The National Universities Commission (NUC), has disclosed that it is currently processing over 200 applications for new private universities in the country.

The Executive Secretary of the Commission, Abubakar Rasheed, made this known in Abuja during a meeting with the federal universities’ bursars.

According to him, “the university system is growing and private universities including federal and state universities can no longer cope with the large numbers of yearly applications for admission.

“Nigeria has 153 universities, 40 are federal universities, 45 are state owned universities and 68 are private universities presently in the country,” he said.

It could be recalled that the NUC had earlier provided a list of all illegal universities operating in Nigeria; warning parents, guardians and students to be aware of the universities it listed who are awarding illegal degrees to unsuspecting students.