Don't get me wrong regarding diversification of the economy away from oil. In as much as there is need to move with the trend of 21st century global economy which is largely driven by knowledge economy, we need to understand the peculiarities of our situation as a country. Most of the developed countries at the forefront of these breakthrough researches are not battling hunger nor uncertainty over the security of their lives compared to people living in Nigeria. Or you think someone whose basic needs to sustain life is not met can think creatively?

Diversification will not be achieved on paper or by political speeches like how unpatriotic leaders and policy makers think. It will require deliberate effort, creative forward thinking and purposeful leadership.

For a country that imports Petroleum products despite being the biggest producer of the raw material needed to produce same on the continent is a shame. If things were done right, Nigeria ought to leverage her position in the continent to export Petroleum products to countries without such in the continent. This will draw to a close the "dubious the more you look the less you see subsidy regime" that has been used to enrich a few over the years. Have in mind that this regime has spent about #6 trillion to subsidised petrol import since it came on board.

Such money that would be freed up can then be used to develop infrastructure, strengthen education and health sectors. As the knowledge economy you are talking about is fueled by strong and sound education of the citizens that would engage in developing those alternatives. Except you want us to continously look towards the West to do same for us - this I am sure will never happen.

Talking about the diversification further, there is need for security of life and property in the country as well as strong institutions with enabling business environment to spur investment in non oil sector. Our food import volume is alarming for a country with vast arable land and all year good weather conditions that supports agriculture.

TheAlchemist:


Please let us reflect on the below: With Technological advancement nothing is impossible, Oil will still be relevant in the future, but Oil glut is also an increasing possibility .

1956: IBM ships the first hard drive in the RAMAC 305 system. The drive holds 5MB of data at $10,000 a megabyte. The system is as big as two refrigerators [/b]and uses 50 24-inch platters. (For the full story and interviews with key players, read "The Hard Drive Turns 50."

Fast forward toward you have micro SD cards that can hold.....
SanDisk's [b]1TB [/b]Extreme microSD card is the biggest capacity that it's ever sold, and you can buy one... for [b]$449.99. As for where you can buy it right now, it's available on SanDisk's store

Those living in the 60s or 70s would never believe that such technological feat could be achieved, A smart Nation will actively look at alternative means of generating income, Let us get out of this resource curse before it is too late, so that our situation will not make Venezuela's case look like a child's play. We need massive investment in technology driven initiatives, that is the only way to survive in the new global economy.

Thank you for your kind words.

abdul824:
wow..good job OP

lloyds:
When the world is turning to electric cars . . These clowns are still waisting our billions

Relax man. Oil would remain valid for another 30 to 50 years. The future of energy is gas, which is more cleaner than oil. Even battery that is the crux of electric vehicle source some of the raw materials for it production from crude oil distillate.

Or you think solar, wind and hydro power is enough to generate the electricity for industrial, commercial and domestic use for the ever growing population of the world? Remember that a lot of countries in Africa, Asia and South America still don't have stable electricity! So there is room for energy mix. Research has shown that it takes about 50 years for a particular energy resource to gain prominent usage and acceptance.

So you know - countries like UK, Ireland, Canada, Norway and USA to mention a few are still searching for the black gold. Little wonder why a company like ExxonMobil has a budget about $30b this year. Petrochemical products from crude oil are essential in manufacturing process. So oil is not used in transportation alone, and as such it would remain an essential commodity in the years ahead. Or what do you think is fuelling the political tension in the Middle East? Water?

Since the news of the discovery of Oil in the Benue Trough, one of Nigeria inland basin by the National Oil company - NNPC; broke, there has been a number of threads on here talking about it. But in the usual fashion of ethnic discord which the ruling elites have used to manipulate and impoverish her citizens over the years; the threads didn't offer much engaging discussions as one would expect. It is on this note that I chose to open this thread to offer a different perspective on the discovery.

This discovery is interesting to say, as there is aggressive push by most countries and companies to push up reserves. As is the saying in oil and gas business - "A company is as big as her reserve".

