Every university has its defining attribute that makes it attractive to prospective students. From academic ranking to funding and reputation, there are many factors students take into consideration before deciding on a school.
Located on the east coast of Scotland, UK, with its exciting historical sites and fun hang-out spots, University of Dundee has been labeled the ‘Most fun city to be a student in Scotland.’ The city of Dundee sits on the banks of the River Tay, home to scenic views of a beautiful countryside, elegant bridges and houses hugging the side of the Law, a non-active volcano located right in the centre of the city. What’s more? The major cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow are just a short trip away.
The city has an amazing student-friendly community and is ranked the 2nd safest city in Scotland by the Complete University Guide.
Like the university itself, the city is multicultural. The compact town is a hive for students, has little to no need for transportation (saving you good money on bus fares—except of course, you’re leaving the campus), is full of life, excitement. Did we mention it has an abundance of perfect hang-out spots?
Complete Student Support
Starting out with enrollment processes and settling down can be daunting especially if you do not know anyone. That’s why Dundee provides you with help from start to finish. From your first enquiry until you are fully settled, University of Dundee’s friendly and efficient team will be there for you every step of the way. The support doesn’t end; even after settling down, there’s a designated support team you can always reach out to concerning your student life. Isn’t that amazing!
Research Excellence
Research doesn’t have to be difficult—this is the approach the University of Dundee has adopted in ensuring that students experience ease in their educational journey.
Joining its research community gives you an amazing opportunity to contribute your original knowledge, while having supervisory mentorship from experts in the field. Dundee’s research programs are structured to provide support to research students through every stage by ever-attentive staff who are ready to listen and hold your hands through the process, offering you the requisite skills, training, mentorship, and career support.
Renowned for its ability to bring leading researchers together, to develop ideas that positively impact the world, the university enjoys a reputation of having about 84% of its research characterized as world leading and internationally excellent in the Research Excellence Framework, the major assessor of research excellence in the UK.
The university also provides research services in its Library and Learning Centre, helping with the management of publication data within discovery, ensuring accuracy of research content and its completeness.
Inclusive Financial Support
Here is yet another reason the University of Dundee stands out. Available to all students is a wide range of scholarships and funding programs set in place to make studying easier for you. The Global Excellence scholarship for instance is an academic scholarship worth £6,000 per year of study. There are also the Global Citizenship Scholarships with a value of £5,000 per year of study, the Vice Chancellor’s Africa scholarship, VC’s South Asia scholarship, and about 26 other postgraduate scholarships specially created for its students. These scholarships are available to everyone who qualifies for the set criteria, without discrimination as to race or ethnicity.
Take advantage of automatic scholarship for African students at University of Dundee
Great Career and Employability Record
If there’s anything the university is super proud of, it is its employability record. Ranked as one of the top 200 universities in the world when it comes to Graduate Employability, University of Dundee is the place to be for great career prospects. According to the Graduate Outcomes survey, 90% of respondents have either been employed or are pursuing further studies. Graduates of this prestigious university also have a full, lifetime access to the university’s career services.
Affordability and Flexibility of Tuition
As a public, non-profit university, the university happens to have one of the lowest costs of studying in the UK. From accommodation to student life, cost of living, as well as tuition, University of Dundee is relatively cheap. With an average fee of about £9,000, the university provides multiple funding opportunities for its students. The university proudly labels itself as having one of the cheapest Master’s Degree courses in the UK. Fee payments can be made using card or bank transfer as well as an ability to accept payment in over 140 currencies.
Outstanding Alumni and Academic Record
Dundee has produced several leading men and women across sectors including Sir Robert Alexander Watson-Watt, the pioneer of Radar; Gary Lightbody of Snow Patrol; Sir James W. Black, a pharmacologist and Nobel Laureate, as well as Alan Johnston, a renowned BBC journalist. The university has pioneered several innovations, from keyhole surgery to flat screen technology. They have also produced an astounding number of scholars and leaders in their fields, including but not limited to Turner Prize winners, political leaders and Nobel Laureates.
World-Class Facilities
The University of Dundee boasts of several world class facilities that have been made easily accessible to both students and staff of the university. Fully equipped with modern facilities, the university maintains amidst others, an ultra-modern Applied Laser Technology Laboratory, modern lecture theatres, Cell and Tissue Culture laboratory, a Children’s Research Facility, a Clinical Research Centre, Geotechnical laboratory and a high-performance Computing Facility and Computational Modelling.
