Bizzare: 16 Years After, A Married Woman Makes First Class From UNILAG

There is always a light at the end of the tunnel, if only you don’t give up. This has been the success story behind a young Nigerian married woman, Mrs Oluwamayo Ojumah who after spending 16 years in pursuit of a university degree at four different universities within and outside Nigeria finally emerged with a first class degree in Biochemistry at the University of Lagos.

In an exclusive interview with the Saturday Vanguard, she shared her experience on a voyage seeing her true Ago Iwoye, United Kingdom, Okada, Lagos and nearly to Saint Kitts in the Americas for a University degree at a span of 16 years. 

‘’I am still in shock.” 

Continuing, the obviously excited Ojumah, who recently had her convocation at the University of Lagos, UNILAG, flashed back recalling how her wasted years in pursuit of the degree paid off with a Cumulative Grade Point Average ,CGPA, of 4.51. Expounding this at her home in Lagos, she said:

‘’I left secondary school in 2004 and in that same year I got admission into Olabisi Onabanjo University ,OOU, for Applied Zoology and the agreement was that if I performed well they were going to transfer me to Medicine. 

I had wanted to study Medicine. I didn’t really get the scope of the course, so I was not doing well. I think I left in 200 levels. So my parents said I should go abroad and study Medicine. Unfortunately it was quite expensive and I didn’t want to get them into those strains of providing that kind of finance every year. So, we reached an agreement to come back home and go to Igbinedion University, Okada. That was in 2009. 

I went to the UK and came back. In the UK they were not ready to admit me to read Medicine. I needed to do a lot of courses before and then thinking about the financial implications I had to come back home. Since Igbenedion was better and they said they were going to allow me read Medicine, I came back home. 

So, when I got to Igbenedion I was admitted into 200 levels with my transcript from OOU. I did 200 levels and 300 levels but at the level of my MB, I failed two courses, I passed Biochemistry and failed Anatomy and Physiology. By the time I did my resit, I think I failed Anatomy and failed physiology.

Ordinarily, many would opt out at this time, but Ojumah embraced the options that came her way.

‘’The option was either to repeat the class, take a transcript and go abroad either to Ukraine or to Saint Kits in the Americas,” she stated.

Considering that it would be less burdensome financially for her comfortable parents, she opted to go to Saint Kitts, an Island in the Americas formerly known as Saint Christopher.

‘’It was not as expensive like going to the UK. And just within that period while processing the passport; I had a little problem with immigration. It took a little while. Unfortunately, by the time I got my passport, the border had been closed. Unfortunately, my mother passed away in March 2011 and I couldn’t go abroad any more. 

They wanted me to go and I told them that it did not make sense going abroad again. The only option was to go to University of Lagos. Now that was the fourth time of starting all over again and I did not want to sit for JAMB. The only option was to do the foundation programme from 2011 to 2012 after which I took Direct Entry into 200 levels.”

Narrating her experience at UNILAG, she said the disposition of her lecturers and students towards her were not outside the ordinary.

The Biochemistry lecturers of the University of Lagos are okay. They gave their best. At least I have been to other institutions and know the kind of things other students go through. My supervisor Dr. Lawal was supportive. The day I knew he was proud of me was the day he said I was graduating with a First Class. And when they discovered that I was married, I had a better relationship,” she added.

Asked if there were exceptional methods applied to achieve the feat, she said:

I didn’t just depend on class notes. I used Youtube and downloaded most things that had been taught from Youtube and I read a lot. I can read from 8pm to 6am. My husband was also supportive because I used to watch movies a lot but he ensured that I did not fail to read because of movies. 

He would wake me up at night and even sometimes compel me to read. I read a lot, prayed a lot. In fact, I prayed like I was not reading and read like I was not reading. I am still in shock. 

The summary of it all is that God saw me through. I think God just wanted to honour me. I did a lot of work. People are talking about me that I came out with a First Class after all I have been through. It feels great. I already knew I was going to get First Class in October when the results came out. I think I have been in shock until the day of graduation. I just don’t believe that this is me. I am not a genius. Some think I read a lot. People don’t remember my past stories, but I have a cause to thank God.”

On his part, her husband, Mr.Ojumah, explained that he ensured she didn’t lose sight of the fact that getting a First Class was a project.

It is actually great. For me it is like a dream come true. After we got married, my father in-law told me that I should make sure she comes out with a First Class. I called her to ask what it will take to get that. Looking at it, I just felt it is possible, that is why each time she comes to say she was tired I will tell her she is wasting her time. 

I know there had been times when she felt we should drop the idea of First Class and settle for a 2.1 but I felt she was wasting her time. That is why I had to stop her from watching movie. Even when I will be watching a movie by the time she comes back I will stop. I felt we had a goal and must meet that goal. 

One of the easiest ways to get to our goal was to stay focused. During examinations, I often told her to relax while I do the cooking. For me, it is like a dream come true. I never knew that people will find it inspiring because to so many it is like a challenge that having gone through all these, a married woman came out with a First Class. 

We are happy that people, who feel that they can’t make it would find it encouraging. I just want to bless God for being there for us. The lesson for people is to stay focused and remain determined in spite of difficulties. Sometimes I had to keep her awake just to read not because I had examination to sit for. There is need for people to utilise any opportunity at their disposal to actualise their goal.”

