The University of Lagos and the University of Birmingham will begin teaching two joint postgraduate programmes in Lagos in September 2027. UNILAG and Birmingham are offering an MSc in Artificial Intelligence and Data Technologies and an MA in Digital Media and Communications.
Birmingham announced the launch on 15 October, following a memorandum of understanding signed in January. The programmes are intended for students in Nigeria, with teaching delivered locally through the universities’ transnational education partnership.
Prospective students can currently register their interest through Birmingham’s official programme page to receive further details. That facility is an expression of interest, rather than an admission offer. The page does not set out tuition fees, entry requirements or an application deadline.
Both courses are described as one-year programmes. The MSc will cover machine learning, deep learning, computer vision, large language models, data management and the ethics of artificial intelligence. Its combination of theory and practical work is intended to develop programming and analytical skills.
The MA will examine digital cultures alongside research methods, content creation and broadcasting. Its stated career applications include journalism and the wider communications industry. These are the universities’ intended areas of preparation, rather than guarantees of employment after graduation.
The launch involved Birmingham provost Professor Nick Vaughan-Williams and UNILAG vice-chancellor Professor Folasade T. Ogunsola, with Education Minister Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa present. The universities said they had worked with the Ministry of Education and the National Universities Commission on developing the programmes.
Their January agreement provided an earlier framework for the project. Signed on 29 January at UNILAG’s Senate House, it envisaged a Lagos-based Transnational Education Unit, with programme delivery in 2027 subject to further approvals and agreements.
UNILAG said at the time that its relationship with Birmingham had developed over more than a decade. The proposed arrangements were designed to combine international academic cooperation with courses relevant to Nigeria’s needs. The October announcement identifies the two degrees and a specific teaching start month.
The partnership also extends beyond the new courses. Birmingham’s programme information identifies existing academic and research links, including cooperation through the Global Surgery Network. The universities describe postgraduate education as a further stage in that relationship.
UNILAG reported another Birmingham delegation visit in a report published on 21 October, during its International Week. Professor Francis Pope, Birmingham’s professor of atmospheric science, met Professor Rose Alani of UNILAG’s Department of Chemistry and members of its Air Quality Monitoring Research Group.
Their discussions covered air pollution, its effects on health and the environment, and opportunities for further research cooperation. UNILAG’s account described exploratory discussions, without announcing a completed study or new research findings.
The visitors also experienced the university’s electric mobility initiative and visited UNILAG Radio 103.1 FM. The campus engagements accompanied the wider institutional relationship, rather than marking the start of teaching on the postgraduate courses.
For students considering the two degrees, the confirmed timetable remains September 2027. Birmingham’s official registration-of-interest page invites prospective applicants to provide their details so they can receive further information about the programmes.
Image: UNILAG Senate Building, 20 May 2017. Cupid04 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped archive photograph, not the programme launch.