To provide some insight to non geologists/engineers on here, Benue Trough, is the name of the basin this discovery was made, and doesn't necessarily depict Benue State. Benue Trough is just one of the geological basins in Nigeria. Others include the prolific petroliferous Tertiary Niger Delta basin, Dahomey basin, Chad or Borno Basin, and Sokoto basin or Illumende basin. There is no need to bore you with the structural evolution or sedimentary fills of these basins as there are lots of published articles on them. There has been several exploration activities in Nigeria inland basins, led mostly by Private companies in the past, without any commercial success. So this is a big feat for the Geoscientists at NNPC. Kudos to them! Although NNPC has kept lots of details off the ground about the discovery: like the height of the oil column penetrated, the play type, the flow rate of the DST and rough STOOIP before the well was drilled. One can only hope that some more details would be made known in coming days as their press release stated.

But with this news from the national oil company, there will sure be interests from the private sector in that particular basin in the days ahead. One of such reason will be the relative cheap cost to produce a barrel of oil in onshore basins compared to offshore basins. Although lack of existing infrastructure could be a big issue to bring the oil to market and thus could delay first oil and also increase cost of barrel.

With this said, I think the NNPC after carrying out appraisal on the said discovery should farm out stake in it if it is commercially viable. And the company that farms in should be the operator of the asset as NNPC has not lived up to its bidding for decades.

And to the political gladiators on this forum, it is not yet uhuru. A lot of work still needs to be done. From appraisal/delineation program to the field development program and sanctioning of the investment decision. This could take another ten years if the cash and technology is readily available. An example to give you a guide of how this works is the "Egina" project by TOTAL E&P NIGERIA Limited which was discovered in 2003 but only produced her first oil in December of 2018.

On a final note, I think it won't be out of place for acreages in this basin to be thrown open in the planned bidding rounds of 2020 as announced by Timipre Sylva, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources. This will bring in some revenue for the government from signature bonus, tax from service companies that will win contract for seismic acquisition and drilling campaigns. There is no gain saying that security in the region should be beefed up and every program going forward should have robust contingency plans on any disruption such program would cause the environment. There is need for conscious effort for the Petroleum Industry Bill to be passed into law as the country is not benefiting maximally with the current Petroleum Act of 1969 in use.

In as much as revenue is desired, the triple bottom line theory of John Elkington - economy, society and environmental sustainability should be the focus in this notable discovery.

This is interesting to say, as there is aggressive push by most countries and companies to push up reserves. As is the saying in oil and gas business - "A company is as big as her reserve".

To provide some insight to non geologists/engineers on here, Benue Trough, is the name of the basin this discovery was made, and doesn't necessarily depict Benue State. Benue Trough is just one of the geological basins in Nigeria. Others include the prolific petroliferous Tertiary Niger Delta basin, Dahomey basin, Chad or Borno Basin, Sokoto basin or Illumende basin. There has been several exploration activities in Nigeria inland basins, led mostly by Private companies in the past, without any commercial success. So this is a big feat for the Geoscientists at NNPC. Kudos to them! NNPC has kept lots of details off the ground here. Like the depth of the oil column of the discovery, the play type, the flow rate of the DST and rough STOOIP before the well was drilled.

But with this news from the national oil company, there will sure be interests from the private sector in that particular basin in the days ahead. One of such reason will be the relative cheap cost to produce a barrel of oil in onshore basins compared to offshore basins. Although lack of existing infrastructure could be a big issue to bring the oil to market and thus could delay first oil and also increase cost of barrel.

With this said, I think the NNPC after carrying out appraisal on the said discovery should farm out stake in it if it is commercially viable. And the company that farms in should be the operator of the asset as NNPC has not lived up to its bidding for decades.

And to the political gladiators, it is not yet uhuru. A lot of work still needs to be done. From appraisal/delineation program to the field development program and sanctioning of the investment decision. This could take another ten years if the cash and technology is readily available. An example to give you a guide of how this works is the "Egina" project by TOTAL E&P NIGERIA Limited which was discovered in 2003 but only produced her first oil in December of 2018.