Ten Weird Facts you Find Hard to Believe

1. You can throw a ball farther to the west than to the east because of the rotation of the earth.
2. Chicken liver can be used to change blood type A to blood type O.
3. Mosquito has contributed to the deaths of more people than any other animal.
4. The best time for a person to buy shoes is in the afternoon. This is because the foot tends to swell a bit around this time.
5. The arithmetic symbols + (addition) and – (subtraction) came into general use in 1489.
6. Nazi leader, Adolf Hitler had only one testicle.
7. The largest employer in the world is the Indian railway system in India, employing over 1.6 million people.
8. The lighter was invented before the matches.
9. The longest English word without a vowel is twyndyllyngs which means ‘twins’
10. Your body sheds 10 billion flakes of skin everyday.

"Hello" - The true story

I was swept off my feet when i read this

“Hello' is the name of Alexander Graham Bell's girlfriend. His girlfriend was Margaret Hello. And that is how the name came about. It further went on to state that people might have forgotten about the inventor of the telephone but not his girlfriend's name.”

But the above story is not true below explains how the word ‘hello' emanated.

Hello is a salutation or greeting in English language. History has it that Thomas Alva Edison was the first to say hello over the telephone. But Edison didn't invent 'hello' by a long shot. As a matter of fact, the greeting has been around for centuries much before the invention of telephone in 1885.

In ancient times, people greeted each other with 'hallow', which may have come from the Old French word 'hola', meaning 'stop!' or 'whoa'. Even Noah Webster's dictionary included 'hello' in 1883.

By the time the telephone came along, the Americans were saying 'hullo' to each other every day, so it was a short jump to 'hello'. But it wasn't until the telephone was invented that 'hello' emerged as a universal form of greeting and as a way of establishing contact.

So, Edison made hello a popular greeting and an integral part of our lives. Alexander Graham Bell, who invented the telephone in 1885, never liked 'hello' and advocated the use of 'ahoy' as a telephonic greeting.

Michael Nicholson: The man with 30 University Degrees

Meet Michael Nicholson an American perpetual student who has 30 degrees, including 19 master’s degrees and one doctorate.

Here’s a list of all 29 degrees Nicholson has earned in the past 49 years:

1.Bachelor of Religious Education (B.R.E.), William Tyndale College, 1963. Major: General Bible.

2.Master of Theology (Th.M.), Dallas Theological Seminary, 1967. Major: Systematic Theology.

3.Master of Arts (M.A.), Eastern Michigan University, 1969. Major: Classroom Teaching.

4.Specialist in Arts (Sp.A.), Eastern Michigan University, 1970. Major: Classroom Teaching.

5.Master in Education (M.Ed.), University of Ottawa (Canada), 1974. Major: School Counselling.

6.Specialist in Education (Ed.S.), Western Michigan University, 1975. Major: Educational Leadership.

7.Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), Western Michigan University, 1977. Major: Educational Leadership.

8.Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.), Western Michigan University, 1978. Major: Business Administration.

9.Master of Science in Library Science (M.S.L.S.), Wayne State University, 1980. Major: Library Science.

10.Associate in Applied Science (A.A.S.), Kalamazoo Valley Community College, 1982. Major: Law Enforcement.

11.Associate in Business (A.Bus.), Lansing Community College, 1986. Major: Management.

12.Master of Arts (M.A.), Michigan State University, 1988. Major: Adult and Continuing Education.

13.Master of Arts (M.A.), Western Michigan University, 1990. Major: Special Education.

14.Master of Arts (M.A.), Western Michigan University, 1991. Major: Reading.

15.Master of Arts (M.A.), Western Michigan University, 1992. Major: Career and Technical Education.

16.Specialist in Arts (Sp.A.), Eastern Michigan University, 1993. Major: School Psychology.

17.Master of Arts (M.A.), Western Michigan University, 1994. Major: Home Economics.

18.Master of Arts (M.A.), Western Michigan University, 1995. Major: Teaching in the Elementary School.

19.Master of Arts (M.A.), Western Michigan University, 1996. Major: Teaching in the Middle School.

20.Master of Arts (M.A.), Western Michigan University, 1997. Major: Early Childhood Education.

21.Master of Arts (M.A.), Western Michigan University, 1998. Major: Human Resources Development.

22.Master of Arts (M.A.), Western Michigan University, 1999. Major: Physical Education.

23.Master of Science in Education (M.S.Ed.), Indiana University South Bend, 2001. Major: Special Education.

24.Master of Education (M.Ed.), Oakland University, 2003. Major: Special Education.

25.Master of Science in Education (M.S.Ed.), Indiana University South Bend, 2004. Major: Secondary Education.

26.Master of Education (M.Ed.), Grand Valley State University, 2005. Major: General Education.

27.Master of Public Administration (M.P.A.), Grand Valley State University, 2008. Major: Public Administration.

28.Master of Health Administration (M.H.A.), Grand Valley State University, 2009. Major: Health Administration.

29.Master of Education (M.Ed.), Grand Valley State University, 2010. Major: Special Education Administration.

Currently, Nicholson is taking classes to earn a master’s degree in criminal justice. He said he hopes to earn at least 33 or 34 degrees.

Source: MLive

Joao Coelho de Souza: The probable world's oldest human ever

A social security worker from Acer in Brazil caused a stir after publishing the photos and birth certificate of Joao Coelho de Sousa, a father of three, who was born on march 10, 1884. It is believed that Joao could be the oldest living man on Earth. 

Currently, 112-year-old Yasutaro Koide from Japan is officially recognised as the oldest person alive. The oldest verified woman ever was French Jeanne Calment (1875-1997) who is also the oldest verified person ever and who died at the age of 122 years 164 days.

Joao certificate of birth

The birth certificate revealed that Joao was born in the city of Meruoca in Ceara 131 years ago! However he has a wife who is 69 years younger than him and three children.

The photos of the documents were shared by Kennedy Afonso, a local civil servant on his Facebook page. He also urged the state government to register Joao for the Guinness Book of Records.