By Taofeeq Imam, Confidence News Nigeria
Just after his completion of his first degree at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto. Abdulsomad Oyinlola , a graduate from the department of Linguistics has always been passionate about international scholarship. Although, graduating with a Second class lower had given him a lot of doubts, little did he know his potential and dedication would make him competitive beyond this CGPA.
Oyinlola, a native of Offa local government began his educational career in Linguistic at Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto in 2016, Knowing fully well about his academic ambition, Abdulsomad’s CGPA kept ascending and ended up graduating with a CPGA of 3.23. Sequel to his graduation, he had faced a lot of rejections but his passion keeps driving him to engaging in his academic pursuit.
In April 2024, Abdulsomad was granted a fully funded scholarship for his MSc in English with a concentration in Linguistics at Texas Tech University, United States of America (USA) his journey was a tedious one full of rejection and multiple denials, but the story changed for him on this day.
“Graduating with a 2:2 caused me to doubt my potential, but I eventually found the perfect program for me. Over the years, I dedicated myself to polishing my application portfolio to stand out and make the admission committee look beyond my GPA. I spent most of my time acquiring certifications, teaching experiences, and research success. I believe I earned this opportunity through hard work and determination. With tenacity and perseverance, I achieved success.” – Abdulsomad shared his experience
His dedication to academic pursuit began during his undergraduate studies when he was mocked by his colleagues and called the “Baba Scholarship”. The name was given to him sequel to his persistent research on international scholarship.
“I faced a lot of obstacles when I was an undergraduate, knowing fully well that I was a 2:2 student, I was mocked by a lot of students that I could not compete in international scholarship. Over the years I faced countless off and rejections while applying for this scholarship has happened to turn out positive was the last application I submitted and indeed it was a great blessing for me” Oyinlola concluded
More graduates shares experience
Just like Oyinlola, Uchenna Emelife is a graduate of Literature in English from Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto. Emelife’s passion for education and international scholarship began during his undergraduate program making him the best graduating student of his set with 4.25.
In August 2024, Uchenna was awarded a fully funded Erasmus Munded Scholarship for his MSc in Children’s Literature, Media, and Cultural Entrepreneurship. The scholarship comes with a funded mobility in universities
across the UK and Europe beginning with University of Glasgow.
“As cliched as this may sound, nothing beats consistency. I was consistent through it all. I realized the importance of my academics early on, thanks to my family background, and I knew I needed to put in my best to be excellent. I listened attentively in class, ensured I studied on my own, and took every academic activity seriously. In addition, I knew it wasn’t just academic excellence that ensured growth especially the kind I envisioned and still envision, so I carried out development projects. I started Book O’Clock in my third year, a literary platform that aims to improve the reading culture, collaborated with like-minds and carried out exciting projects and programs on campus that were both educating and entertaining. These made me have a balanced profile, of being both academically good and at the same time, professionally sound.” Emelife shared experience.
In addition, don’t just be a classroom participant. Engage yourself in extracurricular activities. Look for virtual and in-person initiatives you can volunteer and intern with. This will help build your portfolio so that after graduation, you already have some professional experience you can utilize in both job and scholarship applications. And last of all, if you’re a believer, hold God close. He is the one who directs and all you have to do is follow. he advised
Muhammad Adeyemi, a graduate of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology was awarded a fully founded European scholarship in Norway. His achievement was due to a lots of his dedication, volunteerism and hardwork when he was an Undergraduate.
“When I was an Undergraduate, I engaged in lots of volunteerism and extra curricular activities beyond academic learning. Facing rejection at the process of applications is what I’m addicted to and I feel elated everything turns out positive at the end”. He said
Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto, having ranked as one of the top 20 best Universities in the world is known to have impacted the knowledge, skills, and morality of its students.