On a final note, I think it won't be out of place for acreages in this basin to be thrown open in the planned bidding rounds of 2020 as announced by Timipre Sylva, Minister for State for Petroleum Resources. This will bring in some revenue for the government from signature bonus, tax from service companies that will win contract for seismic acquisition and drilling campaign. There is no gain saying that security in the region should be beefed up and every program going forward should have robust contingency plans on any disruption such program would cause the environment. There is need for conscious effort for the Petroleum Industry Bill to be passed into law as the country is not benefiting maximally with the current Petroleum Act of 1969 in use.

In as much as revenue is desired, the triple bottom line theory of John Elkington - economy, society and environmental sustainability should be the focus in this notable discovery.

Graduateacher:



Just want to say your writing is very good

Thank you. Your moniker though. Graduate teacher kwa.

Mishydoo:


THANKS FOR YOU MESSAGE.
QUITE REALISTIC AND IDEAL BUT FEW THINGS I NEED TO MENTION ABOUT MY CURRENT SITUATION.

1. i am a contract staff in my current workplace
2. i have worked here for 5 years and no kobo added to my salary
3. i have done my Msc in Nigeria at my own expense,got a distinction but it isn't being recognized at my place or work.
4.i have never traveled abroad
5. I am a professional (Physical therapist) and quite experienced
6.My current job is 6 months in a year

Your situation is a bit tough and dicey.

With your experience and MSc, you could go ahead and pursue the PhD. During this period, you can pursue Canada express entry. This will avail you and your spouse the chance to live as a permanent resident in Canada while pursuing opportunity the country has for you. As I am convinced from indication that you want to make the move abroad.

I am saying this because, without residency, life abroad is not meaningful. I bet you don't want to find out what people in such case go through.

Good luck once again. Cheers.

Dear Mishydoo,

First, congratulations on your PhD scholarship. The situation you have found yourself is not strange as most people find themselves in such from time to time. This further shows humans are truly insatiable!

I will offer my perspective on this topic as one who has studied abroad. So it might not be popular, but I am sure you will be able to validate some of my opinion yourself as one who enjoyed PTDF scholarship - assuming it was the overseas scheme.

You situation is peculiar being that you have something going for you in Nigeria, you have previously studied abroad and the fact that you are married. Going by the latter, there might be little or no room for laxity in forging the next development plan after your proposed studies in Germany. Ask me why? Because family requires money to run. Sustainable income at that. With this said, your income in Nigeria is not as bad as some posters here make it look especially if the position you are is in a field you wish to build a career, more importantly if the workplace offers the possibility of growing through the ranks. Why am I saying this? Germany only gives 18 months after your studies to seek for a job. What is the chance of finding this job? In the event none is forthcoming, how do you intend to update your residency that might be running out, considering you are married which has ruled out the possibility of marriage to an EU citizen. You might want to go the baby daddy route which I doubt. How fulfilled will you be doing unskilled job with a PhD just to remain in the system because of the fear of returning to Nigeria to start over again?

On the bright side, you can explore post doctoral position in other countries which is usually well remunurated. But one direction which this is mainly leading is academia. Are you desirous of a career there?

In all, there is no sure fix to this. Just my view. PhD is prestigious, but you also need to be forward thinking even as some people believe PhD can never go wrong. Dangote recruitment drive for truck drivers in the past has shown otherwise in Nigeria. Because las-las, na money we all dey find.

I wish you success in your endeavours, regardless of what you settle for in this beautiful dilemma of yours!

To be honest, nothing beats fresh beef as been sold in the country. Except the quality you mean is the way they cut and store meat abroad where customers never get to buy fresh beef.

Also, I don't see need for importing stuff that there is capacity to produce in-country; but same cannot be said for fish. I rarely eat beef abroad because it is not as tasty as those obtainable in Nigeria. For competition, other tribes should increase their numbers in the herding business so as to reduce the monopoly of the Fulani stock as it stands.

Blue3k:


Better quality, cheaper prices, and more competition. I think having more choices better for everyone. We allowed to import other foods like fish with an issue why is pork and beef different?

Why exactly do you want beef to be imported into the country?

Blue3k:
The conspiracy theories about ruga aka cattle colonies being forced on states were always dumb. Everyone knows the land use act makes that impossible. By the looks of things the ruga will be northern project.

