Somymaurice: pls,i humbly seek advice from profesionals like you all. I just finished my internship and was about goin for my HND when the NCE came in with their delima. They said students whose name came out on the 2nd barch and below,would have to be referd to parttime classes. Bad news i must confess,cos part time students dont go for service. My question now is,are part time given any form of exemption letter? What is the future like for one without nysc certification? Im an ICAN student,certified in peach3 accounting on right now undergoing training on database MYSQL. Tnks frends

Somymaurice: pls,i humbly seek advice from profesionals like you all. I just finished my internship and was about goin for my HND when the NCE came in with their delima. They said students whose name came out on the 2nd barch and below,would have to be referd to parttime classes. Bad news i must confess,cos part time students dont go for service. My question now is,are part time given any form of exemption letter? What is the future like for one without nysc certification? Im an ICAN student,certified in peach3 accounting on right now undergoing training on database MYSQL. Tnks frends

renewnaija: @ Poster
Just my two cents with so many questions.

Why didnt you start this thread before paying half the fees?
If you take the GTB job, are you ready to forfeit the fees even for a year?
Remember it is the your father's sweat (gratuity), so will he take it lightly if you refuse the masters or will you pay him back with the GTB bank?
If yes, how long will it take you to payback? Or are you from a rich home so it wont be an issue?

Anyway, I advise you seek God's face & ask that His will be done in your life.

A few have come to do Masters abroad & wt they are earning now will blow away any amount GTB can offer you. A friend of mine (a recent Masters graduate)working in the US told me that no Nigerian company will be able to pay him wt he wants if he decides to move back to Nigeria & knowing his salary, I believe him.
Others dont have the same story.

You are unique so you should not follow other people's successes cos it may not work for you. Some make it in Nigeria, others abroad.

So seek Jesus now like never before.

tanimola22:

I asked you what next because I wanted to know whether or not you have designed an excellent hedge against the unfavorably volatile job market in the UK and other parts of the world. From your answer, you have none. I might be wrong though.

I asked whether it's a top 5 US or UK school because I wanted to gauge your desirability to employers upon your graduation. Unfortunately, your answer shows that you might be no different from other unemployed naija graduates, who have very fancy UK degrees which cost close to 15K, if you went to study in the UK.

To make matters worse, you want to go and study a course that is a one way, a course that favors mostly professionals who have had years of solid professional experience. A course that will not give you an edge to immediately pursue a PhD just in case the job won't just come.

There is one fact that you must always bear in mind, and it is that 'foreign universities will continue to admit students no matter how old the students are'. Therefore, If I were you, I would definitely accept the GT offer, work for some years and then jet out for further studies, if I still deem it necessary. This way, I would stand a better chance of getting into a nicer school, in fact an Ivy league or something very close to it. This way, I would be solid, desirable enough and also stand a better chance of landing an awesome job, after graduation, because of my previous work experience which must surely be of immense advantage to me. I am not saying that one is certain of landing one's dream job just because one has had a solid professional experience. My point is that your chances are much higher if you have a solid work experience plus a top MBA degree.

If I really hate bank job and want to neglect the GT offer for further studies abroad, a strategy I would employ is to simply change courses. I would go for an MSc program instead of an MBA program. I would then make sure I aim to get the best possible grades I can get. This will help me in two ways. First, it will help land me job interviews and I will have something to brag about during the job interviews. Second, I will be competitive to get fully funded PhD positions just in case the ideal job does not come after about 2 years of searching. I think you get my drift.

A lot of naija people are unemployed and stuck in Lagos and London and New York and elsewhere because their Master's degrees are so poor that nobody would believe they can cope with PhD level courses and research. Such people thought going abroad and getting 'any' oyinbo kpali would give them jobs at Total, Mobil, Chevron, Davidson Kempner Advisers and Fortress Investment etc. Unfortunately, many of them are not smiling today.

I will leave you to ponder over my submission and come to a conclusion by yourself, a conclusion that will maximize your own professional payoff.