Diverse Number of Postgraduate Courses to Pick from
With over a hundred taught postgraduate courses, you can be certain that there’s an abundance to choose from. The university offers help, providing information for any choice course. Their website provides detailed information about course work and content as well as class schedules and entry requirements, while also proffering further help with the chat feature. With this feature, you get to chat with students like you, who are always ready to assist you with your needs.
Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion
At the University of Dundee, there is zero tolerance for discrimination, harassment and bullying. They are committed to supporting every individual in the university community, irrespective of race or ethnicity.
With the aim to promote a fair and equitable working environment and society for all, the university has taken active steps and plans towards achieving this for years now and have received several awards in recognition of this movement.
It has been awarded the Bronze Mark of the Race Equality Charter for a consistent period of 5 years, as well as Bronze Awards in the Athena Equality Charter Mark programme.
The university has demonstrated resilience and activism in respect of the Black Lives Matter protest, leading to the creation of an action plan which primarily involves working with various race related activities. This has been achieved with diverse help, including that of their black staff and students, BME Staff Network, Dundee University Students Association, EDI Office, and the University Executive Group EDI Champion.
Without a doubt, the University of Dundee prides itself in building a vibrant global student community that has been sustained for generations.
If you’re looking for a postgraduate program in a small and affordable city with a vibrant African society, then fill this short form now to chat with a University of Dundee representative.
The Programme for African Leadership (PfAL) of the London School of Economics and Political Science has partnered with Vive Africa to explore avenues for citizens engagement particularly against the backdrop of the general elections taking place this weekend in Nigeria.
Titled ‘The Role of Active Citizenship in a Democracy’, the Twitter Spaces forum was hosted by media personality, Moremi Akano, with other notable speakers including Adenike Aloba, Programme Director, Dataphyte; Gideon Olanrewaju, Cambridge University Alumnus and Founder, Digilearns; Akintunde Babatunde, Chevening Scholar and Mandela Washington Fellow; and Mahmud Abdullahi, Public Policy Scholar, London School of Economics & Political Science, UK.
Akintunde Babatunde assessed the current socio-political situation in Nigeria and stressed the need for citizens to take action towards entrenching quality leadership.
“The driver of the next wave of structural change in Nigeria will be poverty,” he said. “Citizens are taking action and many more will join in. We have a nation that constantly reminds people that they need to take action. Every other day people are getting to know that they need to be part of the system that will bring quality leadership to Nigeria.”
According to Adenike Aloba: “As much as we as journalists are the watchdogs of the society, we also need to build bridges with government agencies and institutions.
“We need to communicate our impact and let people and organisations see what is being achieved so that others can follow suit. We must engage with not only the political administrators but also with the administrative leaders in agencies and ministries — so as to encourage them to act right and also show how it is done because sometimes it’s simply an issue of them not knowing how to do it.”
The Twitter Spaces forum saw other speakers urging citizens to model responsible citizenship and make sustainable impact in their areas of influence.
In his submission, Mahmud Abdullahi said active citizenship is a full time job. He urged young people to be open to learning and willing to engage at the grassroots so as to gain the trust and support of the people that they wish to influence.
The Programme for African Leadership (PfAL) of the London School of Economics and Political Science was established to empower a new generation of African leaders who will promote best practices of economic and social development in their organisations and countries.
Nigerians are phenomenal anywhere and everywhere, and the educational system is certainly no exception. Many solution carriers, thought leaders, and change makers across Nigeria have put in the work over the years to actively bridge the educational divide and invest in education independently while also enjoying what they do. Recognising that there’s a sector that can be energised and going into it with full body, soul, and mind, determined to excel at it is indeed game-changing.
Considering the relative lack of attention that education sector players receive in comparison to others, Vive Africa is providing a platform to challenge the status quo by curating the definitive list of remarkable personalities who have successfully immersed themselves in this sector and are excelling at it. From Adetomi Soyinka to Dipo Awojide, every year we will bring to you the people making waves and leading the vanguard of accelerating Africa’s development through education.
