items means ranged from 2.66–2.78. From analyses it was observed that, on the average, the respondents agreed (item means were greater than criterion mean 2.5; to all the items) that the effectiveness and quality of the counselling programs currently offered by the University of Benin were satisfactory. The items’ means ranged from 2.66–2.89. The research also showed that students were facing challenges in accessing the University counselling centre (item means were greater than criterion mean 2.5; to all the items). The items’ means ranged from 2.11– 2.76.