4 me i ll say its all bout getting focused nd knowing ur onions from day 1 nd wat u intend achieving not just by talking nd saying u want to graduate wid a 1st class but by working towards it - ur dreams nd life accomplishments. so no secret per se just work nd heyyyyyyy lil play so u dnt run mad out of working nd reading all day

Desire, passion. enthusiasm or say hunger for success is necessary to commit to doing all that have been suggested.

Question: How do you develop desire and get a kid to do that?

Because it seems to me that without it every effort will be mechanical and doesn't seem to me like such effort will deliver first class

Funny thing is, most of the people that have contributed to this topic are male. This has just proven to me that guys are more brilliant.

It has all been said: DETERMINATION, PLANNING, DETERMINATION, PLANNING to top those, GOD! GOD!! and more GOD!!!

I set my goal from day one that I wanted to graduate with a 2.1 - I got my goal. With hindsight now, I know for sure that if I had decided on a first class, I would have got that also.

So determination is the key.

To the guys who calculated their G.P every other day My goodness, I still remember all my courses and the scores i made. Doubt if I can ever forget. I calculated my G.P ALL the time

I narrowly missed a first class but i graduated knowing that i gave my very best. the secret is faith in God and like others have been saying, calculate your GP from the start. I also set targets for myself in every course and most of the time i made the projected score spot on. Hardwork pays all the time.

ditto that , carmenlily, i also missed out first class, by -0.04, but hey its all good. i guess the trick is in setting ur goal from the start and being "determinedly" dead serious about it. Do not give urself excuses when u start recording negative variances between ur achievement and ur goal. be disciplined and stay supergued to God. Trust me it pays off.

But then again.

First Class degree is not a passport to First Class Life

Get real people!!

lolololol

Before my University admission, I battled with WAEC and JAMB for like 4yrs. But I made my decision in the University.

1. As a jambito, swallow what older students tell you, but digest and discharge stuffs like "you can't pass a particular lecturers course unless you sort"    or "70% of students always fail his course".
2. Get into an illusion - "I need a first class to get a good job so I need to distinguish myself from the crowd" because there're a lot of graduates out their.  Always sing it in your head.
3. This is bitter. Distance yourself from friends in exam hall. This will help you focus and pour out the best in you. Because in Nigeria (or schools generally, it is believed exam is the true test of knowledge). While preparing for exam, try to teach your colleagues topics they find difficult, they too will show you some things that you never thought of. Add it to your own.
4. Reduce the contents of your course into chunks of information, after which you read these chunks over and over again. This will help easy storage and retrieval.
5. Always think of giving the lecturer a "marking scheme" in the exam. Get past questions and solutions. Research the lecturer and know what he/she demands in exam and coursework.
6. Take assignments seriously.
7. Never think of blocking (the one time I did it I got my worst result - E).
8. Pray always.

Don't be comfortable with blue inks on you result, be comfortable only with an A or B. My 2:1 has brought me part-scholarship, sponsor, admission in UEL London. Seeee* you don’t need to be a genius. You can make a 1st class if you minus girls, money and groove (my weakness) from your study.

Again BTW, you don't need a first class degree before you become very rich, not all first class degree holder are Gbem!!!!

I have to contribute cos am in the group but mine is just two word

God and Discipline (G & D)

cos if u have all that and no discipline forget it

and if u have all that plus discipline, and Gos did not protect u from all these unless and heartless lecturers NA problem be that ooo

First Class degree is not a passport to First Class Life

Correct!

But then, as a fresh graduate it gives you a tremendous advantage over your peers.

tollu:

most of the people that have contributed to this topic are male. This has just proven to me that guys are more brilliant.

really?? you obviously don't need much convincing.

i have a third class in applied biochemistry. i am also a satellite t.v installer. and on the 11th of next month, by the special grace of God, i'll be done with youth service. can i get any meaningful job with this class of degree? or should i stick to my satellite t.v installtion skill, which my folks consider rather demeaning as a graduate? maybe i should travel out of the country, which am considering seriously.  what are my chances?i need your candid advice.

