MANAGING STUDENTS UNREST FOR EFFECTIVE PUBLIC UNIVERSITY ADMINISTRATION IN RIVERS STATE NIGERIA

The study investigated Managing students unrest for effective public university administration in Rivers State Nigeria. Three research questions and three corresponding null hypotheses guided the study. This study adopted a descriptive survey design. The population of the study was 9,045, consisting of 6 principal officers from Rivers State University, 4 principal officers from Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, 3,744 final-year (400 level) students from Rivers State University, and 5,291 final-year (400 level) students from Ignatius Ajuru University. The sample size was 905 respondents, comprising all 10 principal officers and 895 students. A multistage sampling technique was employed to ensure proportional representation. First, simple random sampling was used to select three faculties from each university. Then, a proportionate stratified sampling technique was applied to select 10% of the student population from each selected faculty. However, census sampling was used for the principal officers due to their small and manageable population size.  The instrument for data collection in this study was a researcher-designed questionnaire titled ‘Managing Students Unrest for Effective Public University Administration Questionnaire (MSUEPUAQ). Responses to the instrument were structured using a summated four-point rating scale of Very High Extent (VHE), High Extent (HE), Low Extent (LE) and Very Low Extent (VLE) weighted 4-1 respectively. The reliability coefficients of 0.82 was obtained which showed the instrument was reliable using Cronbach Alpha method. The research questions were answered using mean and standard deviation, while the null hypotheses were tested using the independent t-test statistical tool at 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that all three strategies are implemented to a high extent, contributing significantly to institutional stability. The study concluded that universities actively involve students in governance, maintain open communication, and provide essential welfare services such as accommodation, electricity, and healthcare. The researcher recommended among others that Universities should strengthen platforms such as student forums and consultative meetings to ensure that students’ voices are heard.