The Chancellor, Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Dr. David Oyedepo, has called for a re-definition of the purpose of education in Nigeria.



He suggested a review of the nation’s higher institutions’ curriculum in order to make education a source of empowerment rather than a mere means of obtaining knowledge.



He said this at a world press conference on the university campus on Wednesday as part of the activities to mark the institution’s fifth convocation ceremony scheduled for Friday.



Ninety-five of the 1,140 graduating students of the institution will be awarded first class certificates in their different fields of study.



According to him, there is a need to awaken the spirit of seeking, searching and researching. “The greatest products that have impacted humanity today are products birthed from the platform of great searching and researching to impact humanity,” he said.



He added that the refusal of trained Nigerians to give up in the extended experience of searching for productive knowledge would give the nation the needed advantage to catch up in the world of amazingly accelerating knowledge.



He said, “As a nation, we must build this consciousness in our graduates and indeed in our citizens so that they can embrace possibility thinking and entrench the values and cultures of innovation as we develop our human resource potential.



“We must seek to make Nigerians love their country in the example we provide at any level of service and by promoting the understanding of every citizen to make great contributions to the progress of the nation so that we can leave a legacy of productivity for posterity.



“This suggests that our leaders must themselves lead in meeting the needs of the people rather than be rulers who take advantage of their (citizens) ignorance and poverty.”



He said the worth of any nation was the function of its knowledge base, adding that education was the true foundation of all stories of national transformation.



A total of 1,140 students will graduate from the university on Friday.



Out of this figure, 95 students, representing 8.3 per cent of the graduates have first class; 619 representing 54.3 per cent have second class upper; 388 representing 34 per cent have second class lower; while 38 students representing 3.33 per cent of the graduating student population will go with a third class.

dats d advantage of attending privately run institutions. good facilities,environment, human resource et al ,but a major drawback most of these graduates encounter is a false feeling of being "very smart" compared 2their peers 4m public institutions.
maybe,just maybe if they attended govt run institutions,1st class or even 2'1 would av bin a mirage.
check d convocation lists of public institutions and u ll see
my humble advice 4dem is 2b grateful 2their parents who gave dem dat opportunity 2attend good institutions and realise this is just d beginning.the world out there is tougher than the relative padding they ve always enjoyed.

First clas@covenenant=second class lower at any public university.

sd-6:

First clas@covenenant=second class lower at any public university.

rotflmao

Sd-6 u re very right. Hw ll 95 students b graduating with 1st class @ a tym 4rm d same institutn? If nt convenant uni.

95 students in the whole graduating set is totally feasible. What's with the evident grudge against students that attended private unis? Apparently you'd rather their grades were cut down by sadistic lecturers in public unis. I'm a graduate of a fed uni and witnessed how lousy hods cut their students grade to spite them and assume an air of superiority. The cu students i've met are WORTH their salt,at least academically. I can hardly say the same for govt uni graduates these days.

Darqly, no grudges. Wateva u say doesn't matter cuz it doesn't change the equation. Shw me a 1st class graduate of covenant and i'll show u a 2:2 guy 4rm any public university. Then show me a 1st class graduate of a public university and i will show u a prof. @ covenant. No disrespect.

first class na beans wey dem dey get?
pls, for those who finshed from nigerian public school will really appreciate what 1st class is.
not even the olden days first class graduates but those who have it in the last 2 decades.
is it all about cramming for examination or being versative in every area of human life?
General knoledge, ability to be a problem solver.
pls stop dat advert!!!!!

Private universities with their abacadabra. . . Abegi

@sd, i'm not disparaging grades earned at public unis,i earned mine there like i said earlier. But let truth be told,first class is POSSIBLE and a pointer that CU graduates are worthy is that some accounting firms in Nigeria now hire mostly ONLY CU graduates. I'm talking kpmg not Babatope and sons auditing. You don't have to kill yourself and bootlick every prof to earn one which is what public unis make it seem. About comparing a cu graduate with a public uni graduate- it's de school in de person,not de person in the school that counts. I get to submit cvs for my region in my office periodically. The things i read from so called graduates is appalling to put it mildly. I personally would never hire them.

@all, why not give these people a chance to show what they are made for, scratch that, you don't even need to wait that long, have you taken a peek into companies recently. A sizable number of their staff are from private universities. Have you asked yourselves why? Cos they are doing better than their peeps. I'll give a typical scenario, a major auditing firm here recruited about 60 graduates recently and about 1/3 of them are from covenant university. You guys are soo stuck to the status quo that you think getting a first class is soooooo difficult. Is it not gettin As and Bs in all your courses (yeah,its more than dat, but dats d underlying factor), des guys had everything they needed to make it and they utilized it, Deal wit it people, Geezzzz

Lets even shift the attention away from the 1st class people, those with other grades are ding wonderfully well in business, we have people developing estates, employing people, becoming millionaires, stop being short-sighted people instead tap into they have, Lets all unite our skills and knowledge for a common goal, a better NIGERIA, you'll definitely want what we have and we also want what you have, tired of typing, i'll rest now,

@darqly and darkey
its obvious that u dudes have resorted to unobjective analysis of issues because u're all graduates of covenant universities. U cease to admit that ur jobs are a function of ur families' connection. U know what it takes to get a job. About accounting and auditing firms takin mostly graduates of CU. Have u forgotten that ICAN has just signed a MOU so that u dudes will be taking ican while in school. Face it, most of d first class dudes in CU arent worth it. Its just like comparing london GCE with WAEC. Wait, did u guys bag 1st class too?

