The Internationalization of higher education has plummeted since the 2010 tightening of migration policies. This study aims to examine the retention and graduation rates of international students at Northern Arizona University (NAU). Using a quantitative analysis approach, the study utilized secondary data from the Center for International Admission and Recruitment Office at NAU to examine the university’s recruitment, graduation, and retention strategies. The aim was to evaluate the impact of internationalization strategies on application and enrolment numbers. The study sample consisted over 2000 international students from fourteen countries, including China, India, Vietnam, Kuwait, Nepal, Ghana, Nigeria, United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, Canada, Mexico, France, and Iran in four cultural groups (Asia, Europe, Africa, and North America). A random sampling technique was used to select these countries partly because of their highest applications, enrolment numbers, as well as their adoption of recruitment strategies like those used by higher education institutions in the United States. A descriptive graphic representation, focusing on full-time undergraduate students during fall semesters, specifically freshmen international students, is illustrated. To facilitate a cross-country comparison of international students, this study presents an analysis of retention and graduation data across different countries spanning the past five years, from 2016 to 2020.

The price of grains like maize and sorghum is subject to significant fluctuations, which can have a significant impact on a country's economy and food security. The aim of the study is to model sorghum and maize price volatility in Nigeria. The data utilized in the study was extracted from World Bank Commodity Price Data (WBCPD), 2022. The data consists of monthly prices in nominal US dollars for maize and sorghum from January 1960 – August 2022. The Autoregressive Conditional Heteroskedasticity (ARCH) and Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroskedasticity (GARCH) models were utilized for capturing the two-grain price volatility. Two types of conditional heteroscedastic models exist, the first group uses exact functions to control the evolution of , while the second group describes with stochastic equations. It is inferred from the result that inherent uncertainties and fluctuations existed in the prices of maize and sorghum in Nigeria which implies that the price volatility is positive and statistically significant suggesting that historical information and past shocks play a crucial role in determining the volatility observed in the grains. It is recommended that the ARCH, GARCH, EGARCH, TGARCH, PARCH, CGARCH, and IGARCH models should be employed for modeling and managing the volatility of maize and sorghum prices in Nigeria. These models have shown effectiveness in capturing different aspects of volatility, including the impact of past shocks, conditional volatility, asymmetry, and other relevant factors.

Background: There is paucity of data on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among Health Information Managers/Health Record Officers (HROs) in the Nigeria health system. Hence, this study investigated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on health-related quality of life (QoL) among HROs in Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital Complex (OAUTHC), Ile-Ife, Nigeria. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in the University Hospital, where a total of 52 health record officers were purposively sampled. Relevant data were collected using the Short Form survey (SF-36v2) questionnaire. One-way ANOVA was used to determine mean group differences across the nine and the two QoL (physical and mental) summary domains based on respondents’ socio-demographics, while level of significance was set at 0.05. Results: All the QoL sections of the instrument used yielded an α-Cronbach’s score of > 0.70. Analysis of some QoL physical component dimensions showed that; Bodily pain (BP) was found to be significantly (P=0.032) associated with marital status, Physical functioning (PF) with gender (P=0.023), and general health (GH) with age group (P=00.025) and highest level of education (P=0.023). On the other hand, mental health component analysis revealed that Social Functioning (SF) was associated with age group (P=014), Role limitation (RE) with marital status (P=0.048), highest level of education (P=0.048) and years of service (P=0.015) etc. Conclusion: The QoL among HROs studied was generally above average, and demographic characteristics such as age, gender and marital status significantly influence QoL. Health managers and stakeholders should consider some of the factors identified in managing HROs.

A regular menstrual cycle is important to maintain a woman’s fertility. This cycle has been linked to optimal function of the thyroid gland in the production of its hormones. Disturbance of thyroid gland functions could result to female infertility due to changes in menstrual patterns. Aim of this research was to determine the correlation between thyroid gland functions and menstrual patterns amongst infertile and fertile women attending a tertiary care hospital in North-Central Nigeria. This comparative, cross-sectional study recruited 106 women who visited the hospital's Gynecology Clinic and Family Planning Clinic. 53 of the 106 patients were women with a history suggestive of either primary or secondary infertility and the remaining 53 women with no history of infertility served as the control. A well-structured questionnaire was used to obtain data on the patients’ menstrual patterns. Anthropometric data were measured and obtained. Collected blood samples were analyzed using Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) technique to determine the serum levels of thyroid hormones. All obtained data was analyzed, and the level of significance was set at p<0.05, at a 95% confidence interval. 33 patients had menstrual anomalies (78.8% infertile women; 21.2% fertile women who served as control, p=0.012). The incidence of menstrual anomalies in the infertile women group and control group was 7.5% versus 0.0% for amenorrhea; 20.8% versus 5.7% for menorrhagia; 9.4% versus 7.5% for oligomenorrhea; 7.5% versus 0.0% for hypomenorrhea; nil polymenorrhea for both groups; and 50.9% versus 86.8% for normal menstrual patterns. Ten (9.43%) patients were diagnosed with thyroid dysfunctions (80% in infertile group; 20% in control group, p=0.046). Six (18.2%) out of 33 women with menstrual anomalies were diagnosed with thyroid dysfunction. Five (83.3%) out of these 6 women with both menstrual anomalies and diagnosed thyroid dysfunction were infertile while only one (16.7%) was fertile. Thyroid gland dysfunction correlates strongly with abnormal menstrual patterns, which implies that it is vital to evaluate thyroid hormone levels in blood serum in the course of treating menstrual irregularities and female infertility. Early detection of thyroid dysfunction is important in achieving a positive treatment outcome for female infertility.