T22.

isuomo: Young man, please take the GTB offer quick quick and forget the idea of Masters abroad, abeg u fit do am online nowadays and for your information Masters abroad is so overated and my golden advice to you is to take the job. Gosh!!! it is a no brainer and not an hobbsian choice my friend. I have given you this advice as a GM HR & Strategy of a stock exchange quoted top 30 firm here in Nigeria, i know the number of CVs my staff recieve on a daily basis and majority without equivocation are graduates of reputable unis in Canada, USA and UK. I have people in my organisation working for free just to have the work experience and believe me they came out with good Masters from univeristies like London, Manchester, Kings College Cambridge etc. GTB is a fantastic employer and you should be dancing the makossa and not be thinking of Masters.
Oyinbo graduates are not hung up on masters you know, it is us Africans that keep amassing useless qualifications i graduated in Pol.Sc from Ife in 1989 went straight to UK as a citizen at the end of my NYSC IN 1990 and got a job immediately with British Telecomms of old within 3 months of landing in UK, it wasn't until 1997 eight years after graduation when i was already a senior manager with BT on a very comfortable salary did i enrol for a masters in University of London just for the fun of it and by 1999 i had a Masters degree in Developmental Economics. 4 years after in 2003 i enrolled to study Law graduated in 2007 and in 2009 was called to the bar; then i had long left BT was now working in HR for a top Investment bank in Canary Wharf UK from where i was brought to Lagos in 2010. You can see that i did not leave work as some stupid folks do in Nigeria to go do masters and then come back thinking the world will be their oyster. Out there is extremely competitive if you have a job or job offer grab it with both hands.

GoldCircle: @Kockane, I wish u Godspeed! Have a plan B from day 1 and make hay while the sun shines! U may have also read many stories on this forum of many ex-bankers coming here to seek advice just after loosing their jobs. So be wise!

renewnaija: @ Poster
Just my two cents with so many questions.

Why didnt you start this thread before paying half the fees?
If you take the GTB job, are you ready to forfeit the fees even for a year?
Remember it is the your father's sweat (gratuity), so will he take it lightly if you refuse the masters or will you pay him back with the GTB bank?
If yes, how long will it take you to payback? Or are you from a rich home so it wont be an issue?

Anyway, I advise you seek God's face & ask that His will be done in your life.

A few have come to do Masters abroad & wt they are earning now will blow away any amount GTB can offer you. A friend of mine (a recent Masters graduate)working in the US told me that no Nigerian company will be able to pay him wt he wants if he decides to move back to Nigeria & knowing his salary, I believe him.
Others dont have the same story.

You are unique so you should not follow other people's successes cos it may not work for you. Some make it in Nigeria, others abroad.

So seek Jesus now like never before.

tanimola22:

I asked you what next because I wanted to know whether or not you have designed an excellent hedge against the unfavorably volatile job market in the UK and other parts of the world. From your answer, you have none. I might be wrong though.

I asked whether it's a top 5 US or UK school because I wanted to gauge your desirability to employers upon your graduation. Unfortunately, your answer shows that you might be no different from other unemployed naija graduates, who have very fancy UK degrees which cost close to 15K, if you went to study in the UK.

To make matters worse, you want to go and study a course that is a one way, a course that favors mostly professionals who have had years of solid professional experience. A course that will not give you an edge to immediately pursue a PhD just in case the job won't just come.

There is one fact that you must always bear in mind, and it is that 'foreign universities will continue to admit students no matter how old the students are'. Therefore, If I were you, I would definitely accept the GT offer, work for some years and then jet out for further studies, if I still deem it necessary. This way, I would stand a better chance of getting into a nicer school, in fact an Ivy league or something very close to it. This way, I would be solid, desirable enough and also stand a better chance of landing an awesome job, after graduation, because of my previous work experience which must surely be of immense advantage to me. I am not saying that one is certain of landing one's dream job just because one has had a solid professional experience. My point is that your chances are much higher if you have a solid work experience plus a top MBA degree.

If I really hate bank job and want to neglect the GT offer for further studies abroad, a strategy I would employ is to simply change courses. I would go for an MSc program instead of an MBA program. I would then make sure I aim to get the best possible grades I can get. This will help me in two ways. First, it will help land me job interviews and I will have something to brag about during the job interviews. Second, I will be competitive to get fully funded PhD positions just in case the ideal job does not come after about 2 years of searching. I think you get my drift.

A lot of naija people are unemployed and stuck in Lagos and London and New York and elsewhere because their Master's degrees are so poor that nobody would believe they can cope with PhD level courses and research. Such people thought going abroad and getting 'any' oyinbo kpali would give them jobs at Total, Mobil, Chevron, Davidson Kempner Advisers and Fortress Investment etc. Unfortunately, many of them are not smiling today.

