GRE and TOEFL testing is critical to enabling Nigerians achieve their graduate school ambitions in the United States and other countries. It goes without saying that these educational experiences in turn play a role in the development of the country. Through these experiences, Nigerian students expand their worldview, acquire critical skills and eventually return home to start businesses and fill various roles requiring their education and skill.

However, ETS' recent suspension of testing in Nigeria, a country of 170 million people, automatically disenfranchises most students with such ambitions. It is also unfortunate that the reason presented by ETS for this decision is severely lacking in detail. "...due to security concerns..." says very little.

I am starting this petition because testing was a critical step on my journey to an amazing two years of graduate school at MIT. Those two years redefined my life's goals, made me passionate about fixing the electricity problem in Nigeria and gave me the education, tools and networks to get started. I know of several other Nigerian grad students who have experienced similar epiphanies at various schools in the United States and I shudder to think about how many others still in Nigeria, perhaps still in undergraduate programs, that the recent testing suspension will prevent from having a similar experience.

Here's ETS's announcement: http://www.ets.org/gre/important_update/nigeria