There's still other issues to worry about like how its being funded. How much does end user pay in terms of leases and fees. Will beef and pork be taken off inport ban list afterwards?




Cows only wonder off ranch if gate is left open. All you need is some barbwire fences to keep them in. It would also keep some most people out.

Dear Op,

First, I will implore you to neglect negative comments from some posters here. Such comments are nothing and don't worth your time. Nevertheless, you can take their negative vibe as a source of motivation to achieve your desire.

With that being said, there is no rule that says you can't get foreign scholarship with a 2'2 degree. What you need is information, motivation and mentorship. Yes, mentorship! You need experience of people who have achieved such feat with your class of degree.

There is no need flogging on the issue of First Class or 2:1 here as you seem to have the know-how of some of the major scholarships on offer in Nigeria. But it will be useful if you can give some details on your course of study, and the state where you hail from. Who knows, you might be eligible for NDDC scholarship that is open to 2:2 graduates.

On the USA part, one of the earlier poster gave good information that would be useful to you. You need to ace GRE like nobody's business. Your performance in it would cover for the shortfall in your CGPA. You might also look at Netherlands, Belgium and possibly Denmark. Mail faculty staff with research interest as yours and state your desire to work with them and that you would want to be considered for funding. You never can tell how it will turn out.

I wish you success in this pursuit. Cheers.

Help1993:
Hello nairalanders, I have to create a new account to just communicate this because I have been having too much discomfort. I still don't know what is wrong with my body especially my private part which gets very dry, itchy and scaly.
I have done several test like HIV, syphilis, blood test and lots more and the result came out negative and I've also spent quite a lot of money getting medication and test which prove abortive.
Please any experience doctor in the house should please help with on what is wrong with me and how best to get rid of this because it's becoming embarrassing.
Thank you for your help and please mod, move this to front page and my life depends on it.

Go for herbal remedy. It is possibly prolonged std which must have been used to the numerous antibiotics you might have been using.

Are you male or female?

yinchar:
When did they start grading PhD.

All over the world it’s a common knowledge PhD is not graded.

It’s either you PASS or FAIL.

And the pass mark is 50%.

Perhaps she’s saying that to boast her ego. Even for the Pass/Fail criteria. You can’t get 100% for your PhD.

Highly impossible. I stand to be corrected.

You are the first person to comment here to me. Whoever gave this post a title should be examined. I don't know of any place in the world where PhD is graded.

Seun, Lalasticla, please edit the title of this post. It is highly misleading. CGPA is not used in doctoral degree.

mightyboy1:
WhatsApp 07080234950

Thanks! I will reach out to you shortly. Regards.

Good morning folks!

Please can anyone help me resize my passport photo? I have tried all methods written here to no avail.

Thanks in view for your kind considerations.

Icon4s:
I am ashamed at the comments I have been seeing here.

To apply is not compulsory so don't discourage others.

Boss, I hail o.

I don't want to be caught commenting here. Lol. I don't like to use the word "white" because nobody is white. I prefer to call you folks Cacausians.

Back to the topic: you Cacausians have very small lips that makes kissing you folks difficult. One positive from you Cacausian girls is that you are usually well shaved down there. This is not an endorsement that some do not smell down there which is due largely to poor personal hygiene and dietary options. As for the anatomy of the honey pot, no difference with those of my African Queens.

Like one of the earlier poster rightly said, I am of the opinion that you girls are fragile too. You can hardly withstand the threshold of manhandling an African girl would withstand during the process. Any little thing you'll hear "awwwch that hurts" "be gentle", although some of you are ready to go the extra length to prove you have what it takes. Like a friend would say - there is a thin line between pain and pleasure so do don't mind me. Push me to the limit.

fiizznation:
This clown though. Atiku is viewed as one corrupt fella all over the north and there was no possible way for him to make any good gains in the north. Remove the buhari factor, anybody can still beat atiku in the north because the man is just so unpopular.

He should even thank his stars that his stolen money bought him many electorates in Adamawa state.
Once you are tainted with corruption, you are so done in the north because nobody rewards corruption here in the north.


Criminal atiku should try again next time.

