Of fresh graduates,crowded labour market

Every convocation ceremony is often characterised by sobriety, at least typically. The sobriety that graces the celebration of excellence cannot but become an important nudge for the thoughtful. Unfortunately, the glamour which trails the event has over the years become a distraction from the inspiring import of ending this phase of academic pursuit. The 69th Foundations Day Anniversary and 2017 Convocation Ceremony of the University of Ibadan was not devoid of this peculiarity. The glitz, like any social function peculiar to Nigerians, overwhelmed the week-long event which held from Monday, 12 to Friday, 16 November, 2017. Being an official at the event, I followed every part of it religiously. As the activities unfolded each day, I was inclined to ponder: where will all these graduates place their footings in the very crowded floor of the labour market? This is heart of my concern as I pen these thoughts. Couple of weeks back, I had basked in the thoughts of this rhetorical question when I found that over twenty thousand candidates were scheduled to write the 2017 University of Ibadan post UTME tests. Quite sadly, the university can accommodate a little less than four thousand fresh students. Where will the ones who miss out find their footings on the crowed floor of admissions? Let me leave that talk for another day.

I switched into intermittent moments of thoughtful reflections as events followed in sequence at the convocation ceremonies each day. I pondered the fate of individual graduands vis a vis my own strive to leave the crowed labour market years ago. Interestingly, stepping out of the hall, you could see parents, friends and well-wishers beaming with smiles. Happiness, ecstatic hugs and cheers, photographs and selfies here and there, warm pleasantries graced the atmosphere of the International Conference Centre of the university. Take a drive through the campus, you couldn’t have missed sights of canopies of different sizes and colours with name tags of graduates for easy identification. Trust me, you would have your full if you just sit under any of them. It is always a joyful time so most parents would gladly share a plat of sumptuous jollof rice with well-wishers. But these did not really answer my question. After the day, what next? Let me take you back to the convocation ceremony. If you are a parent and your ward was called out as a first-class graduand to receive prize, thereby having a record breaking handshake with the Vice Chancellor, you could almost reach for the platform to show yourself as the parent of the academic celebrity. How about that? The pride of parents is to see their children do well in school. That is the grand reward of years of investment. But I have come realize that what brings fulfillment upon the academic sojourn is not so much of the result but a resolution to matter in life. There goes the light.

Do not get me wrong, I would not hesitate to throw a party if my child comes out to be the best graduating student of the university. But here is my stance: results do not determine relevance. A resolve to add value to life is what actually makes the result an all-time celebration. If you attend any of University of Ibadan or any other university’s convocation ceremonies, you shouldn’t merely desire a first class. You should be inspired and spurred to make the best of whatever you have. This is a great lesson I learned. A good result is a product of hard work but relevance in life is a choice which can only be premised on self-discovery. The meaning of life is not on university certificates. You have to discover it. For those who had second class (upper or lower division), third class or even a pass this year, I believe no matter how inspired they were by the accolades given to outstanding graduands, the results won’t change. But their lives can be redefined. I believe such can look at their results and receive it as a challenge to matter in life. I would advise Nigerian graduates not to make what the university brands them as their life verdict. First class graduates are not intimidations for the rest, their stories can be turned into an inspiration for others. This is for wise and purposeful folks, not for the clueless. And for first-class graduates, work just started. Life will place a demand on them to make their fine results count for a making.

It might be instructive to know that if your result is your identity, you cannot be identified. Your identity is the value you add to life. Great results would secure open doors for you but when you are in, certificates do not work the field of value deposition. It is people that work. Having a degree itself is a leverage in the labour market. But let it be resonated that people do not go into the market for fun. When you get there, what value do you have to trade for relevance. As jocularly expressed, the difference between plantain chips and igbekere (local chips) is packaging. Have you ever wondered what marks the difference between the ‘garri’ sold in Bodija market in Ibadan and the one sold in sophisticated supermarkets? Packaging of cause! Simple! If you do not package your value well for a delivery, great results in school would end up being a reminder of a pursuit in futility. Pussy cat as the nursery rhyme says, was not just on a visit to London, what it went there to do was the crux of the matter.

As University of Ibadan releases graduands to the crowded floor of the labour market just like any other university does every year, let Nigerian graduates sincerely ponder this question: what have I to offer my generation beyond the convocation day? It is an individual responsibility to take this lone journey.