I will leave you to ponder over my submission and come to a conclusion by yourself, a conclusion that will maximize your own professional payoff.

T22.



I must say that your submission indicates a very sound background and understanding of the immediate issues at hand. I must also however burst the bubble of the core of your assumptions. One of the worst mistakes Nigerian youths make in my opinion is what your post encourages - the need for immediate gratification. No long term helicopter view of a person's life in the future in consideration. How can anyone jump into such a volatile 'opportunity' like a GT job? The highest staff turnover in any professional industry in Nigeria is Nigeran banking industry.

I can never advise you to forgo a lifetime opportunity of self improvement for 198K. Once you get a Masters, you have it FOR LIFE (like Arsenal fans of old). You may lose a job, never a Masters degree qualification. In fact, the psychological boost you will get can never be bought with all your upfront for years. Do you know how many people are stuck in the banks today? No serious career progression - AND no Masters? So they can't go forward or backwards even after 10 years of been in banking? And you must understand it is tough to cross from banking to other industries even as an experienced staff.

Another information for the OP is that you cannot today lump UK schools together in a good better best format. For instance A business school with the AACSB accreditation has the highest global business school accreditation irrespective of whether it's UK or US. So the question is, does the University of Hull MBA program have the Advanced Association of Collegiate Schools of Business accreditation? If it does and you still take GT bank's pay over it, 10 years will reveal the error.

dabigwalls:
I can never advise you to forgo a lifetime opportunity of self improvement for 198K. Once you get a Masters, you have it FOR LIFE (like Arsenal fans of old). You may lose a job, never a Masters degree qualification. In fact, the psychological boost you will get can never be bought with all your upfront for years. Do you know how many people are stuck in the banks today? No serious career progression - AND no Masters? So they can't go forward or backwards even after 10 years of been in banking? And you must understand it is tough to cross from banking to other industries even as an experienced staff.

I must also however burst the bubble of the core of some earlier advise/assumptions you have been given. One of the worst mistakes Nigerian youths make in my opinion is what your post encourages - the need for immediate gratification. No long term helicopter view of a person's life in the future in consideration. How can anyone jump into such a volatile 'opportunity' like a GT job? The highest staff turnover in any professional industry in Nigeria is Nigeran banking industry.


Another information for the OP is that you cannot today lump UK schools together in a good better best format. For instance A business school with the AACSB accreditation has the highest global business school accreditation irrespective of whether it's UK or US. So the question is, does the University of Hull MBA program have the Advanced Association of Collegiate Schools of Business accreditation? If it does and you still take GT bank's pay over it, 10 years will reveal the error.

There are 4 accreditations that a good biz school must have. Even some big schools have business schools that do not have all 4.

tanimola22:

I asked you what next because I wanted to know whether or not you have designed an excellent hedge against the unfavorably volatile job market in the UK and other parts of the world. From your answer, you have none. I might be wrong though.

I asked whether it's a top 5 US or UK school because I wanted to gauge your desirability to employers upon your graduation. Unfortunately, your answer shows that you might be no different from other unemployed naija graduates, who have very fancy UK degrees which cost close to 15K, if you went to study in the UK.

To make matters worse, you want to go and study a course that is a one way, a course that favors mostly professionals who have had years of solid professional experience. A course that will not give you an edge to immediately pursue a PhD just in case the job won't just come.

There is one fact that you must always bear in mind, and it is that 'foreign universities will continue to admit students no matter how old the students are'. Therefore, If I were you, I would definitely accept the GT offer, work for some years and then jet out for further studies, if I still deem it necessary. This way, I would stand a better chance of getting into a nicer school, in fact an Ivy league or something very close to it. This way, I would be solid, desirable enough and also stand a better chance of landing an awesome job, after graduation, because of my previous work experience which must surely be of immense advantage to me. I am not saying that one is certain of landing one's dream job just because one has had a solid professional experience. My point is that your chances are much higher if you have a solid work experience plus a top MBA degree.

If I really hate bank job and want to neglect the GT offer for further studies abroad, a strategy I would employ is to simply change courses. I would go for an MSc program instead of an MBA program. I would then make sure I aim to get the best possible grades I can get. This will help me in two ways. First, it will help land me job interviews and I will have something to brag about during the job interviews. Second, I will be competitive to get fully funded PhD positions just in case the ideal job does not come after about 2 years of searching. I think you get my drift.

