McYel:
. You can say that again! I graduated with first class too and I know there may be some who, naturally, are more intelligent than I but couldn't make first class due to one factor or the other. Moreover, it pains me a lot that fake results/certificates flood our educationalp/academic arena nowadays! Well, we know corruption has manuoevered it's way into our educational system but the truth of a pudding is in the eating! We should "keep our certificates aside" and delve into test of abilities, for injustice plays a great role in our systems today. In fact, at times I count it a misfortune for me to be in this nation where truth abates always! Well, we'll not stop to prove to the world that God gives wisdom, knowledge, power and understanding and that, at least, He's given some of us intelligence-we're not boasting but we're confessing the work of God in men, and which is by His Grace!

Ife is not the place where you bribe you way through. I doesn't just happen. They don't even buy handout. YOU CAN"T BRIBE YOUR WAY THROUGH even if you are VC's son. While I might agree certificate is not a test of ability, I would ask what other way is ability meant to be tested in an academic institution.

wkid:
About 8 of dose 1st klass students came 4rm my dept (electronic & electrical engineering). Our H.O.D (Prof Oladipupo Osasona) was infuriated when he saw dat about 15 of dem were 2 graduate with 1st klass. So dey gave sm students about 2Es in their final yr results. I know of sm of d 2:1s dat had CGPAs of 4.48 & so on. Dose set were so brilliant dat we all suffer till nw cos of dem (Lecturers always complaining & comparing us with dem).

Talk bout Pol Sci. & lots of oda depts where u'll never c any 1st klass. U'll have lecturers saying "A is for God, B is for my family, C is for brilliant students". A visiting lecturer 4rm Unilag in English Dept was told to reduce d grades of his results because d no of pple who had an A were too much according to OAU standard. So many oda tins happen also.

So all dose 1st klass students deserved it.

P.S: Sorry for the shorthand, I'm typing with a mobile phone.

This is not entirely true. I was part of that class (Electronic and Electrical Engr, 2012). The number of students that graduated with first class in elect/elect is more than 15. It was never downgraded to 8. I know because I was one of those that finished with first class in the class. Yes, it is true some finished with 4.48, (4.49 maybe too) but its impossible for the school to do much damage to CGPA in the final semester. It is true that there was tension at the time about the number of first class grads from elect/elect and for some, the final semester results were brutal (I can't say it was deliberate, could only speculate) but there isn't really much damage that could be done again.

I can tell you categorically, that the class earned it. It wasn't given. It was just a special class. The two best students (yes two, matching CGPA) in the school that year were from elect/elect. We had many great students that didn't even make the first class (some won major competition in their secondary school days). The secret of our success is team work. Their is a class that worked together and there in lies the secret to their success.

And BTW, these are not just the book type first class (at least not all of them). There are bad-asses; makers, coders, very pragmatic guys who can translate theory into something useful. One of them worn a national programming contest (as undergrad) where software companies even contested. And today, a number of them (not just the 1st class) are doing great things.