In no particular order, see below the 2023 list of Top 25 Nigerians Changing the Face of Education:
Vive Africa Faces of Education 2023
1.TEMILADE SALAMI
If there’s a story worth telling, it is that of this young and vibrant woman who has taken hold of educating people on environmental sustainability. Finding herself on a career path she had no passion for, Temilade decided to find out just what it has to offer. We can tell you assuredly that she found it. Temilade Salami today, is a leading figure in starting and propelling various youth led initiatives across Africa. She founded one of the largest networks of young environmentalists and activists – Eco Champions. She has used this as a platform to develop multiple climate change projects across Africa. Temilade is an active advocate for the inclusion of climate education into the Nigerian curriculum and has successfully launched the Climate Education Leaders Fellowship earlier last year to educate the next generation of environmental activists.
2.UCHENNA ONWUAMAEGBU
A glance at Nigeria’s educational system will give a summary of the determination and passion it must have taken Uchenna to take up the mantle of leadership in a bid to make dimensional shifts in the lives of Nigerian kids, especially the girl child. Not fazed by the seeming lack of standard and equal education, Uchenna has used Edufun Technik, an organisation she founded and heads, to create a momentum of learning, providing STEM education and resources to schools and students in Nigeria. Uchenna has been privileged to use her opportunities in programs such as the Mandela Washington Fellowship to mentor and touch the lives of over 800 students in Nigeria. She attended a hands-on STEM related event in Dubai which spurred her interests in bringing her new-found knowledge to her local community. Uche has been able to transform several students’ lives including training five Nigerian girls in coding, that won the technovation world pitch in Silicon Valley, U.S.A.
3.FOLAWE OMIKUNLE
It is indeed rare to find such raw passion and talent for teaching as we have found in Folawe Omikunle. Folawe is a graduate of international law and diplomacy from Babcock University. Though unrelated to her chosen career path, this didn’t stop her from going further to enrol at Modern Montessori International, London, for a diploma in Montessori Education.
Her passion was even more intrigued when Folawe became the administrator of a school and had a life-changing encounter with an orphan girl who couldn’t quite afford to attend the school. There and then, she took up the mandate to reduce inequality in the education sector of Nigeria.
As the CEO of Teach for Nigeria, Folawe once led her team to partner with Kaduna State Government to place teachers in high-need primary schools across the state. They successfully enrolled over 80 qualified teachers in public schools across the state. Folawe is a member of the Association of Private Educators in Nigeria, and was named one of the Leading Ladies in Africa by Y!/YNaija. She also once won the women of year award in education by Her Network.
4.DR. MODUPE ADEFESO-OLATEJU
Yet another woman making waves in the Education sector is Modupe Adefeso-Olateju, the Managing Director of Education Partnership Centre. Modupe has successfully lead work on education related initiatives that were sponsored and supported by top international donors.
As an educational policy expert, she was opportune to write a section of the Federal Ministry of Education Strategic Plan on Education. Dr. Modupe is also a trustee of the Commonwealth Youth Exchange Council, United Kingdom. Modupe has been recognised by the President of Nigeria as one of the 100 Guardians of Nigeria’s future.
5.OLA ABAGUN
Some individuals have found ways to utilise chosen career paths industriously to re-engineer the foundations of ideas they believe in. One of these is Ola Abagun, a lawyer and a gender and international development expert. She also is a qualified Equality Diversity and Inclusion Professional.
Ola is the executive director of ATHENA Network, a global feminist collective, working to promote gender equality and human rights. Her passion for feminism is demonstrated in her advocacy for the girl child’s right to education, through the creation of the Girl Pride Circle initiative in 2014.
This woman riding the waves of constructive feminism was also a consultant for Gender Transformative Education, a project commissioned by UNICEF, UNGEI and Plan International. Ola was opportune to handle the project on a six-month contract basis. She also has designed and facilitated two global virtual consultations for about 20 grassroot youth advocates for gender equality and education.
Vive Africa Faces of Education 2023
6.FAITH EMMANUEL BENSON IDAHOSA
Popularly known as FEB Idahosa, he is one of the few people that can be said to have been born into leadership. FEB acquired his Bachelor of Science degree in Biology and a Bachelor of arts degree in Business Administration from Oral Roberts University, Oklahoma, U.S.A. He is a current doctoral candidate for Educational Leadership at Oral Roberts University.