When I first posted my view(2nd post) on this topic, it had not been pushed to the Home Page then. Expectedly, the decision to push the topic to its deserved place(front page) has popularized the thread and a lot of interesting comments have followed. I took my time to read all the comments and hereby wish to add the following:

THIS NATURAL BRILLIANCE TALK: I still very much believe NATURAL BRILLIANCE is key to having First Class. It's a necessary but not sufficient condition. Natural brilliance makes you a potential First Class student, but CONSCIOUS PLANNING AND DETERMINATION completes it. Noble as CONSCIOUS PLANNING & DETERMINATION is, it's a pity it RARELY (I said rarely please, so not totally impossible)does it without NATURAL BRILLIANCE. Many students are really highly determined and plans a lot, but they are hindered by this NATURAL BRILLIANCE. In my university days, I knew many classmates of mine that were heavy readers, consciously planning and targetting First Class, but they were not just First Class materials, naturally.So they didn't have it.

Again, NATURAL BRILLIANCE does not guarantee First Class, it only makes it easier. You need extra efforts. So a naturally brilliant student that doesn't consciously pursue and work for First Class may not have it.

It is important to also add, as somebody has already mentioned here, that a not-too-naturally-brilliant-student(it's just hard for me to remove this NATURAL BRILLIANCE thing.I just believe in it) can also make First class, but he'll do very GREAT WORK. I need not define great work, because it has alreday been overdiscussed in previous posts here.

A First Class material is anybody with potential to have First Class. Not all First Class materials graduate with First Class.Some factors such as unseriousness,disinterestedness,family problems,victimization etc prevent some First Class materials from having First Class but even with 2-1 they distinguish themselves.

FIRST CLASS & WEALTH: It's a pity some people have smuggled this DEFEATIST ARGUMENT into this topic. The topic is not DO FIRST CLASS STUDENT END UP BEING RICH,GREAT ETC? The thread starter only wants to know TOP SECRETS OF FIRST CLASS STUDENTS please. You can tell me Bill Gate, Yar'adua,Abiola, Gani Fawehinmi,Jimoh Ibrahim etc did not have First Class, but you can't tell me FIRST CLASS doesn't have advantage.Money is not everything please!!! A First Class grad that is worth his certificate will not struggle to find job, except God only wants to try him. I never spent 3 weeks at home after my graduation before I got offers from three different companies. I'm not saying First Class is a key to greatness, but no doubt, it helps, especially for a fresh grad looking for job.

FIRST CLASS BY POLITICS: I doubt if you can make First Class by bribery. Not possible in my school, and I'm almost sure of other schools too. To make First Class you need to make A consistently in 70% of your courses? Can you bribe 70% of your course lecturers, from year 1 to 5? Most people bribe not to fail, that is, to have E,d or C, but A, even with bribe, very rare.

FIRST CLASS & PERFORMANCE AT WORK: Admittedly, First Class grads are not necessarily the best performers at work, post University. Class of degree is, to a large extent, academic. Some 2-2 grads are smarter in work places. Nevertheless, chances are that anybody that really made and is worth First Class, will not disappoint in work place.

The above again brings to the fore the oft-debated issue of WHY DO COMPANIES EMPHASIZE CLASS OF DEGREE WHEN SOME 2-2 ARE SMARTER THAN 1-1 GRADS? The simple answer is, the company, not knowing any of you before, cannot say Mr A is good and Mr B is not. Certificate then becomes the only thing that readily says who you are. Of course, calling everybody for test/interview means graet cost(financial & time) to the organization. So there has to be benchmark for screening. Resorting to the readily available benchmark(Class of degree) comes handy!

carmelily:

really?? you obviously don't need much convincing.

Honestly? I don't.

ife-eco-06:



FIRST CLASS & WEALTH: It's a pity some people have smuggled this DEFEATIST ARGUMENT into this topic. The topic is not DO FIRST CLASS STUDENT END UP BEING RICH,GREAT ETC? The thread starter only wants to know TOP SECRETS OF FIRST CLASS STUDENTS please.

Rightly said. I also noticed this trend and was getting pissed off. This is not a topic related to graduating with good grades and getting great jobs as well.
Let's not lose focus people

ife-eco-06:

THIS NATURAL BRILLIANCE TALK: I still very much believe NATURAL BRILLIANCE is key to having First Class. It's a necessary but not sufficient condition. Natural brilliance makes you a potential First Class student, but CONSCIOUS PLANNING AND DETERMINATION completes it. Noble as CONSCIOUS PLANNING & DETERMINATION is, it's a pity it RARELY (I said rarely please, so not totally impossible)does it without NATURAL BRILLIANCE. Many students are really highly determined and plans a lot, but they are hindered by this NATURAL BRILLIANCE. In my university days, I knew many classmates of mine that were heavy readers, consciously planning and targetting First Class, but they were not just First Class materials, naturally.So they didn't have it.