U r being unobjective. Why covenant? For your information, i do know what it takes to get a job, i went through everything that it takes to get a job and then i got a job, wats der to face? Have u sat down in the same room with a 1st class person and rubbed intellectual minds with them before making such a conclusion. How many of them do u know personally? U r the one being unobjective in your reasoning. If you really want prove that they are worht it, give them time to prove it and it really doesnt matter what i came out with, it was a good grade sha, AND I DESERVED IT,

you can imagine someone who has 1st class in Engineering and has no tools to work with and cannot repair let alone invent anything.
agberu gbeso. crammers.
A lot of computer science 1st class graduates who cannot do much on the computer.
Medical students who only speak of INFLAMATION in every thing.
Can you tell us the relevance of your course to man and your society in 5 simple sentence?
The difference is always on the job.

Nw it doesnt jst take ur certificate to get a job. U need to be connected. U know that my guy. I finished my nysc last year and am still searchin. Well i applaud the fact that private universities help to solve our educational problems and dats good. But when they come up with such quixotic standards then they're awakenin the eyebrows of the hunter. I have a friend who is a 1st class graduate of a private university. He is truly intelligent but not like the renowned genius u need to be before u bag first class in a public university.

@pareto, do u know of any? Cos i know quite anumber except medical students (do they graduate wit grades too, i so doubt it) who can do a lot with tools and computers. Hello!!! more than 70% of students in covenant have laptops and desktops, what on earth do you think they were doing with it, @sd-6, wrong, u dont always have to b connected, i tell you, yeah, in a lot of cases but not all cases, another point, u dont have to be a renowned genius to come out with a 1st class, dats just d impression created in other schools because of the way the lecturers treat students' results, if things were the same in all schools, i'm sure we would not have this comparison issue, though i do respect 1st class dues from other institutions in Nigeria,

[center]@poster
i can tell u in public that it is complete fraud and runs coz i know
many students that attends this kinds of school that can not even
perform up to expectations in their chosen fields and more so i can't
say it to the face of their modafuking V.C that i am far far far far better
than 90% of his so called first class students.,
cos most of them e.g those who graduated and studied pharmacy in
the school, when they are told to make a paracetamol that relieves headache
they go ahead and make that which will incure stomach ache

RUBBISH SCHOOLS[/center]

big head:

[center]@poster
i can tell u in public that it is complete fraud and runs coz i know
many students that attends this kinds of school that can not even
perform up to expectations in their chosen fields and more so i can't
say it to the face of their modafuking V.C that i am far far far far better
than 90% of his so called first class students.,
cos most of them e.g those who graduated and studied pharmacy in
the school, when they are told to make a paracetamol that relieves headache
they go ahead and make that which will incure stomach ache

RUBBISH SCHOOLS[/center]

and this one would claim to be smarter than a third class private uni graduate, pity

Private universities r advanced secondary schools. The truth is the 1st class grads 4rm private institutions perform below expectations. The worst is their so calld 2-1s. Chei! They dont just perform below xpectatns, they r also dull. I knw many of them & every tym we discuss or analyse our profession I get more disappointed in them.

you guys are just beefin em, they worked and got it, face it or get ur own 1st class

Shuo!!!
See Beef o! because dem go private school, graduate with 1st class u think they r worthless. Well the companies that are snatching them up in dozens don't seem to think so.

Omolulu:

and this one would claim to be smarter than a third class private uni graduate, pity

can u try and break down what u really mean?

All this talk about Whether Private Uni's or Public Uni's Graduates
are better than one or the other is a load of Crap,

The True test is what type of Impact does the Graduates that
come out of these schools have on Nigeria as a whole.
Which will be hard to measure @ the moment.

Untill Nigeria Graduate start Forming companies and Businesses
that shape the Nation for the better then your degree will not mean
anything as you will always be seeking to be employed by a Big
Multinational Company that is "Backed by Brains from Abroad",

Here are some facts some of you should
consider before you continue to argue further,

1 - America has 4,000 colleges and universities. The rest of the world combined has 7,768 institutions of higher education. In the state of California alone, there are about 130 colleges and universities. There are only 14 countries in the world that have more than that number.

2 - In 2003, American universities reaped $1.3 billion from patents(Intellectual Property Idea's), according to the Association of University Technology Managers. No country respects and protects intellectual property better than America.

Please Note,  most of you are using a IT Software right now to view this post that was devloped and marketed by a University drop out/Someone that did not complete his Higher Education "Hint Hint"!!! so it not the school you went to but what you do with your knowledge and also the Collective will of People and enviroment MATTERS ALOT!!!