FEB can be considered an educational entrepreneur and one of the greatest trans-generational leaders ever born. With a passion to transform his country, he started the Leadership 300 program, intended to discover potential future leaders and give them the necessary mentorship they require.
Bishop FEB Idahosa has been in the education field and has been the President of Benson Idahosa University since 1998. He has helped cultivate the leadership potential of students from the university through intentional approaches and strategically orchestrated programs. FEB has been the recipient of several honorary awards in the educational sector, ranging from the Oral Roberts University Academic Peer Advisor program award in 1994 to the more recent Grand Fellowship Award by the Institute of Strategic Management, Nigeria.
7.ADA NWOKEJI
Drums Study Abroad and Student chat jobs are educational resources directed by Ada Nwokeji, a young, resourceful education influencer, passionate about young people’s education in Nigeria. Ada has successfully used these platforms to get hundreds of international students, dependents and graduates connected with amazing job opportunities. Her 17 years of versatile experience has been used to educate people on where and how to find the right opportunities suitable to their needs.
8.ADEOLA ADEFEMI
Transforming a supposedly low performing school within two years to winning multiple international and local competitions, Adeola Adefemi is gaining ground in the education sector. Her passion and use of her intellect is unmatched. For Adeola, no child is a dullard, it is the right approach that is lacking.
Adeola Adefemi is an award winning and certified innovative educator, currently teaching at Oke-Ado Senior High School, Alimosho. Passionate about promoting quality education especially for marginalised children, she has won the African Top School Award for exceptional academic performance.
Adeola launched Every Child Counts, a club-based society channelled to recognize the different interests of kids. Through this, she has completely reformed learning for the kids that pass through her tutelage.During her 9 years career, she has helped train young girls in entrepreneurial skills, won over 103 sate, national and international competitions and received several awards including the Outstanding teacher of the year 2019, Maltina’s That One Teacher award, Lockdown Teacher 2020, Fulbright Teaching Excellence, and Achievement award, 2020 and was announced as the best teacher in Nigeria on the 2022 World teachers’ day.
9. FUNMI ILORI
Funmi Ilori acquired a Bachelor of Science in Urban and Regional Planning, a course completely unrelated to education. However, her passion for literary works, books and education in general led her to acquire an M.Sc. in Educational Psychology. Funmi as an educational consultant works with iRise model School as a director of studies. She also is a Children Books Author and was selected by Barack Obama himself as a Young African Leader for the 2016 Mandela Washington Fellowship.
10.KOKO KALANGO
30 years work experience in education. That is what Koko Kalango boasts of as an education reformer. This amazing woman has worked in Nigeria, the United Kingdom and as a volunteer in the United States. Koko started an initiative titled Rainbow Book Club and led the Get Nigeria reading Again campaign. She has also represented Nigeria on various international platforms including Poland World Book Capital, 2016, Incheon World Book Capital and Kirby Smith Youth exchange programme in the U.S.A.
Vive Africa Faces of Education 2023
11.DIPO AWOJIDE
Popularly and professionally known as Ogbeni Dipo, Dipo Awojide has these past few years become renowned for his passion for academics and self-development. In his interview with NewsWireNGR Dipo talks about how his passion for wanting to help others coupled with his experience studying in a UK university helped open his eyes to how he can help others.
With a platform that reaches millions of people, Ogbeni Dipo has transformed life through his mentorship, providing education related opportunities on scholarships, interviews, and international education.
Ogbeni Dipo is the founder of BDTD, an educational platform created to help young graduates and professionals. He is currently a Senior Lecturer Nottingham Trent university, U.K. Without a doubt
12.ROTIMI OLAWALE
Rotimi Olawale should be given an honorific title as an ‘education champion’. Passion coupled with thought-leadership are attributes that have helped Rotimi Olawale take small but mighty steps in the protection of the right of the girl child to education. He is an advocate for government officials passing laws that improve girls’ access to 12 years of education.
For over 10 years, Rotimi has worked as a youth development expert and girls’ education advocate. He founded YouthHub Africa in 2012 a social platform to engage youth across Africa in social change.
Remember the #BringBrackOurGirls campaign? Rotimi Olawale served as its spokesperson in 2014. His activism and advocacy resulted in a significant amendment by the Senate to the Universal Basic Education Act to guarantee every child’s right to 12 years of education!