Is it safe to say that Ganduje will not win?

lander237:
Hi everyone.

I just arrived Dublin few days ago for my study abroad semester. Please what are the hot African areas here (bars/clubs, shops, etc)
Boredom go kill someone for this contri chaiii

I miss the UK already �

Hello. For African shops in Dublin, there is one on Parnell Street, and another at Moore Street. In the aforementioned places, you will find food, drinks and salons.

As for clubs, there is no African club as such, save for a few place that play Nigerian/African music- Krystle basement club on Harcourt Street, and River Bar at D'Olier Street.

I hope you find this useful. Cheers.

Hello folks,

Compliments of the season to you all. To the guy who shared his testimony of getting a job two months before graduation above, I say a big congratulations to you. I believe that is the dream of everyone embarking on studies abroad. To gain relevant work experience.

My take on the post is not critical, but just to lay some facts on the job thing. There is a lot of IT job in Ireland at the moment, so most people who are studying IT related courses are smiling to the bank. Same cannot be said of other fields. Most of my friends who studied IT related courses are all working with the various companies sponsoring their work permits and all their classmates also got employed. There is high demand. So I guess most companies are looking at the necessary skills of applicants and not necessarily certificates, grade or where one comes from. Previous experience in the field or related one is also a factor, no matter where such experience was gained. It is highly valued. This is not to say that people without any prior experience are not getting jobs. They do. The good thing here is that the recruitment process doesn't take long like it is in Nigeria. In most cases here, it is straight interview after application. No need to battle dragnet, shl, workforce etc. Lol. So it is important to hone necessary interview skills. I believe most colleges here have sessions dedicated to that.

I attended a career fair, and one of the speaker from industry once said academic qualification is just about 25% of what they look out for in candidates. Other useful skills include communication, interpersonal, analytical, team work, and flexibility. Why am I saying this? I believe it is important to factor all of these into the academy pursuit while it lasts.

The lesson to learn from the poster is to start the job hunting process as early as possible. Especially by the end of your second semester.

In all, there is no one fit all approach to these things. Just ensure you have your goals in place and continue to work towards seeing it to fruition.

Happy new year in advance to you all. Cheers.

Holamic:
Maybe your new year trip will be prison... Having sex with under G girl i pitty your generation in stress.

Don't conclude without research. Age of consent varies from country to country. In the UK and most of Europe, age of consent is 16 years. While it is 17 years in Ireland.

It is as low as 15 in some other countries. It is 15 years in Thailand, the country in question. The only wrong the man has done is cheating on his partner. But believe me, the same woman would agree to watch her man with the Thai girl, if the man discuss the situation with his wife describing how much joy the situation gives him. It is called cockhold, and practiced in Europe and some other advanced climes. Oyinbo people and their numerous fantasies. Strange.

deepwater:
Just vote APC out
Just do it

Hello deep-water, I am looking to join your network. From your posts here, I see we share common interest.

I sent you pm in the past. I guess you didn't reply possibly because I didn't inform you before I did. I hope to hear from you soon.

Regards.

konkonbilo:
see my sec school mate o, babatunde. Nice one from you,Naija don teach you lesson well,always promise and fail...

Oga, who you be? Me sabi Alagbada for IJ too.

Nope.

hustla:


Thank you.. And no, been toeing the IT line already for some time thought I studied Mass Communication we Undergraduate level, which is why I'm looking at another Undergrad in something IT related

Are you in the IT line too?

Ahiboilandgas, you mentioned me on a wrong thread. But I will answer your question here as it is meant for this thread.

First thing you should know is that nothing is certain nor guaranteed in life. We can only take decisions and hope it goes well. Griffith College is a private school, and they have good number of naija people studying there. I think the choice of course for your brother should be dependent on his first degree in the case he is going for MSc. If he has a background in I.T, I will suggest he goes for the Big Data program as I.T is lucrative here.

If your brother is still working towards his admission, I will suggest he tries DIT instead.

hustla:
Niyogeol


Are Dublin Institute of Technology and Cork Institute of Technology good schools?

What's the experience like in Dublin and somewhere like Cork?

