Assessment of Information Needs and Information Seeking Pattern for Academic Activities among Postgraduate Students in Federal Universities North East Nigeria

The study assessed information needs and information seeking pattern for academic activities among postgraduate students in Federal Universities, North East Nigeria. The study adopted a quantitative approach using a descriptive survey and the population of the study comprised of seven thousand eight hundred and sixty four (7,864) postgraduate students registered in 2024/2025 academic session in three (3) selected Federal Universities in North East, Nigeria. The universities were: Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU), Bauchi, Bauchi State, Modibbo Adama University (MAU), Yola, Adamawa State and University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID), Borno State. Two standadised questionnaire with 5-point Likert’s scale were adapted and used as the research instrument. The questionnaire was validated and pilot test was carried out at Federal University of Technology, Minna, Niger State with Cronbach alpha of 0.85. Descriptive statistics of mean and standard deviation were used to analyse data generated from the two (2) research questions raised, while, inferential statistics of Pearson Product Momment Correlation (PPMC) was used to test the two null-hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The finding of the study showed that the level of information needs for academic activities among Postgraduate Students in Federal Universities, North East Nigeria was high. Also, the study indicated that the extent of information seeking pattern for academic activities among Postgraduate Students in Federal Universities, North East Nigeria was moderate. Furthermore, the study revealed that there is no significant influence between information needs and academic activities among Postgraduate Students in Federal Universities, North East Nigeria. Moreover, the study revealed that there is significant influence between information seeking pattern and academic activities among Postgraduate Students in Federal Universities, North East Nigeria. The study concluded that while postgraduate students in federal universities in North East Nigeria exhibit strong awareness of their information needs, the effectiveness of their academic activities is more strongly shaped by their practical information seeking behaviours. Recommendations were made.