13. IKENNA ODINAKA CHUKS
Writer, Career development professional and an educator above all, Odinaka Chuks is the founder of one of the biggest websites that provides information to students after secondary education – Afterschoolafrica.com. He is also the founder of AfterSchoolMedia.com and Edxtra.com. With a passion for the future of young people and enabling them access to opportunities to develop their financial capabilities and access to opportunities, Chuks’ website has built a lot of confidence in its audience with the educational information it provides.
14.MARYJACOB OKWUOSA
Another educational advocate is Maryjacob Okwuosa, who has achieved both local and international renown because of her work in the educational sector. As the founder of Whisper to Humanity, a virtual community training teachers and students to create a more conducive learning space for all, especially for the girl-child. Maryjacob sees education as vital to improving the quality of lives of women and the society at large.
With over 10 years working experience in the developmental space, Maryjacob initiated, founded, coordinated, organised, and contributed to major change making programs and policies. Maryjacob is a founding member of Transform Education Network hosted by UN Girls Education Initiative. She has had the opportunity of being a representative on the Global Partnership for Education Youth Leaders Board. She is also the national coordinator for Activista.
15.ABISOYE AJAYI-AKINFOLARIN
We can agree that the most significant divide in education is access – this is what Abisoye is working to change with her foundation, Pearland Africa Youth Foundation. She uses this medium to educate girls and women in maligned communities, strategically providing them with opportunities that they otherwise may never get.
Majorly advocating for women and girls, Abisoye has been able to educate thousands of females in marginalised communities, providing them with access to technology and mentorship to help them become independent.
The empowerment the foundation gave to youth birthed Girls Coding in a bid to give more women opportunities to thrive in her tech career path. She has also founded similar flagship programs such as Girls in STEM, G.C Mentors and Empowered Hands.
Abisoye Ajayi-Akinfolarin was named one of the top ten CNN Heroes and BBC 100 Women in Tech.
Vive Africa Faces of Education 2023
16. DR. ADEOLA OLUBAMIJI
Here’s another woman breaking glass ceilings. Growing up poor with parents who had no formal education, Adeola Olubamiji popularly known as Dr. Addy Olubamiji has carved out an exciting success story. With a passion for the Sciences, Adeola Olubamiji was indeed able to demonstrate that education is a pathway to success. She became the first black person to acquire a Phd in biomedical engineering from the prestigious University of Saskatchewan.
Dr. Addy founded the STEMhub Foundation, a charity organisation that provides mentorship, free hands-on experiments, and unique learning opportunities to black youth. The organisation has impacted the lives of thousands of youth and professionals since its inception by bringing career coaching and study abroad opportunities to them.
17. RUKAYAT ALABI
If there’s anything Rukayat, the founder and CEO of RKY Careers is doing well, it is the fulfilment of dreams. Based in London, UK, Rukayat is an educational and professional mentor who takes every individual’s need, capacity and challenges and creates irresistible excellence from them.
With over 150 success stories, 50k+ followers, 10+ different career changing services and training, Rukayat has been able to help students and professionals achieve dreams that seem too far off. As a renowned authority in the UK Job market, Career Development and Visa Sponsorship programs, this amazing woman has been invited to speak in several Tech Summits, Career Webinars and Universities.
The tirade of client testimonies that decorate her social media, ranging from multiple job offers to visa acquisitions are testimonies of her brilliant services. The genuineness of these testimonies can be found on the very surface of exalting words used, speaking true to the joy and excitement of the people who have benefited from her CV writing and training recommendations.
With Rukayat’s help several people have landed UK jobs from the comfort of their homes. Her CV and Linked In profile transformations have often been referred to as ‘the magic touch’ as it often results in barrels of interviews, recommendations and job offers. Jovial, warm, and kind-hearted, Rukayat has created beautiful relationships with her clients while being fully professional with her job.
18. PRINCE LOUIS ADEKOLA
International Education Consultancy, that is what Louis Adeola lives for. His passion for the education sector is demonstrated with three different degrees in Education. Could anyone love education even more? As an ambassador of University of Sussex, he provides information to prospective students on admission processes, financial support schemes, course options and flexible payment plans.
