UNEMPLOYABLE WE: WHAT THEY DID FOR US AND HOW WE FAILED
Saturday, November 14, 2015
And our second biochemical writer has been a regular caller on the blog, he has authored two posts this and this, So I guess we have to sit back, relax and enjoy this write up he entitled "UNEMPLOYABLE WE: WHAT THEY DID FOR US AND HOW WE FAILED"
I
sat by the window of the bus. The bus was filling up quickly and soon we’d be
off to Aba. I have just been doused with dirty and clean water, and stoned pure
water sachet by my lodge mates in the now infamous rite of passage in Nigeria
Universities. It was fun, but now it was over. Back to the real world.
The
time was around 5:30 pm. And less than two hours ago, I had written my final
paper and was now a graduate. I was happy, proud but I was empty and lost. And
as that bus pulled out of the park, the only thought on my mind was “did I just
waste four years of my life? What did I achieve? Am I really worth it?” I don’t
know the answers to my own questions, so it only scared me more and I felt like
I was drowning in a sea of uncertainties and fears. I could barely breathe. At
that moment I needed no soothsayer to tell me I was lost and I couldn’t find my
way out.
What
do I know about biochemistry? Honestly? Nothing. Nada. Zilch. And I didn’t
care. I just wanted to get the certificate. And I could barely perform any
biochemical magic if I was left in a laboratory. What do I know about
originality and life in general? NOTHING. Do I have a talent? Sure, in passing
exams without even caring what the course was all about. Twice each year we go
through the mundane, but obligatory, exercise of burying ourselves in books,
burning the midnight candle and studying what we barely understand or believed
in. It becomes a part of us that we purse these things and we become passionate
about things we don’t understand. And in the end, these things becomes our
greatest achievements, our biggest failures and the biggest testament that even
though we have achieved so much, we have also failed so much in pursing what we
never wanted in the first place. Sometimes I think it is the cross of being a Nigerian
student in a Nigerian school where talk has more value than experience.
And
as that bus sped away from Umuahia to Aba, I knew deep within me, in all certainty,
that I have not fought a good fight but instead I have run a good race and have
won a good, but soulless race. If that bus had crashed that day my description
would have been; “a recent graduate of biochemistry.” Nobody would have known
that though I have passed most of my exams I knew nothing about those courses.
If
I ever have a child I’d say to him or her: “Child,
planning is good, education is wonderful but so also is making the rules as you
go. Going to class is ideal but I’d rather you stayed in the lab mixing
chemicals you don’t know the name or hacking into computer. Someday you might
discover something. And if you get burnt while playing with chemicals, you’ve
learned a lesson and gained an experience, which is: ‘always read the
instruction manual first’.”
That
is the beauty of experience, it is the best teacher. And it makes us appreciate
the theoretical more. I confided in a friend about my fears of my incompetency
and he replied thus;
“….
By this time next year, I will be a graduate of engineering. But here is the
funniest part: I can draw and tell you more about how stuffs works than how to
make them work. I suppose that’s what makes us Nigerians.”
They
say Nigeria youths are unemployable but whose fault is it? That is what the
Nigerian system has made us students, precocious genius with no employable
skills.
Emeka Nwankwo
Emeka Nwankwo
Oya let me rant small, All these Nigerians praying for France, Una never pray for Nigeria with all the Boko attacks we dey suffer, i have never seen such massive support for nigeria....where is our patriotism?
Like the wise man says "Thank you for the past 7 minutes of your time"
4 comments
This made a great read for me. Emeka speaks the mind of a many Nigerian graduates. We go through a system where talk is more important than experience like you rightly pointed out... I don't know if the change mantra currently going on in the nation can tweak this so called Nigerian system for the future good of our nation.
ReplyDeleteThere is still hope.
Weldone Sir.
Thanks Ugoo
DeleteI believe that there's still hope and one day we'll get there
Nice piece i must say! Kudos Emeka! I share in ur fear as well, even as am enjoying the title of being a graduate i still ask my self if what i know really equates the title! But all the same i do not regret my 4yrs stay cos i see the university as a place where ur eyes r opened to the realities of life! B y the time you come out, thats when ur true life journey actually begins!
ReplyDeleteTouché! You've said it all Chigoo. University changed my perspective on life and I met wonderful people.
DeleteThanks for the compliment, am truly honored
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