₦airaland Forum

Hmmm...good list. I think nitrogen, tiimmy, bigdreams, olutola88 and my humble self should have been acknowledged at the barest minimum. I also feel dmainman should have been in the Top 10 list ahead of some others in the list. Champella, do edit your list to include him and knock off one person to the acknowledgement note. Yamakuza was also a great contributor and should have been included in the top 10 if not for the fact that he doesn't comment as much again. He should be acknowledged at least.
But list is abt 90% accurate. Special kudos to xfire, Jarus, imag5 and dmainman.

ademlabi:
TGIF

I have tried reaching you. Your number is off. I dropped a whatsapp message

Pweetymoi1:
I stay in Okota, Cele- Ago axis. How about you? Please can I get your contact if you stay around....?

Hmm..contact me on hydrogen2015@gmail.com

Pweetymoi1:
Please I'm in urgent need of help from anybody working on Lagos Island who is mobile
(who has a private car) and stays on the
mainland, that I can follow to work daily to
cut cost (not paid much). I don't mind
bringing a percentage for fuel every month.
Please comment if it relates to you.
Thanks...

I work on the island. But it depends on where you stay on the mainland. Where do you stay?

heatmeup:
so after pgd?i can go for masters in chem eng or industrial eng as u said?

Yes you can. It depends. One of my former lecturers had his BSc industrial chemistry. Today, he is a PhD holder in chemical engineering.
If you decide to study in a foreign institution which I advise, you will not need to do a PGD. You will only take some make-up courses.

heatmeup:
what if industrial chemistry and is interested in chemical engineer

With a BSc in industrial chemistry, you can definitely go for a postgraduate degree in chemical engineering. Many chemists follow that route.
Just make sure you graduate with good grades.

You will never see threads like this on the front page. But I won't be surprised if I see the rejoinder on front page.

..

*unemployment in the country has been on the ris
*electricity supply has worsened
*Over 200 girls are still in captivity of insurgents

Lagos State Government, Babatunde Fashola has
accused the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria
(TAN), which is anchoring the President’s re-election
campaign, of “plotting to ensure that President Goodluck
Jonathan returns to power through propagation of false
claims, saying Jonathan has done nothing to merit a
second term.
Fashola, made the remarks while speaking at the Women In Business Conference, in Lagos, yesterday, stressing that he was convinced that Nigeria under the rulership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was not
transforming as TAN would want Nigerians to believe
through its numerous adverts.
He made an example on the situation in the power
sector where electricity supply has worsened under the
present administration.
Similarly the governor said unemployment in the country
has been on the rise, adding that it was unfortunate that
Nigeria, a major oil exporter, was depending on
importation of all sorts of goods produced abroad to
build her economy.
When the price of crude oil stood at a an average of
$100 per barrel for almost a decade, he said the PDP-led
Federal Government was unable to transform the
country.
He therefore wondered how the same government would
manage to do better in 2015 with the price of crude oil
dropping to about $80 per barrel in recent weeks.
“Where the North East is under siege and the economy
has continued to nosedive, the transformation
ambassadors have continued to distort the true
information that all is well.
“All it takes to cripple our economy is for those countries
we sell oil to say they won’t buy from us any longer,” he
said.

He pointed at the recent examples where Nigeria was
denied access to arms, saying this was exactly the
situation the country has found itself regarding
importation of other goods, including refined petroleum
products.
In 2010 alone, he said Nigeria spent N2.5trillion
importing petroleum productsinto this country, despite
the existence of four refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri
and Kaduna.
At the moment, the governor said the country has less
money to continue the importation, pointing out that if
the country could not pay for fuel importation, the
implications were clear to all Nigerians
He predicted that in no distant future, the dreaded long
fuel queues would return with its dislocating
consequences to the economy.
.“The government is yet to give us power as promised,
They are yet to give us fuel, We are yet to see the
standard highways they promised. There are so many
Nigerians living without electricity.
“Within their transformation period, thousands of people
in the North East have been killed, while thousands have
turned into refugee in their fatherland, Over 200 girls are still in captivity of insurgents and the North East is still under siege. With all these, the transformation
ambassadors are telling Nigerians that all is well,” he
concluded.



www.vanguardngr.com/2014/11/2015jonathan-done-nothing-merit-second-term-fashola/

I vote...

