Your Degree Means Nothing, Dear Nigerian Graduate

3 Min Read

I want to share this news with you, dear friends, and I hope you share it with your friends too.

 

Yesterday, a friend’s son just signed a contract with Sony’s PlayStation for a whooping sum of fourteen million US dollars.

 

He’s job? He would test various adventure games for errors before they are launched.

 

How did he land this job at the age of 14? Well, he plays games. Yes, games and he has been playing them religiously from the tender age of 6, according to his dad.

 

I know some parents, especially those from the African region, would quickly conclude that that’s not the way to raise a child. How can one allow a child to indulge in such waste of time and why is the child not following millions out there following the norm of getting a degree and finding the fine job?

 

In this contemporary world, there are many reminders that everything has changed.

 

Education comes from anywhere. A child’s ability to master what he loves can put him in the spotlight if he’s guided and supported. The walls of institutions have fallen.

 

CGPAs mean nothing today. I know graduates in Nigeria with excellent results and still jobless.

 

Even folks who have come to study in the U.K. return to Nigeria and work in offices that pay 70k naira monthly.

 

A particular friend, brilliant chap, whose CGPA turned us green with envy in our university days, is still looking for a job in Nigeria even after getting masters in one of the top U.K universities.

The dynamics of learning and earning has changed. There are no jobs for those students who think their high score would automatically set them on the right path of financial freedom. In fact, those who hold those kinds of thoughts are usually disappointed.

 

It’s a value driven world now. What are you bringing to the table?

 

If you’re only bringing your certificate, dear graduate, to the table then you’re not worthy of earning a decent income.

 

Relaxing and hoping that a mere paper would open doors is like loading gun and shooting one’s thighs. These days, one has to do more. Find what you are good at or what you love and ensure you follow it with military dedication and persistency.

 

At 14, a young boy is earning what most of us only hope to earn in our dreams. He doesn’t have a CGPA or a report card. What does he have? A passion for what he loves. Follow your passion or do more practical stuffs and the passion will find you. Degrees don’t create keys.

 

I welcome you to follow me on twitter @moshoke

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