I strongly believe that everyone born of a women is naturally brilliant in SOMETHING. You only need to figure out what you love doing and what makes you tick.

If you can discover what makes you tick, you would effortlessly devote time and resources to getting the required knowledge. If you are tested appropriately, you would most likely make a first class or its equivalent.

Except of course you have what i call 'negative home support' (meaning the witches and wizards in your village still dey follow you).

So i still think that ANYONE can make a first class.

sharp man:

So i still think that ANYONE can make a first class.

First class in what? Selling akara?

I have a friend who is a brilliant artist/musician but due to family pressure from Naija, he is studying business. When he was doing his module on Decision Making, I was teaching him how to do the mathematics involved. The guy cannot even do 2 x 2 in his head without using calculator. Even when using calculator, he gets it wrong because he does not understand simple BODMAS. If you give him 2 + 3 x 2, he will put 2 + 3 x 2 into the caculator (which is 5 x 2 = 10) instead of 3 x 2, then + 2 [which is 8]. How do you expect someone like that to carry first class?

My junior brother was also never brilliant in school. He only learnt to read at age 10 whilst I was reading at age 3 and my other brother was reading at 5. And even so, my mother is a teacher and used to teach us to read everyday starting with the Anglo-phonetic pronunciations of the alphabet. Yet it took my brother so many years to learn to read. My parents let him finish education after secondary school, then put him on apprenticeship scheme. He is now doing OK. If it was some Nigerian parents, they will force him to study and belittle him until he goes crazy.

Higher Education is not for everyone. Some people are happy just to be able to read and write and do arithmetic and they are OK in life. It is not by force.

Ibime:

If you give him 2 + 3 x 2, he will put 2 + 3 x 2 into the caculator (which is 5 x 2 = 10) instead of 3 x 2, then + 2 [which is 8]. How do you expect someone like that to carry first class?

Er, you may wish to look at that sum again, Ibime. 2+3x2 in a calculator will give you 8. Try it.
You already mentioned BODMAS.

Meanwhile, I think the first thing you need to get a first class is interest in what you're studying.

9ice one,
Efficy thread,
Ride on, ooohhhh lecturers.

sharp man:

I strongly believe that everyone born of a women is naturally brilliant in SOMETHING. You only need to figure out what you love doing and what makes you tick.

Except of course you have what i call 'negative home support' (meaning the witches and wizards in your village still dey follow you).

So i still think that ANYONE can make a first class.

This is why I have tried to avoid interchanging GENIUS & NATURALLY BRLLIANCE in my previous posts. I think Genius is more general. Natural Brilliance is just an aspect of Ingenuity, the academic form of ingenuity.GIFT is closest to the NATURAL BRILLIANCE we are talkng about here. I'm aware that the definition of BRILLIANCE goes beyond academics(we can have brilliant footballer like Kanu Nwankwo), but I presumed, brilliance as it relates to this topic is ACADEMIC BRILLIANCE. So I needed not tell anybody that by brilliance I meant ACADEMIC BRILLIANCE. Zidane was widely acknowledged as a SOCCER GENUIS, WIZARD etc.

While Zidane or Kanu are naturally brilliant footballers, they may not be naturally brilliant academically. So what we are saying is that FIRST CLASS is for people that are NATURALLY BRILLIANT ACADEMICALLY. Your belief that everyone born of a women is [b]naturally brilliant [/b]  is true but thank God you added that brilliant in SOMETHING. Something may be football. Inasmuch as that something is not ACADEMICS, then forget FIRST CLASS.

I also agree with you that You only need to figure out what you love doing and what makes you tick.
. Yes, if you figure yourself a brilliant/gifted footballer, then pursue it and become Zidane. If academics, go for it. But surely we are not all equally naturally gifted in everything.

The bottomline, again, is you need a considerable level of NATURAL ACADEMIC BRILLIANCE before you can think of First Class, just as you need a level of NATURAL FOOTBALL BRILLIANCE before you become a First Class Footballer like Zidane Kanu etc. This is why despite despite the efforts of their brothers to make them become world class players too, Ogbona Kanu and Oliseh's brother could not sustain it. The absence of NATURAL BRILLIANCE  that can make them FIRST CLASS footballers like brothers is the factor here.