Rozzay
Nabsprada

drehdinho:
Please I need sincere ideas,advices of career counsellors on this one. I am a first degree holder of English and Literary studies(B.A English). I want to proceed for my masters. But am at sea about what course am to put in for. I want to put in for a course that is not only highly lucrative, but also that that course that one can get easily secure job with ,especially in the European countries as well as in Nigeria. (My priority is in European country)

Please a sincere advise will be much more appreciated.

Hmmm. why not try international relations?

Giitheon: Gud morning ppl.Pls i wnt 2 kw d diffrce bw career nd goal.cn any1 hlp?

The dictionary is your friend.

TheCode: Pls is it frowned upon if an applicant uses a bit of colour on his/her resume? I mean modestly, not going overboard with it - lets say, using blue for section headings only. Is that ok? I have been pondering this for awhile now...
@xfire and any other knowledgeable person

Sure! You can use a little colour if you want. It is acceptable. That can help to make your CV more presentable. But have it at the back of your mind that it will not give you an edge over others that use only one colour.

2sExy1: Does anyone have a recommended book for interviews?

Is IEC the best in Nigeria? For some unexplanable reasons, I refused to go home with a copy. Instead, I bought another book entirely.

IEC seem to be the most common and quite pricy. I feel what they offer wouldn't be more than what I would find in other books, hence their price isn't justified.

Xfire

There was a book I used during my active job hunting days. Maybe it's IEC (can't remember). The book is produced by the same company that makes the Master job GMAT questions and answers. The cover page used to have white background (don't know if that's the case now). That book is very, very good. It contains the do's and don'ts of interviews; and answers to common interview questions. One thing I like about the book is that it also treats behavioural questions.
Forget about price. Look at the value it will add.

belindy: thanks a lot sir for the insight on misconception fresh graduates have. I noticed that the 1st criteria to landing a good job is your grade. ( your result) not necessarily attaining a higher degree or professional course, my question is, how does one with a poor grade( say 3rd class) get a job or there are no chances for them at all in the labour market. thank u. thanks a lot sir for the insight on misconception fresh graduates have. I noticed that the 1st criteria to landing a good job is your grade. ( your result) not necessarily attaining a higher degree or professional course, my question is, how does one with a poor grade( say 3rd class) get a job or there are no chances for them at all in the labour market. thank u

Mehn...it's always harder for 3rd class student. It only means that you have to push harder. I have never seen a vacancy for 3rd class. So if you wait for only online vacancies, your chances are virtually non-existent. Spice up your degree with a PGD/Masters and certifications, and while you are doing that, start going round to distribute hard copy CV's to different firms. It's a lot of work for 3rd class but it has to be done. Don't limit the firms only to the big names as you can acquire experience in small/medium firms. As you acquire experience, you grade will begain to pale into insignificance. Wish you luck.

ndcide: my cousins are in shell. they are extremely brilliant guys. they gut in through STRONG referrals at the last minutes .

I know a minimum of 4-5 people who joined Shell without knowing anyone. I went for the SRD but did not pass. But that's not enough for me to generalize

ndcide: Mr Xfire , I understand your point but I think the point 3 is not over exaggerated as you say. honestly, I've got some jobs before my present one and believe me I had strong referrals + God factor. my present job required very competent personnel at the time I entered hence they couldn't let me go after the interview. Now take note; Only two of us in the entire organization came in that way ; The rest came in through connection. that's 99% approximately.

In my organization we have Highly competent top level staff with HIGHLY incompetent mid level staff, and a good mix for the lower level. The mid level staff are all foreigners who secured the jobs through nepotism. This structure is stretching the few competent staff to near breaking point. Trust me, this structure is not changing soon. My point is, Your fact#3 is not in any way over exaggerated in this country.

Look man, I want through a rigorous interview process at a time. and at the final stage, we were just 3 and they needed one person. it was all fireworks in the boardroom that morning. myself, a guy from Glo and one from Airtel. Guess what We all had our person among the decision makers in the boardroom. Since we were all good, and board members were trying to outsmart each other on whom to pick, the group chairman had to pick randomly. the guy from Airtel was just lucky.