A lot of naija people are unemployed and stuck in Lagos and London and New York and elsewhere because their Master's degrees are so poor that nobody would believe they can cope with PhD level courses and research. Such people thought going abroad and getting 'any' oyinbo kpali would give them jobs at Total, Mobil, Chevron, Davidson Kempner Advisers and Fortress Investment etc. Unfortunately, many of them are not smiling today.

I will leave you to ponder over my submission and come to a conclusion by yourself, a conclusion that will maximize your own professional payoff.

T22.

isuomo: Young man, please take the GTB offer quick quick and forget the idea of Masters abroad, abeg u fit do am online nowadays and for your information Masters abroad is so overated and my golden advice to you is to take the job. Gosh!!! it is a no brainer and not an hobbsian choice my friend. I have given you this advice as a GM HR & Strategy of a stock exchange quoted top 30 firm here in Nigeria, i know the number of CVs my staff recieve on a daily basis and majority without equivocation are graduates of reputable unis in Canada, USA and UK. I have people in my organisation working for free just to have the work experience and believe me they came out with good Masters from univeristies like London, Manchester, Kings College Cambridge etc. GTB is a fantastic employer and you should be dancing the makossa and not be thinking of Masters.
Oyinbo graduates are not hung up on masters you know, it is us Africans that keep amassing useless qualifications i graduated in Pol.Sc from Ife in 1989 went straight to UK as a citizen at the end of my NYSC IN 1990 and got a job immediately with British Telecomms of old within 3 months of landing in UK, it wasn't until 1997 eight years after graduation when i was already a senior manager with BT on a very comfortable salary did i enrol for a masters in University of London just for the fun of it and by 1999 i had a Masters degree in Developmental Economics. 4 years after in 2003 i enrolled to study Law graduated in 2007 and in 2009 was called to the bar; then i had long left BT was now working in HR for a top Investment bank in Canary Wharf UK from where i was brought to Lagos in 2010. You can see that i did not leave work as some stupid folks do in Nigeria to go do masters and then come back thinking the world will be their oyster. Out there is extremely competitive if you have a job or job offer grab it with both hands.

dabigwalls: Are you saying he becomes perpetually doomed if he does not forgo this one year's pay with GT to return as an improved thinker?

Is he worse off with an MBA after one year if he returns to Nigeria? Do you have a Masters? I will be interested in your answer because if your answer is yes then you must be selfish, if it is a no, then you are half - informed.

Kockane: Whao! Thanks a lot guys for the barrage of advices, I'm totally planless for wat to say. Aldoe its a decision I've alredy made, and dat is to defer ma admission and start off wiv gtb @ d moment, I still pretty much appreciate all the inputs. I graduated with a B.sc in Anatomy, 2:2, but I really don't see myself goin bak to d healthcare, I really fo have a flair for banking and intend to pursue a career in it.

I wrote my tests and had my interviews in abuja, in march dis year. I understand lagos and abuja recruit independently of each oda, so I really can't say on how to go about it from lag. D haruna musa email addy was legit as at february sha, lotsa peeps sent their cv's to it and got called for the test. I also know some pple just wrote anoda exam like a coupla weeks ago, in lag, and dey r srill awaiting d interview. As for abuja, I believe dey haven't written any tests since d march batch.

And about d pay, yea I've done my research, really coooool. Not even d devil can make me change my mind again. #teamGtbank.

dabigwalls: @Kelskelly...with BSc, one is jobless because millions and zillions have it. One differentiator is a Masters. An MBA is even more professionally deep for people with business interests and managerial roles. If he could get a job with his BSc with GT, why will it be more difficult with an MBA?

Shebi we say there are no jobs? Go Yankee, Go Jand, there are no jobs you all say so why does this post exist in the first place? This post is about a job somebody got!!! Why are you all crying wolf?? Are you saying he becomes perpetually doomed if he does not forgo this one year's pay with GT to return as an improved thinker?

Is he worse off with an MBA after one year if he returns to Nigeria? Do you have a Masters? I will be interested in your answer because if your answer is yes then you must be selfish, if it is a no, then you are half - informed.

@OP, total pay of 200K/annum is max 2.4M/annum. You studied anatomy and you seriously think one year with a good degree to back up your business interest will be suicidal? Think twice, go to Hull and enrol for the Systems Thinking course. Come back and laugh at people who would have deprived you of such globally acclaimed thought and education.

Deep calleth unto deep.