3 - The BankBoston Economics Department did a study titled "MITMassachusetts Institute of Technology) The Impact of Innovation." Among its conclusions was that MIT graduates have founded 4,000 companies, creating at least 1.1 million jobs worldwide and generating sales of $232 billion.  

o.k which company has a Nigerian Graduate Founded that is
global or even has a National Impact and please do not tell me Globacom!!!

UNTILL NIGERIAN PRIVATE/PUBLIC UNIVERSITY GRADUATES START TO CREATE THINGS, INNOVATE THINGS OR FORM BUSINESSES OF NATIONAL ECONOMIC VALUE, THEY HAVE NO RIGHT TO BRAG THEY R BETTER THAN EACH-OTHER.

A POINT I MAY ADD WHICH NO ONE WITH AN ANALYTICAL EYE CAN DISPROVE IS THAN PRIVATE UNIVERSITY GRADUATES GET EMPLOYED TO SOME EXTENT BASED ON CONNECTION AND THIS ALSO APPLIES TO PUBLIC GRADUATES. CU GRADUATES R NO EXCEPTION,

big head:

[center]@poster
i can tell u in public that it is complete fraud and runs coz i know
many students that attends this kinds of school that can not even
perform up to expectations in their chosen fields and more so i can't
say it to the face of their modafuking V.C that i am far far far far better
than 90% of his so called first class students.,
cos most of them e.g those who graduated and studied pharmacy in
the school, when they are told to make a paracetamol that relieves headache
they go ahead and make that which will[b] incure stomach ache

RUBBISH SCHOOLS[/b][/center]

I can see you make use of your plural skills. Afi Incure naa

Another Important Point is that a majority of Nigerian Graduates do
not read any note-worthy book in their line of Specialism after they graduate!!!

I believe it was the Founder of Covenant University in Nigeria that said:
The Secret of a Man/Womans Success is in their Stories ie Autio-Biographies
Field Books, Journals etc.

Over the Past year or so i heard Bishop Oyedepo say he is studying the Life of the Founder and Owner of "Daewoo Corp" "Kim Woo-jung",
His Book is called "Everystreet is Paved with Gold"

You need to Know what the Leader in your Field of Study Knows!!!

How Many Nigerian IT Graduates have read a book on Bill Gates

How Many Nigerian Engineering Graduates have read a book on Henry Ford

How Many Nigerian Marketing Graduates have read a book on Sam Walton (Wal Mart)

How many Nigerian Banking & Finance Graduates have read a book on Warren Buffet

How Many Nigerian Economic Graduates have read a book by Peter Navarro

How many Nigerian Business men have Read a Book on "China" which is the Greatest Influence on the Nigerian Economy Today ie the "Coming China Wars, "China Inc"
or "The Rise of China",

The issues is Most Nigerian Graduates do not have the full picture of how
the Global Economy is affecting their Local Market-place PERIOD!!!


If you are a Nigerian Graduate or Undergraduate Amazon.com should become your best friend!!!

or go online go to an e-reader website and download an online copy of your book and read on your laptop or go to wikipedia and learn something about the leaders in the industry you desire to make it in!!!

this debate doesnt seem to abate in a short while.Best is 4we d young ones to make best use of our God given talent. pls note dat d bill gates,larry ellisons(of oracle),facebook boys and so much more didnt av d best of degrees,but we all celebrate dem.
fact is,dose dat produce wat u use ll always make a living out of u.1st class or not, make d world a better place.IMPACT UR WORLD!

Instinctg, you are the man. Whether first 1st class or not, the truth is that we know the true worth of a man by what he accomplishes with the so much knowledge he has. We have many people who had 2:1 in public school who should have had 1st class if not for the wickedness of some lecturers. So if Covenant provides an enabling environment for 1st class, let's not beef them. First class is no big deal. At least i graduate with a CGPA of 4.3 from a public uni. You can imagine a lecturer telling students before exams that only 20 out of 80 students will pass the course. What does that tell you? My friend in school once wrote a quiz and 40 out of 70 of them passed, The lecturer said they had to redo the quiz because "too many people" passed. ("Too many people" is 40 out of 70). Nigerians are 1st class people. so let's stop castigating.

This thread is not meant for comparism, if the school awards firstclass degrees to people that merit it that shows that they are not spiting the students nw let me tell u half of all this public unis the lecturers ennd up coming looking 4 jobs.

Secondly public unis are good because u strive under the harsh conditions and u comeout with poor grads its very annoying granted but dont take it out on people who merit this grades,Lets just find how to help each other and comeout improving this corrupt nation.

It doesn't end with us tryin to impact on the society but until these private university megalomaniacs understand the discrepant skews in the value system of their degrees. Their standards are quite quixotic and do not integrate into overall degree value system. Also, u must attest to the dexterity of the lecturers in public universities who except for their nefarious and witch hunting attitude are incomparable to those in private universities. Such lack of standards in private universities, they tend to offset with pecuniary superiority and ostentatious display of frivolities.

yee! 2 much grammar

hey sd- 6. too much can grammar.
please take it or leave it. so blowing grammars is not d issue