Tax Education and Compliance Among University Students in Bauchi State

This study examines the relationship between tax education and awareness of future tax compliance obligations among undergraduate students in Bauchi State, North East Nigeria. As potential future taxpayers, university students represent a critical cohort for building a sustainable culture of tax compliance from an early stage. Despite this, tax education is rarely integrated into the broader university curriculum outside accounting and finance programmes. Using a descriptive survey design, data are collected from 300 undergraduate students across two universities in Bauchi State, including both students enrolled in business-related programmes and those in science and humanities disciplines. The questionnaire assesses current knowledge of personal income tax obligations, attitudes toward tax payment, and willingness to comply voluntarily upon entering employment. Secondary data from academic literature on tax socialisation are used to contextualise primary findings. Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests are applied. The study expects to find that business and finance students have significantly higher tax knowledge and more positive compliance intentions than non-business students, and that early exposure to taxation content in secondary school moderates this gap. Recommendations include integrating basic tax literacy modules into the national university general studies curriculum, partnering with the Joint Tax Board to sponsor on-campus tax awareness events, and incorporating real-world tax filing simulations into accounting degree programmes. Keywords: tax education, compliance, university students, Bauchi State, tax awareness.