My point is, even those who will agree with you on point #3 know the truth that Man-know man , is not over exaggerated as you stated. it is the reality on ground for now. In fact going through without connection seem to be the exception to the rule, While the rule is , you gat to at least have some connection.

just had to respond.

I disagree with the bolded. Fresh grads hoping to work for firms like in firms like KPMG, PwC, Deliotte, banks (GTB, FBPlc, UBA ...and so on), NBPlc, Guinness, Unilever, UAC, PZ, Baker Hughes, Schlumberger, P & G, Shell, Chevron, etc. need not know anyone. There are some firms you will need referrals though like CAT, Halliburton, Julius Berger, etc. But fresh grads have got plenty chances without knowing anyone. Mind you, I work for one of the aforementioned firms without knowing even one person.

MarvellousGod: For a job that needs just a person or two, I tell you an abroad msc will give you an edge....You can't compare what's obtainable in Naija to over there.... you think they will leave out one with msc from a reputable university abroad? ? Some companies do shortlist before they call for test/interview and some times many qualified persons are left out...

For the rest of your post, we're saying same thing, Masters and Certifications can't be ruled out completely. . They're useful in their own way...Some jobs even require you some certifications. ...

@bolded, I can tell you certifications or msc can be very necessary especially when you have a grade lower than 2-1...

All jobs don't have same requirements, some may require some certifications/msc while some may not.. for the fact Mr. A got a job without these doesn't mean same will apply to Mr. B.. there's no hard-and-fast rule to getting a job hence there should be no generalisation like you don't need a Certification or msc etc...

Anyway, the best among them still remains getting a relevant experience. ..

Having a MSc does not guarantee you for a job that requires ONLY 2 candidates. Let me even assume that you are correct. Look at this hypothetical story -Imagine 1000 applicants apply for a job that requires only 2 people. Let's say 50 out of the 1000 have foreign MSc. What will the remaining 48 get? The incremental advantage of spending a lot of money on Masters abroad is not high.

The op never said you do not need a certification or MSc. he only said that you mustn't have one to get a job. That's the message he is passing.

MarvellousGod: A masters degree abroad from UK or USA etc will give you an edge over others during shortlisting of candidates. .. Big coys value international certificates. . Many guys that resumed with Shell earlier this year through SRD have masters abroad, one I know has msc from Oxford..

Edge over others during shortlisting? That's not true. They shortlist everyone that meets their basic requirements. Everybody has got a chance.

I agree. Many companies value international certificates but it is not compulsory. Just the way you know many MSc guys that resumed with Shell, I also know a lot with foreign MSc and still did not make it. I know a lot of BSc holders that have passed the SRD in the past; I know many that didn't scale through.

The Op is simply saying that it is not a necessity for job placement.

Jelailah: I have just been offered an admission to study mathematics but i'm scared i may nt be able to secure a job after school. I have made a lot of research and i found out that most companies would rather employ an engineer than a mathematician. I also want to ask if there's any professional exam mathematicians do like ICAN. I would also be glad if i can meet a mathematician who was able to secure a gud job after skul so as to encourage me . Prefarably a female but i will appreciate comments 4rm d male folks too. Apart 4rm teaching or lecturing. Thank you

To be very candid with you, if you are smart and still young, go for or switch to engineering preferably electrical engineering since it is similar to Mathematics. Mathematics ain't bad as you can get jobs in schools, universities, bank, audit firms, IT etc. like any other graduate but you will always be at a disadvantage to the engineers when it comes jobs in oil and gas, telecommunication, manufacturing and to some extent IT.

I am just being truthful. People, especially mathematicians and lecturers may tell you all kinds of sweet things about the course but you will realize the stark truth when you get to the labour market.

if age is not on your side, stick to mathematics. It isn't a bad course by any standard.

oshdot: @feex please can I p.m you?

Yes you can pm me. Any goody for me?

mikeyj: This exactly why people look for jobs for 10 years and blame the devil lol . i cant imagine someone saying Certifications are irrelevant..
bros you need to step up your game oh @Feex

Skywalker5: Irrelevant Certifications in IT? Really?

