Awareness, acceptance, and uptake of human papilloma virus vaccine among female undergraduate students of University of Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria

Cervical cancer remains a major threat to women’s health and is primarily caused by high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. Although HPV, uptake remains low in many resource-limited settings. This study assessed awareness, acceptance, and uptake of HPV vaccine among female undergraduate students at the University of Jos, Nigeria. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 245 students using a structured questionnaire between June and July 2024. Data were analysed using SPSS version 25. Descriptive statistics summarised demographic characteristics; Chi-square tests examined associations between demographics and categorical variables, while logistic regression identified predictors of vaccine acceptance. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Most respondents (72.7%) were aged 21–25 years. Sexual history was reported by 58%, and 5.3% reported sexual debut before 16 years. Awareness of HPV vaccine was moderate (52.7%), acceptance was low (40%), and uptake was extremely low (2%). HPV infection and other sexually transmitted infections were reported by 2.9% and 16.7% of respondents respectively, while 1.2% reported a history of cervical cancer. Regression analysis showed that students from the Faculties of Agricultural Sciences and Arts were less likely to accept vaccination, whereas higher awareness predicted acceptance. Targeted educational intervention may improve cervical cancer prevention.