Looks like once you get the above you enlightened us about going, everything else should not be too hard

Hi. I don't know much about Cork Institute of Technology. But DIT is not a bad one. The most important thing is that degree awarded by any college (college is what they call university here) is recognised in Ireland. What you should be more concerned about is the prospect of your intended course in Ireland. It is important for your first degree to be in tandem with what you are looking forward to study. I have seen people jump ship all because they were told I.T is lucrative here. Don't fall into this class.

In terms of popularity and acceptance, I will tip DIT ahead of CIT. Though cost of living will be cheaper in Cork as compared to Dublin.

Cheers.

Getting a part time job and other related matters

Studying abroad no doubt is expensive, and as such, making extra money while studying will be of help in getting one self together while it lasts. As you all know, your class of visa - study visa which is also called 'stamp 2' allows you to work up to 20 hours during school term and full time during holidays. There is no restriction in Ireland to where you can work unlike in some other countries where students can't work outside campus during the early years of their studies. The only restriction on a "study visa - stamp 2" in Ireland is that you are not allowed to be self employed.

No job pays less than minimum wage here. The minimum wage as at today is €9.55. Change in minimum wage is usually communicated when the budget of a new year is passed by government and all employers normally comply to the change.

Getting a part time job could be tough depending on how one approach the situation. First you need to have a CV. From my own understanding, there is no much difference between the CV style here and that obtainable in naija. Part time jobs students engage in range from retail assistant, bar tender, waiter, kitchen porter, valeter (what we call car wash), deli assistant,
Pamphlet sharer, motor boy for a delivery company or waste collection company, account technicians or clerk, stock taker, care giver, ware housing, delivery driver - ensure you get a driving licence, insurance, nct certificate et al before driving here. Driving without any of those could lead offender to prison.
The list of part time jobs students do is endless. Just make sure it is legal.

The fastest way to get these aforementioned jobs is mainly dropping your CV to shops in case of retail position, or restaurants. For some other jobs listed, you apply mainly online or through network/recommendation. But for guys wanting to work as soon as possible, you can decide to register with some agencies that provide jobs on as you are available basis. Most of these agencies like Excel recruitment, Noel recruitment et al require you to take two short course with them before you can start working for them. The courses are manual handling and food safety. They both cost €80. I don't know if the price for the course change from time to time. Most of these agencies offer jobs mainly in hospitality sector. But they offer the fastest way of getting a part time job that is very flexible as regards to timing. You work mainly when you are available unlike other employers that would have you in their roaster, thereby making it difficult to miss work often due to busy schedule or need to travel.

Retail assistant jobs are about the easiest, but a bit difficult getting one. If you are so interested in getting one for your self, ensure your CV has some retail experience, with someone they can contact for reference on your behalf from such work place you have listed on your CV.

Websites that are useful for applying for jobs online include: jobs.ie, indeed.com/Ireland, gumtree.ie, irishjobs.ie et al.

After getting a part time job, you need to get a PPS number - personal public service number. Without a PPS number, your employer won't be able to tax you appropriately thereby resulting to emergency tax. Emergency tax takes about 42% of whatever you earn for the period under review. You can always claim the emergency tax back when you get the PPS number. You need to book appointment at revenue.ie to register for PPS number. Before going for the appointment, you need evidence as to why you need the PPS number. It could be in the form of employment letter from your employer or a letter from your school's international office stating that you need the PPS number to carry out your registration. Once you are able to sort this out, you need to take your international passport, your mobile phone as they will send a code to it which you will be required to tell the person attending to you during the appointment and proof of why you need PPS number for your appointment.

After the registration, the pps card will be sent to your house in about 5 working days. At that point, you will have to login into their website to finish the registration. On doing this, they will send you password to your account on revenue.ie at a latter time via post to your house . On getting the password, you will need to change it to something you can remember, and then add your employer under your jobs. You add your employer by the company's registration number. So you need to know that . You can always add as many employers you have on the platform. Just ensure you don't work more than the limit allowed by your visa. Once you do this, revenue office will inform your employer on the appropriate tax you need to pay.

That is all for now. I will answer queries here on a need to basis.

Cheers.

