Forensic Science Education Curriculum Review: Alignment with Nigerian Labour Market Demands

Forensic science education in Nigerian universities must respond to the evolving demands of the criminal justice system, healthcare, and regulatory sectors to produce graduates equipped for professional practice. This study conducts a curriculum review and labour market alignment analysis for forensic science undergraduate programmes in six Nigerian universities representing each geopolitical zone. A professional educational research design was used, collecting data from curriculum documents, interviews with twenty-four forensic science academic staff, and structured consultations with twenty forensic science employers from the police, EFCC, NAFDAC, and hospital pathology departments. The study assesses coverage of contemporary forensic specialisations, laboratory-based learning provision, industrial attachment quality, and employer satisfaction with graduate competencies. Findings reveal significant misalignment between curriculum content and employer expectations, particularly in digital forensics, forensic chemistry, and expert witness communication. Laboratory teaching was constrained in four of the six universities by inadequate equipment and consumable budgets. Employers rated the practical readiness of recent graduates at an average of forty-three out of one hundred, indicating a critical employability gap. Recommendations include the establishment of a national forensic science curriculum advisory board with permanent employer representation, a minimum laboratory equipment standard for accredited forensic science programmes, and mandatory structured industrial internship of at least six months. Keywords: forensic science education, curriculum review, labour market, Nigeria, graduate employability.