Louis, who is the CEO of Edvant Edge Africa, has attended several educational conferences locally and internationally. He recently joined other education change-makers like Mo Adefeso to feature at the Education Innovation Summit in Lagos. According to him, he loves the opportunity to network and share best practices which such conferences provide.
19. ADEWALE YUSUF
Adewale Yusuf is the co-founder of Alt School Africa, Talent QL and Tech Point Africa. This young man prides himself in his ability to recognise talents in young Africans while providing them with opportunities to change their future. He is passionate about helping people, and using innovative means to transform the education sector. The importance of the impact Adewale has achieved and is still achieving through platforms such as Alt School Africa, which trains people on technical skills has been recognised throughout the African continent.
His passion for starting up tech companies and training people, led him to co-found Tech Point Africa, which has been quite instrumental in showing just how important tech is in transforming Nigeria.
For us, we have found most appealing his skill in using Talent QL to create remote employment opportunities for talents across Africa, connecting developers and young talents. We hope to see Adewale attain even greater heights in the industry.
20. ADETOMI SOYINKA
Where would we be without Adetomi Soyinka on our list? With over 12 years working experience as the Director of Education, Enterprise and Skills Program for British Council, Nigeria, Adetomi has been instrumental in equipping young people with employability skills while providing higher education and enterprise innovations.
The British Council is renowned for its culture integration schemes and support of the employment and growth aspirations of young people, and at the helm of affairs, Adetomi has been able to propel the visions of the council with maximum results.
This excellent woman has also had several other experiences working in education, including being the regional director of higher education programmers in Sub Saharan Africa and Project Manager for the British Council Services for International Education Marketing. Adetomi also happens to be an advocate for youth employability and enterprise.
Vive Africa Faces of Education 2023
21. ADA KELECHI-AHUCHE
Here’s another important personality on our list! With a fascinating devotion to education, Ada is on the path to bagging her PhD in Global Education from the prestigious Coventry University. Ada is the Associate Director of Global Education Services at Oxford International Education Group. She has also worked as the Head of Operations, West & Central Africa in Coventry University for a period a little bit above 10 years.
During her time working for Coventry University and Oxford International Education Group, Ada has been able to strengthen international student’s acquisition, acquire new academic partnerships, and promote educational opportunities across various regions.
22. GIDEON OLANREWAJU
There are prodigies in every industry, and we bring one of the very best to you – Gideon Olanrewaju. Change, transformation, reformation can be very individual depending on what notions we have of them. However, when it comes to Gideon, he is a personality we all can agree on to be making change in its purest and simplest form.
Humanitarian and passionate about education, Gideon is the creator of Aid for Rural Education Access Initiative (AREAi), a non-profit organisation devoted to creating quality informal and alternative learning systems in rural communities.
AREAi has successfully been able to reach over 6,000 disadvantaged kids in Nigeria. From the impact of his ideas and implementations, it is obvious that Gideon Olanrewaju is passionate about closing educational divides.
Gideon has been privileged to attend and represent Nigeria at world conferences such as the World Education Forum in Incheon, 66th UN/DPI NGO Conference in Gyeongju, 16th UNESCO Asia Conference on Quality Education in Bangkok and many more.
23. FRANCIS EBUARA
Francis Ebuara, a doctoral researcher based in Florida, USA is yet another significant education influencer in Nigeria. With the aim of solely providing education opportunities to his followers, Francis has helped many Nigerians with international opportunities, providing essay and interview guidelines, basic counselling, scholarship opportunities and application tutorials.
Having successfully gotten into a PhD program with only a B.Sc., Francis is quite eager to help others achieve their international education aspirations.
24. OLUMUYIWA IGBALAJOBI
If you’ve ever heard of Scholarships Cafe, well here is its founder – Olumuyiwa Igbalajobi. Renowned for providing global Undergraduates, Masters, PhD, and Postdoc opportunities, Olumuyiwa has used his platform to help young Nigerians benefit from various international opportunities. Muyiwa in his words says he pushes out information to assist prospective graduates. Today, he has mentored over 40,000 applicants in Nigeria.
Not limited to providing information on international opportunities, Olumuyiwa is also a passionate activist for equal education in the Nigerian system. His platform is majorly used for inclusive, equitable and quality education. Olumuyiwa hopes to see Scholarships Cafe as one of the biggest educational platforms soon. His Twitter space, Global Opportunities Q&A, Olumuyiwa has charted the course of many academic experiences by providing guidance at different stages in the academic journey.