No wonder you guys like you and Mellorix are still in the labour despite the number of 'certifications' you have garnered. You can't comprehend simple English. Did I write that IT certifications are irrelevant? Did you even read what I wrote in the first instance? Did you read the line of argument?
People with low comprehensive ability like you can not pass a simple job aptitude test. You can scale dragnet.

I will comment no further on this

Mellorix: If you think employers DONT expect too much from a fresh graduate then i think you dont know what the present job market in Nigeria is saying. Take few mins to search on the internet ("graduate roles in Nigeria" and see the enormous requirements.

Do you know how many unemployed graduates are in Nigeria On what qualities do you think they are being screened?

AND If you cant answer my simple verbal reasoning question above then unfortunately i wouldnt have any further conversation with you at this time. I will have you in mind for any further conversation.Thank you for commenting.

Alright, keep wasting your precious time and money on irrelevant certifications instead of dusting your CV and searching for a real job. I comment no further

Mellorix: @Feex
You didn't mean to interfere, but you just interfered ! - OK first let me explain - Please chose one who you will employ from the below.

Candidate A: Graduated with 2.1 . With no experience and no certification - Applied to your company for a Graduate Engineer


Candidate B: Graduated with 2.1 with 6 IT Certifications(which he attained while in the university) and NO experience - Applied to your company for a Graduate Engineer .


Who will you employ? - Please pick wisely -

Before you interfere you might need to scroll up and find out my point before pock-nosing!

Thank you.

Lol
You are definitely not used to corporate world. I have seen candidates with first class + MSc bounced for 'ordinary' 2.1 candidates.
I can not answer that question on face value. Their performance in the interview will determine who will get the job. One thing you need to know his that most employers don't expect too much from fresh graduates. They just need a smart and intelligent graduate who is ready to learn. They know that you will have to learn on the job irrespective of your 'paper' certifications.

Mellorix:

I didn't mean to interfere but I think you are the one being unnecessarily strong headed here. It's quite simple and clear. AjanleKoko is right.

CityNG: You know I'm not really sure.

Here are the issues I see right away for a traditional car rental. You have no US insurance (though you can buy one from the rental at a high rate) and you have no US credit card (a assumption though).

There are many Nigerian cab drivers in Houston, hopefully they will chime in but pride things sha.

Public transport is very abundant in Houston city itself.

Thanks. I have no US insurance and I don't hope to buy at any ridiculous price. I also don't have a US credit card - I thought my Master Card will suffice.
I plan staying close to the galleria. I hope I wouldn't have issues with access to transport.

Lexusgs430: www.hertz.com
www.alamo.com
www.thrifty.com
www.avis.com
www.enterprise.com

Now, knock yourself out!!!

Thanks. I really do appreciate

CityNG: Depends on where you are going, you may not need one at all.

If Los Angeles area for example you can get around with public transit.

If this is your first time here I can sense a lot of teething issues coming up.

Thanks. Can my Nigerian drivers license suffice, or do I need to get an international driving license?
I will be going to Houston

flyca: When you finally land in China, that's my job

Abeg I need serious posters please. I need anyone that can help link me with a car hire in US

I plan going to US on a 2-weeks trip. I plan hiring a car for the duration of my stay.

Please who knows anyone involved in car hiring business in USA, and what are the applicable rates?

I am currently in Nigeria

I currently work in the food and beverages industry. I earn a decent income though won't mind to earn more.
I have always dreamt of moving to the oil industry but I am a bot weary of job security. I think that oil and gas industry is cyclical. When oil prices are high, many jobs are created but when oil prices are low, thousands of jobs are lost and oil firms start embarking on job losses. Though high oil prices have been sustained for quite a well.

Though I will like to move, I wonder if my years of experience as a process/production engineer will count when applying for jobs. I don't want to start from entry level or earn pays commiserate with entry level. Is the engineering experience in food/beverage industry (maintenance of boilers, steam pipes, pumps, chillers, process vessels, etc.) useful in the oil industry?

And how about job security in the oil industry?

Thanks
-xfire, gudrated and others, kindly assist