The idea of distance education was conceived by the Department of Adult Education in 1972, and the proposal was approved by Senate in 1976. It later became the External Degrees Programme in the 1988/89 session.  The Distance Learning Centre of the University of Ibadan emerged from the External Degree Programme in 2002.

 

The National Universities Commission thereafter approved the programme on the condition that it would be self-financing. Since inception, until 1993, the Department of Adult Education midwives all its activities with courses domiciled at only the Departments of Adult Education, Guidance and Counselling and Teacher Education.

 

By 1993, four more Departments joined, these included Special Education, Library, Archival & Information Studies, Educational Management and Human Kinetics & Health Education. During the 1998 academic session, the programme was extended to the Faculty of Agriculture.

 

With the inclusion of these Departments, the nomenclature changed to the centre for External Studies to reflect the changing profile, and in 2002, it became the Distance Learning Centre.  During all these formative periods, disciplines in the Social Sciences and Arts were adopted as teaching subjects towards the award of the Degrees in Education.

 

However, from 2005 to date, the programme had extended to the Faculties of the Social Sciences, Science and Arts with a considerable increase in degree and diploma programmes with a phenomenal increase in the number of students from about 1,300 in 2004 to over 16,000 in 2010.

 

The administrative office of the Centre until 2004 was located in a wooden structure on the Campus of the University. The first movement of the DLC to a location outside the University environment was in 2005, when the centre relocated to 20, Awolowo Avenue Ibadan.  The Centre moved to its present location which now serves as the Head Office on 16 November, 2008.

 

The Complex was willed to the University by Late Chief Olasupo Morohundiya, a prominent indigene of Ibadan.  The rehabilitated structure was commissioned as part of activities at the 2008 Convocation Ceremony by the Chancellor of the University, His Royal Highness, Alhaji Ado Bayero, CFR, LLD, JP. Emir of Kano.

 

The Centre is presently occupying its own permanent office and complex situated at 16, Ajanaku Street, off Salvation Bus Stop, Awuse Estate, Opebi, Ikeja, Lagos, thus taking care of the interest of its growing number of students from Lagos and its environs. Interactive sessions and examinations are held simultaneously at both venues, i.e. the University of Ibadan campus and the Lagos centre.