25. OLUDAYO SOKUNBI
We refer to him as the international help guru. His 200k+ followers may have witnessed Oludayo’s partiality to provide fully funded scholarship information. As a recipient of multiple scholarships, Oludayo says he feels indebted to humanity to share scholarship opportunities that can help them live better fulfilled lives.
Oludayo has been able to successfully help over 250 applicants through the information he provides. He has also gone ahead to create Japa Consults, a platform intended to provide consultation services on step-to-step guidelines to international opportunities. Presently Oludayo is a doctoral candidate in Concordia University in Quebec, Canada.
With the political landscape of the UK going through unrelenting turbulence in recent months, and its economy taking more than a beating, foreign countries — some of which have been blamed for the UK’s economic woes — are making a case for the status quo to be maintained citing economic benefits to the UK.
According to a report recently released by Nigeria-based research agency, SBMIntel, students who chose the UK as their destination of choice in the 2018/19 academic session cumulatively contributed a net figure of £25.9billion. Inferring from this, Nigerian students admitted by year end June 2022 would arguably be responsible for a net economic gain of £3.25billion.
“At 66,929 members out of a total of 486,868 new international students, the Nigerian portion of the inflow is roughly 13% of the total, and inferring from analysis from London Economics on the economic impact of the international students that the UK took in for the 2018/19 session showed that the UK gained a net figure of £25.9 billion for the year in question, new Nigerian students alone would be arguably responsible for a net economic gain of £3,250,000,000,” the report stated.
The referenced report analysed the economic impact of these set of students on the UK economy over the entire duration of their studies. Other than the school fees paid by international students admitted into UK schools, other expenses injected into the nation’s economy include visa fees, NHS payments, accommodation, income taxes and more.
The report is coming on the heels of statements credited to Suella Braverman, UK’s Home Secretary, hinting on the possibility of enforcing a cap on the number of student visas issued while questioning the quality and long-term benefits of UK’s current immigration policies.
Speaking at a fringe event of the Tory conference earlier in October, Braverman promised to take a “more discerning” approach to the number of student visas being issued.
“We’ve had a massive increase in the number of students coming into this country. Maybe they’ll contribute skills in this country, maybe they’ll back go to other countries or their own country to contribute skills and that’s a really good thing,” she said.
“We’ve also got to be honest that many, many, many more people coming here — net migration is very high, and it’s increased as well — puts pressure on our services, on our housing and on our community relationships. Therefore, moving towards a balanced approach where we welcome highly-skilled migrants who are contributing to various sectors in our economy — while also making sure we have a balanced approach to low-skilled migration and overall numbers — I think is entirely feasible. Taking a more discerning, smart approach to the number of student visas I think is highly consistent with our agenda for growth.”
Her sentiments have however raised eyebrows among experts and international education professionals in countries like Nigeria, a country which has so far this year contributed the third highest number of international students to the UK behind China and India.
“With the current economic situation in the UK, it is easy to see that the country benefits so much from its current immigration policy especially as it regards international education as it allows post-study work,” said Isime Esene, Lead Consultant at Vive Africa, an education-focused media and marketing agency based in Lagos, Nigeria. “It is in the UK’s interest to maintain this policy and also gain from the influx of educated and highly trained professionals to bridge the skill gap and beef up its workforce.”
SBMIntel sees the comments credited to Braverman as “a desire for racial or cultural homogeneity that some consider under threat by the influx of international students who bring a more cosmopolitan dimension to society, and while this desire is natural, we must remember that instincts do not always lead to profitable economic outcomes”.
“Every immigrant pays for health insurance and other statutory payments due to them and their dependants — this is money that the UK government needs to get its economy out of the quagmire it currently is,” said Segun Babatunde, an international post-graduate student based in Manchester. “Many students are here to gain knowledge and return to their countries of origin or other countries of their choice, therefore it is of no benefit to discriminate against them and provoke negative sentiments.”
With the effects of BREXIT still fresh on the minds of UK government policy makers, businesses, and citizens alike, it is expected that the government will maintain the status quo while considering the positive impact of study immigration and other legal opportunities available for citizens of other countries who have chosen to study, live, and work in the UK.
