Guiding Muslim Women in the University: The Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria Women’s Programmes in Northern Nigeria

ABSTRACT This article discusses how the Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria (MSSN) shapes the way of life of Muslim women in northern Nigeria’s higher educational institutions. The MSSN expects Muslim women to be symbols of piety, home builders and career professionals, and, in line with these objectives, it promotes an Islamic reform that emphasises Western education and the embodiment of prophetic traditions. Many platforms, such as the Sisters’ Circle and Marriage Guidance and Counselling (MAGACO), are used by the MSSN to guide the women on how to achieve this tradition of reform. Through these platforms, the women are engaged on a variety of subjects, such as giving support to acquire Western education, learning the prophetic traditions, and dealing with marital concerns and societal problems that affect their gender. I argue that these platforms enable Muslim women to actively participate in public life and deal with the problems they face in education, religion and marriage. This is demonstrated in their employment in many professional careers, and their ability to stimulate changes, including contesting the notion of women’s education, the women-centred reform orientation of the MSSN, and the government policy on veiling in public schools.