Genius are born!!!

Geniall:

Er, you may wish to look at that sum again, Ibime. 2+3x2 in a calculator will give you 8. Try it.
You already mentioned BODMAS.

hmmmmm. . . . why so pedantic? You know the point I was trying to make.

It depends on what type of calculator you are using. Casio, Sharp or whatever. Not all calculators do BODMAS for you. Some expect you to already know it. Some calculators bring themselves down to the level of the amateurs. Also depends on whether you put equal sign after each entry. You know wharra mean.

It's true that brilliance is natural. My youngest brother is one . . . that guy has never been second in his entire life from primary school till he got to college and wahala coupled with too much play made him miss a first class.
However one reason i always believe that everyone can make a 1st class if they put their minds to it is simple, i was horribly bad at maths, excellent at English and critical reasoning when i was a kid. I could read by the age of 3, was passing high school english tests by the age of 8 but ordinary 5x6 - (87+5) and i'D be sweating like a he-goat.

My mom took a good 3 months of her time every summer till i was 10 to grill me at maths, those years changed my life. By the time i got to SS1 i had finished the maths sylabus for high school and scored A1 in maths SSCE by SS2.

Simple lesson - you can be anything you want, if you're not especially good at it keep working hard. The minute you tell yourself "i'm never going to pass maths or science", its bye bye to ever passing it for you.

No one is a failure, people just fail to plan. Most importantly if u're lucky to have parents who are keenly interested in you making good grades in school the better for you.

davidylan:

but ordinary 5x6 - (87+5) and i'D be sweating like a he-goat.

lol. . . I guess your school didn't sing 2-12 times table like we did in primary 2.

Anybody that attended my primary 2 class must be good at maths cos we sang that every morning at class assembly.

Well, On this issue, there is a lot to talk about but then its not like this so called first class students are all the greats even if some are.

I belong to this category, thank God but then putting first the God factor, i have mates who prepared, studied and did a lot of things better than i did, I can acknowledge that academically, some are better mine but then while i came out First Class, they came up on 2:1

So for me, its like this, lets rephrase it to like First Class people then we take it from various angles of life. Life itself is a game, if you know how to play the game you will come out has a first class life student. So is business and the others

Now to academics, aside good student ethics of reading to understanding, attend lectures and prepare well for exams. There is a need to learn the game. many a times all you need is to understand what the lecturer/examiner wants, may be what you need is a broad study of the subject at hand and not a die hard reading e.t.c

Personality is also an issue, Composure and self confidence is part of the tonic and understanding yourself (strengths and weaknesses) is a great quality to possess. Also, there is need to believe in oneself and please, have and chase a goal.

To conclude this, i'll like to say not all so-called first class students have an enviable first-class life so i say, get a goal, chase the goal, learn the game and get yourself a first class life.

Thanks

Ibime:

lol. . . I guess your school didn't sing 2-12 times table like we did in primary 2.

Anybody that attended my primary 2 class must be good at maths because we sang that every morning at class assembly.

we did every morning in primary 2 also. I could do 2x4 easily but when you couch it in a word problem you totally lost me. e.g. Ade had 2 oranges, if he obtained a multiple of 4 oranges and bought 5 more mangoes from the market, how many fruits does he have? Wahala don dey be that.

Chai, the good old days.

Ibime:

lol. . . I guess your school didn't sing 2-12 times table like we did in primary 2.

Anybody that attended my primary 2 class must be good at maths because we sang that every morning at class assembly.

Sincerely, that simple maths goes beyond 2x2 table. It's BODMAS at play. Some people are so weak in maths when they see bracket sign they get scared.

So poor in Maths was I in primary school that i was nicknamed I DON'T KNOW MATHS, because I once told our class teacher I didn't know maths, when i was asked one question in class.In JSS and even till SSS2, I hated to see x+y+z stuff. But overnight, shortly before I finished secondary school,I just can't explain how it happened,and Maths became my favourite subject. I had B2 in WASSCE, but I knew I was worth A1, just made some mistakes.

I have never looked back since then. Maths courses were my best in the university.

Ibime:

lol. . . I guess your school didn't sing 2-12 times table like we did in primary 2.

