NOUN Issues Advisory Against Unofficial 'Area of Concentration' Materials

The management of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) has cautioned students, particularly new intakes, against reliance on unofficial materials marketed as Area of Concentration (AOC), exam focus or guaranteed questions.

In an advisory shared across study centres, the University clarified that it does not officially issue AOCs for examinations.

According to the advisory, some individuals compile and sell summaries based on personal experience or past question patterns, but such materials are not official publications of the University and should not be treated as examination guidelines.

The University emphasised that course materials remain the primary study guide for all programmes. It noted that facilitators at study centres are not necessarily the examiners who set examination questions, and therefore facilitation content or Tutor-Marked Assignment (TMA) questions should not be assumed to be the exact questions that will appear in examinations.

Students were urged to be wary of claims such as exact exam questions, 100 per cent what will come out, or directives to abandon course materials in favour of condensed notes.

The statement advised students who find course materials voluminous to use properly structured study guides only as supplementary revision aids, while maintaining focus on understanding the course content.

It further encouraged students, especially those at 100-level, to leverage official academic support channels, including facilitation classes, study centres and desk officers, for clarification and guidance.

The University reiterated that examinations are designed to test comprehension and may present familiar content from different perspectives, hence the need for thorough preparation.