A critical expose of the worlds concept of a university graduate

Dear graduates, 

A journey just starting at 25 for some, a journey still at its early 20’s for a lucky few only, it seems rather late for some as they are about crossing to the 30’s league.

My dear bachelors, and spinsters, put aside this age tag, age has never been a yardstick for measuring excellence or life achievements. It is just a number, as a friend do put it to me. Sink yourself in self-confidence, make self-love your priority and always render to your ears the insurmountable mantra.

You’re graduates today and your families are proud of you, you came, you saw and you conquered. My epistle is to make you remember that being a graduate isn’t a guarantee to succeed in life. Especially in the everyday socioeconomic downhill we are today in Nigeria. Being a first class student is awesome, having only that to offer is foolishness. Yes, having the bragging rights to such academic brilliance is one of the most exhilarating feeling one can get academically.

I beg you not to become illogically stuck in the illusional joy first class brings to the heart. You wouldn’t be the first to graduate with such grade, our country can in fact boast of first class graduates as mechanics, carpenters and other petty jobs not thoughtful for a first class. At the same time, we have first class graduates going on to become professors, holding positions in several public or private holdings.

Ask yourself, how much real-life problem can you solve? Do you understand the concept of intelligence and perseverance? You must have heard and read from many that School only took time to test your memory, higher education gave you a lifeline to succeed in life. No one in school taught you what life has In-store for you. I hope most of you understood while you were undergraduates.

Now that you’re out, don’t sit or look around lackadaisically. For the ladies who’re readying to step over to the marital status, take your time, love will come, move out to the right places because love won’t walk into your father’s house.

To the men, you’re going to become the one to feed your wife and children, you have no time to continue keeping the statistics of girls you have slept with. Please don’t smoke weed. It obstructs reasonable thinking. This is the stage when you have to man up and go out there not only with your glistering or average CV, but with your resounding intelligence and attractive character.

Your abilities at solving problems and your skills at standing out will say a lot for you and determine how high you’re going.

Being in school was sweet, the days of borrowed ata gigun (grounded pepper), the days of financial exploits from home, the days of chasing beautiful girls, the days when night parties were cool and social life was an achievement. You have to wake up to the reality that these days are over. During these times you weren’t thinking, you missed a lot of opportunities that came your way, you have maybe sent away a wife/husband because you wanted to enjoy life.

Take a step forward, and breath in freshness, assure yourself that you’re a changed person and soak yourself in self-confidence as it is never too late.

As a man, keep in mind that at this stage no real lady will want to be with you because of your type of phone, car or because of the type of swag you boast of. A real lady will only stick with you for your potential, high reasoning capability, confidence in yourself and your future, be manly and disregard emptiness, strive to learn about life because gone are the days of inheritance, handle leadership positions wherever you find yourself, solve problems, learn from people because failing in life won’t be the same as failing in school, hold meaningful conversations and relate with like minds, be objective.

To the beautiful ladies, build yourself, learn basic home keeping abilities because even as we clamour for gender equality, we are Africans, it is us to charge the lady with home keeping and the man with providing, respect your man and watch him adore and respect you back, build his home with him, encourage him, don’t be an empty barrel with only sex to offer, be a woman of value because no man wants to be with a woman full of emptiness, it is great to decide to focus on your career, but remember, happiness has different definitions and fulfillments vary, you shouldn’t neglect family for career if you have to because life isn’t one side of a coin, a lot of things will come at you, please stand tall.

And finally to everyone, don’t just sit at home praying to God and going to church, the highest position in the civil service is the permanent secretary, a secretary is to serve a boss and think for him as long as he’s still in service. So choose your path wisely. You can be better, sit down, think, go out, mix, try out a lot of things and fail,there are several ways to standout, yours is in you.

Avoid thuggery and its compatriots. They pose threats to our communities, the safety of your future and our life should be your priorities.

You’re now men and women of great value, you must have mastered the art of reasoning, objectiveness, perseverance, endurance, intelligence, social etiquette, morals, self-discipline, meaningful conversation and several other attributes.

Because as I stated earlier, your degree shouldn’t be what you depend on to become a success (success has different definitions, though) , forget how good you’re on a piece of paper you earned from your ability to copy and paste a lot of syllabus verbatim, most syllabuses isn’t even in conformation with the needs and asking intelligence of the Nigerian economy. Without all these aforementioned principles, you’re just one of the several jobless youths out there.

May God be with you. 

Akingbade Ademide