Al-Hikmah University Journal

The study examined Students’ Industrial Work Experience Scheme during corona virus epidemic and students employability skills in universities in North-central and South-western Nigeria. The study sought answer to three research questions. Descriptive survey research design was used for the study. The population of the study was 1,619 business education students in public universities in North-central and South-western States, Nigeria. The entire population was used for the study. Questionnaire on Influence of SIWES on Students’ Employability Skills (QISIWESSES) with Cronbach alpha reliability of 0.93 was used for data collection. Mean and standard deviation score was used to analyze the research questions. The findings of the study indicated that SIWES positively influence business education students’ communication skill, teamwork skill and problem-solving skill to high extent during Corona Virus Epidemic. Based on the findings, the following are recommended among others; The industrial training should be more organized to sufficiently meet the practical needs of students. There is therefore very serious need for the stakeholders: universities, ITF and training establishments to collaborate more to strengthen the scheme. These stakeholders should be involved in the programme from the placement to the actual training period.