Anybody that attended my primary 2 class must be good at maths because we sang that every morning at class assembly.

We used to call that morning tea!!!! Oh, boy how I hated mornings then. I was unlucky to be in a class where the tutor valued mathematics more than any other subject. His theory was then "Understand mathematical problems and all other subjects would be added onto You".
Every morning this guy would make us sing the times table as a whole class and he usually picks u out if he suspects u are just mumbling To redeem yourself, You have to sing the stuff solo in front of the class!!!

That really helped me a lot,

this thread has made my day laughing out my butts in the office.hey!

davidylan:

It's true that brilliance is natural. My youngest brother is one . . . that guy has never been second in his entire life from primary school till he got to college and wahala coupled with too much play made him miss a first class.
However one reason i always believe that everyone can make a 1st class if they put their minds to it is simple, i was horribly bad at maths, excellent at English and critical reasoning when i was a kid. I could read by the age of 3, was passing high school english tests by the age of 8 but ordinary 5x6 - (87+5) and i'D be sweating like a he-goat.

My mom took a good 3 months of her time every summer till i was 10 to grill me at maths, those years changed my life. By the time i got to SS1 i had finished the maths sylabus for high school and scored A1 in maths SSCE by SS2.

Simple lesson - you can be anything you want, if you're not especially good at it keep working hard. The minute you tell yourself "i'm never going to pass maths or science", its bye bye to ever passing it for you.

No one is a failure, people just fail to plan. Most importantly if u're lucky to have parents who are keenly interested in you making good grades in school the better for you.

@davidylan,
True talk.

My parents invested mightily on our education. I was reading my dad's encyclopedia at age 6. I think that helped me a lot.

It's also good to have a mentor. I had so many mentors; several for a given subject. I read all their biographies and loved those stories.

More later on my many mentors.

Haha

Na serious Effizy thread

Who would have thought These NLDRS had a First Class in School oooh!!!

ROTFL!!

Oh my.

First Class vs First Crass.

One Secret of First Class students though is.

We They didnt Ignore the Small stuff, They always followed everything through.


One secret/thing about First Crass student is to complain

and use the "Bill gates dropped out of school" argument, as if. . . .

While i agree that natural brilliance is needed to make a first class,my question is what is natural brilliance. Is it born with or developed? i must let you know that different ppl use different percentages of their brain. A brain that is well developed from constant studies would surely turn into what you people tend as brilliant,while one that is left to fallow will deteriorate. This makes me feel that self determination may well be a way to natural brilliance .Subject your brain to constant work from when you are a kid and you will most likely turn out brilliant.
For those of us who didn't(coudn't) make first class, you may actually put your children on the part of first class by tasking their brain/thoughts right from when they are children. Give them the opportunity to develop into what we see as natural brilliance.
BUT THIS IS NOT TO SAY ALL BRAINS ARE BORN WITH EQUAL ABILITY, JUST THAT SOME PEOPLE USE THEIRS BETTER

The God factor cannot be underestimated,God is interested in your success.
I was in a fellowship on Tuesday in my school(unilag),the pastor that came to preach said that there are 3 types of student in school
1= ability =they are capable of doing it if they want to be first class

2=agility=they would struggle to achieve it

3=abinibi(yoruba language) naturally endowed to achieve it.
BUT THE HIGH-POINT IS THIS NEVER COMPARE YOURSELF,GOD made you an original,He gave you your own gift, just sit down KNOW YOURSELF, FIRST AND ACHIEVING THAT FIRST CLASS WOULD BE VERY EASY TO ACHIEVE.

Romans:

While i agree that natural brilliance is needed to make a first class,my question is what is natural brilliance. Is it born with or developed? i must let you know that different people use different percentages of their brain. A brain that is well developed from constant studies would surely turn into what you people tend as brilliant,while one that is left to fallow will deteriorate. This makes me feel that self determination may well be a way to natural brilliance .Subject your brain to constant work from when you are a kid and you will most likely turn out brilliant.
For those of us who didn't(coudn't) make first class, you may actually put your children on the part of first class by tasking their brain/thoughts right from when they are children. Give them the opportunity to develop into what we see as natural brilliance.
BUT THIS IS NOT TO SAY ALL BRAINS ARE BORN WITH EQUAL ABILITY, JUST THAT SOME PEOPLE USE THEIRS BETTER

kinda agree with this,makes a whole lot of sense