Comparative Assessment of Leadership Style of Past Three Vice Chancellors of University of Agriculture, Makurdi Gyanden Peter Kughur 1 ; Bini B. Adiel 2 ; Dennis Tumba 2 Department of Agricultural Extension and Communication, University of Agriculture, Makurdi Benue State, Nigeria Corresponding Author: gyandenkugh@gmail.com he degree of complexity attendant in university administration is hardly to be encountered in any other organization with peculiarities which distinguish it from military, paramilitary and ministry. The vice chancellor in university is primarily concerned with how to manage resources allocated to them which requires constant teamwork and communication; however the situation is different in most of the universities. The study assessed leadership style of past three vice chancellors of University of Agriculture, Makurdi. Simple random sampling was used in selecting 16 respondents from four colleges, two departments, one directorate and one institute; primary data were collected using structured questionnaire. Results revealed that Gyang authoritarian 63.5%, Ayatse flexible 56.25%, Uza authoritarian 43.75%, on selected leadership attributes: Gyang 31.25% low level of accessibility, Ayatse 31.25% good financial resources management, Uza 37.5% financial transparency. On rate of violation of the University laws Gyang 62.5% violated laws concerning promotion, recruitment and admission. It is recommended that vice chancellors style of leadership should be service to the people since decision making in the university is different from what is obtainable in other organizations. 1. Introduction Leadership is an acknowledged component of the basic functions of management along with planning, organizing and controlling, leadership sometimes called directing or coordinating the process in achieving organizational objectives (Tamuno, 1987). Similarly, Marx (1933) Has been quoted by Herman (1977) wrote about rational organizations and initiated discussions of qualities of a leadership in an organization. He put it that a leader could be characterized in terms of the amount of direction and support that the leadership enjoys and provides to his followers. He categorized all leadership into four behaviour types, as followed: directing, coaching, supporting and delegating. Leadership is a social influence process in which the leader seeks the voluntary participation of subordinates in an effort to reach organization goals, a process whereby one person exerts social influence over other members of the group, a process of influencing the activities of an individual or a group of individuals in an effort towards goal achievement in given situations, and a relational concept involving both the influencing agent and the person being influenced (Herman, 1977). Bhatti et al. (2012) identified three leadership styles which are autocratic, democratic and laissez-faire. According to Bhatti et al. (2012), a leader is a person who sees something that needs to be done, knows that they can help make it happens and gets started. A leader sees opportunity and captures it. He/she sees future that can be different and better and help others see that picture too. He/she is a coach, an encourager and is willing to take risks today for something better tomorrow. A leader is a communicator, co-ordinator and listener. Buckner (1988) stated, leadership style is the way in which leaders relate to those around them, whether constituents, advisers, or other leaders – how they structure interactions and the norms, rules and T Keywords: Leadership, style, three vice chancellors, university of agriculture International Journal of Agricultural Science, Research and Technology in Extension and Education Systems (IJASRT in EESs) Available online on: http://ijasrt.iau-shoushtar.ac.ir ISSN: 2251-7588 Print ISSN: 2251-7596 Online 2016: 6(2):75-84 Received: 3 November 2016 Reviewed: 1 March 2017 Revised: 3 March 2017 Accepted: 3 March 2017 Abstract