𝗗𝗢𝗡'𝗧 𝗚𝗢 𝗧𝗢 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝗧𝗢 𝗦𝗧𝗨𝗗𝗬 𝗔 𝗨𝗦𝗘𝗟𝗘𝗦𝗦 𝗖𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗦𝗘 𝗜𝗙 𝗬𝗢𝗨𝗥 𝗙𝗔𝗠𝗜𝗟𝗬 𝗜𝗦 𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗚𝗚𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗚

By Professor Chuke Nwude

I wrote this and a lot of people said, "No course is useless."

In Nigeria, if you come from a struggling family and your main reason for going to university is to study a course, graduate, get a job, and help your family financially, then there are courses you need to think very carefully about before choosing

When I say "useless," I don't mean the course itself has no value. I mean it may be useless to your specific goal if your goal is to use it to put food on your table after graduation 

The problem is not the course itself, the problem is the Nigerian job market.

In an ideal country, every course should have enough opportunities for graduates. Unfortunately, that is not the reality we are living in. NIGERIA IS DIFFERENT.

Let me explain.

If you go to a teaching hospital today, depending on how big the hospital is, you might find between 100 and 300 medical doctors working there.

Now let's look at some other professions.

That same hospital that has hundreds of doctors might only need:

• 3 Microbiologists

• 2 Biochemists

• 3 Medical Laboratory Scientists

And that's all.

Meanwhile, the number of nurses might be double the number of doctors because hospitals need many nurses to care for patients daily.

Now compare this to the number of graduates universities produce every year for those specific courses.

A single federal university can graduate over 150 Biochemistry students every year.

Over four years, that's about 600 graduates from just one school.

Now multiply that by the number of universities in Nigeria offering the same course.

Thousands of graduates are entering the labour market every year.

Yet the hospital that needs only two Biochemists may not even employ new ones until someone retires after 30 or 35 years or someone dies and if that happens, the next person may likely get in by connections.

Do the maths.

The competition is not balanced.

Before anyone misunderstands me, let me say this clearly.

Biochemists are not only supposed to work in hospitals.

We have:

• Food Biochemists

• Pharmaceutical Biochemists

• Industrial Biochemists

• Researchers

The same applies to Microbiologists and many other science courses.

But now ask yourself:

How many pharmaceutical companies do we have in Nigeria?

How many food manufacturing companies exist?

How many research centres are actively hiring?

How many forensic laboratories do we even have?

And among those companies, how many employ 50, 100, or 200 Biochemists at a time?

Yet universities continue producing millions of graduates every year.

This is not to mock any course.

It is simply to bring people back to reality.

Many students choose courses based on let me just go to school without checking whether there is enough demand for that profession.

Four or five years later, they discover that jobs are extremely limited.

Let's even look at another example.

Someone studies Philosophy.

After graduation, people tell them:

"Don't worry, you can work anywhere."

But think about that statement carefully.

If after spending four years studying a course, the best career advice people can give you is that you can work anywhere, shouldn't that make you ask some serious questions?

What exactly is the direct career path?

What specific industries are actively looking for graduates of that course?

How many vacancies exist compared to the number of graduates produced every year?

These are questions students should ask before spending years and millions of naira pursuing a degree.

Now let's talk about banks.

Banks are one of the few places that employ graduates from almost every discipline.

Whether you studied History, English, Philosophy, Biochemistry, Sociology, or Political Science, a bank might employ you.

But how many people do banks employ every year? 

A few hundred and some not as real staffs.

Now compare that number to the millions of graduates entering the labour market annually.

The numbers simply don't match.

The truth is that many graduates are betting their future on opportunities that only a small percentage of people will get. If your family is financially comfortable, you may have the luxury of taking that risk.

But if your parents are struggling and sacrificing everything to keep you in school, you cannot afford to gamble with your future. If your father is borrowing money to pay school fees...

If your mother is using her last savings to keep you in school...If your family is skipping important needs so you can get an education...

Then you must think beyond getting a degree.

You must think about return on investment (ROI).

Education is an investment.

And every investment should have a realistic chance of producing results.

Imagine paying over N4 million in tuition, accommodation, feeding, transportation, textbooks, handouts, and other expenses over four or five years.

Only to start riding Keke or bike after graduation because there is no job opportunity available for the course you choose to study.

That is a painful situation for both the graduate and the family.

In some schools today, a self con rent can cost over N300,000 excluding feeding and school fees. By graduation, millions of naira would have been spent.

This is why students from struggling families must be strategic.Don't STUDY A USELESS COURSE IF YOUR FAMILY IS STRUGGLING, Don't say the course was thrown at you, study hard and write jamb as much as you can. 

If you must choose a course with low employment opportunities start learning a skill immediately not after graduation, not during NYSC and not when unemployment starts frustrating you.

Before reaching 200 level, you should already be building a skill that can generate income.

You can even learn skills that allow you to work remotely for clients around the world.

Don't wait until graduation before looking for work.

Start applying for internships.

Start freelancing.

Start building a portfolio.

Start building experience.

By the time your mates are standing in long queues after NYSC searching for jobs, you could already have clients, experience, and a source of income.

I will keep repeating this.

If you come from a struggling family, learn a skill, don't depend fully on that degree with no good value in nigeria

If your course eventually works out, great.

If it doesn't, your skill becomes your safety net.

© Professor Chuke Nwude,

Ifemelunma Abagana