MANAGERIAL STRATEGIES AND LECTURERS’ ACADEMIC ROLE PERFORMANCE AS PREDICTORS OF STUDENTS’ ENTREPRENEURIAL POTENTIAL DEVELOPMENT IN FEDERAL UNIVERSITIES IN NORTH-CENTRAL NIGERIA

Abstract

This study investigated the extent to which managerial strategies and lecturers’ academic role performance predict students’ potential development in entrepreneurship education in Federal Universities in North-Central Nigeria. The study was guided by nine research objectives, nine research questions, and nine null hypotheses, all tested at the 0.05 level of significance. Relevant literature was reviewed under conceptual and empirical frameworks to provide a theoretical foundation for the study. A correlational survey research design was adopted to determine the nature and strength of relationships among the variables. The population of the study consisted of 2,441 respondents,. Data were collected using three researcher-developed instruments: the Managerial Strategies for Students’ Potential Development in Entrepreneurship Education Questionnaire (MSSPDEEQ), the Lecturers’ Academic Role Performance Questionnaire (LARPQ), and the Students’ Potential Development in Entrepreneurship Education Questionnaire (SPDEEQ). The instruments were validated by experts, and their reliability coefficients were found to be adequate for the study. Data obtained were analyzed using mean and standard deviation to answer the research questions, while simple linear regression analysis was used to test the null hypotheses at the 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that university management adopted several strategies to a high extent, including curriculum development, institutional and policy frameworks, resource allocation, student support services, monitoring and evaluation mechanisms, and digital infrastructural strategies, all of which significantly enhanced students’ entrepreneurial potential development. The results also showed that lecturers’ academic role performance particularly in teaching effectiveness, mentoring, supervision, assessment, and practical skill facilitation significantly contributed to students’ potential development in entrepreneurship education. Furthermore, managerial strategies and lecturers’ academic role performance jointly emerged as significant predictors of students’ entrepreneurial potential development. The study concluded that effective managerial strategies and high-quality lecturers’ academic role performance are critical determinants of successful entrepreneurship education outcomes in Federal Universities in North-Central Nigeria. It was therefore recommended that university management should sustain and strengthen supportive managerial strategies, while lecturers should be continuously trained and motivated to enhance their academic role performance. Such measures would improve students’ entrepreneurial competencies, self-reliance, and readiness for productive engagement in the labour market.