palladin:


Funny there is an ethnic group with a higher number. Yet not one of them is here to play tribal cards

Bishops10:
10.Engr/Pilot ONYEMA AJUOGU
U.S based Aerospace Engineer

From hawking commonplace foodstuff in her village, she became a house help for an opportunity to attend secondary school
The Umudihu Orlu Imo state born is the first person ever to travel to the United States of America from her village. Her bragging right extends the larger Orlu community where she is the first Aerospace Engineer and arguably one of the few in Nigeria.
Her story
Given the circumstance of her poor parentage, Onyema could have been subsumed by the overwhelming surge of penury. However, she was determined, not only to swim against the tide, but to float comfortably. With no role model or anyone to emulate, she trusted her guts and envisioned herself as an accomplished professional. This big picture was always before she began the grind. In primary school, she hawked commonplace food items in the village to earn money for her textbooks.
Primary school education was all her parents dreamt for her. The next big thing on their mind was to have her acquire tailoring skills. It was a station above the subsistence farming which engaged them. At least, she could read and string together enough figures to take measurement and make outfits for the village folks. She would then expect to attract a suitable suitor; and become a wife and a mother.
This was not the life Onyema dreamt. Like the probable ring which circles her name (and has proven to envelope her destiny), with thoughts of possibility, a relative volunteered to sponsor her education in a secondary school, if she would serve him as a maid. The offer could be likened to a straw thrown at a drowning person. She grabbed it with both hands.
She did not see herself as a maid. All she could see was the corridor of opportunity leading to the realisation of her dream of flying an aircraft. It was a childhood dream since she was eight and an aeroplane roared above the backyard of her parents’ home in Umudihe. The mechanized bird captured her imagination forever. Growing up, something kept telling her that one day she would fly an aeroplane. But she never discussed it with anybody.
After secondary school, she re-awakened her desire to be a pilot. Almost every night, she sneaked out to a cybercafé in the neighbourhood to browse the internet. Some might have thought she was up to some immoral business. But she was simply taking advantage of the cheaper N100 internet browsing at that time of the night. This was between 2001/2002.
From searching the internet, she got some information on how to school in the United States. She particularly read much about piloting. In the process, she stumbled on Aerospace Engineering, a more challenging course. She momentarily lost interest in piloting. Although she would not dwell on the details, it was clear that providence came to her rescue. Having secured admission to several schools, a stranger bought a one way ticket to Atlanta for her. She arrived in America in 2004 to study Aero Space Engineering. If she thought, America did not offer immediate comfort she longed for. It was a long journey to academic attainment.
For nine good years, she toiled to get a degree that should have taken four years. Determined to succeed, she worked hard, remain focused and persevered. Taking advantage of several opportunities to work, while going to school, sometimes she engaged in four jobs just to survive. Her student Visa posed a different kind of challenge as she had to be in school full time student. Tuition was expensive. Being an international student, it was difficult to get a full scholarship, but she got a small scholarship here and there. Consequently, she had to defer some courses several times to allow time to work for money. This happened four times. She even had to go to Canada in search of better paying jobs.
“I traversed six universities to actualize my dream. I was at Harvard University. I attended University of Alabama briefly and equally registered my presence at Fisk University in Tennessee, North Eastern University in Boston and Massachusetts Institute of Technology before I finally graduated from the Florida Institute of Technology with a degree in Aerospace Engineering. I am a very passionate person and when my heart grabs something it is very hard to let go. I never gave up,” she said.

shogotermies:
how many of them can practise what they have learnt,how many of them knows the wire for life,earth,neutral and other practical principles...

Ptchew,Nigeria is all about qualification not skill acquisition

Philistine:
Good. Igbo women are well represented. Igbo kwenu!!!

Thisis2raw:
All great women.
I will studying hard till I make this kind of Elite list

shogotermies:
how many of them can practise what they have learnt,how many of them knows the wire for life,earth,neutral and other practical principles...

Ptchew,Nigeria is all about qualification not skill acquisition

shogotermies:
how many of them can practise what they have learnt,how many of them knows the wire for life,earth,neutral and other practical principles...

Ptchew,Nigeria is all about qualification not skill acquisition

Smellymouth:
I smell Front page...

Lalasticlala, whayasay?

cutelover19:
what is common to all these women?
the answer: at some point in their lives, they all studied abroad. Think about this and tell me what hope is left for future generations.