Hello guys,

I'm pleased to write a few survival tips for fellows coming to start their studies in Island of Eire - Ireland in the coming days. First let me congratulate you on your offer and consequent visa approval. I know and understand the feeling.

What I have to share might not be new or strange to some fellows, but I believe it will still help in it own little way.

Fun fact: what I share here is based on my view and knowledge. It is not a one size fit all approach. Straight to business. *Long post alert*

Travel preparations and Arrival.

I'm certain many will be bothered about what to buy and what not to buy. My advice is for you to buy what is more important to you than filling your box with things you can easily get here. For lovers of home made naija food, please endeavour to get more of those than clothings. Aside the food, another important thing for you is to get warm clothings as winter is almost upon us. It is cheaper for you to buy in naija.

Now that you have sort your luggage, I think its time to get a flight, right? This might be the first time having to book a flight for some while others might have been doing this for a while. No worries, I believe there is always a first time for everything. For most guys, including myself, what I look out for in booking flight is cost and waiting time for connecting flight as direct flight to Dublin could be very expensive in case you're lucky to find one. From my observation, it is cheaper to book through third parties like travelstat, wakanow or Expedia than booking directly through the airline website. Also ensure to confirm price between third parties - companies mentioned above before settling for one as there is usually disparity in price between travel companies getting customers for the same airline. In some cases as much as #40,000. Now that flight ticket is settled, you need to make plans for where to stay for the interim if your school didn't offer you accommodation. The practice usually is to get a place in the numerous hostels offering short stay accommodation before getting yourself a place. For those who have friends or relatives that are providing accommodation, whether short term or otherwise, you are very lucky I must say. The way to go about booking the accommodation most times is through hostelworld or booking.com. Google search will show you listings based on price and services rendered by the various hostels otherwise called backpackers place. Ensure to keep your documents (if possible retain all the documents you used for the visa application) in your hand luggage as some immigration officers might request for some of it at the point of entry. Some questions students are often asked are: what school are you attending, where will you be staying, Do you have health insurance, What course will you be studying, How much do you have with you. Can I see the money - some usually collect and count the money - I have seen queries here about the pta as it is fondly called. It is safe to have at least €2000 with you. After the officer is satisfied, you will be documented - your finger print and picture will be taken and your passport stamped. You will be told to book appointment with GNIB to register your residency before the end of the date stamped on your passport. Now you will be allowed to go through and pickup your luggage from the carousel and proceed to arrival lounge. At this point, I can officially tell you "failte to Eire" - in English, welcome to Ireland.

Now you are outside the airport, what next? For folks who have people waiting to pick them up, you have no challenge whatsoever. And for folks who don't have anyone to pick them, you still need to forge on as your survival has commenced. Basically your journey from the airport is to where you have made plans to stay put, or to other cities for those going to Cork, Galway, Limerick or Tralee. For those commuting to Dublin, your best bet is to take Dublin bus - "Bus 16, and Bus 41" goes from the airport to the city centre. Though you could take taxi if you have the money to play with as taxi is not cheap here. For those travelling to other major cities, like I mentioned earlier, you are better going with 'Aircoach' a private bus company based outside the airport, or travel via train. If you choose to go with the later, you need to get to Heuston train station to connect one. You could connect Heuston train station from the airport via 'Bus 746 - I'm not too sure of this at this point though, but whatever destination a bus is heading is usually written digitally in front of the bus'. But don't fail to ask questions if you think you are not getting it right. So for guys that will be travelling on Dublin bus, ensure you get a ticket at the vending machine outside the airport as only travel card and coins are accepted on the bus. The airport and buses have free wifi, so you could reach your loved ones that you arrived safely, and also use it to navigate Google maps. With all these said, I believe you should be fine getting to your temporary residence.

After the long flight, you must be hungry, coupled with the kind of food served on the flight might not be satisfying due to what is on offer. There is a Nigerian restaurant on Parnell Street, very close to "O'connel street - albeit most popular bus-stop in Ireland", where you will get most naija food you could think of. I advice naija food because its almost the same cost with burger or any other foreign food you could have at your disposal on arrival. Before getting out to eat, endeavour to have gotten to your temporary accommodation. Most hostels offering short term stay are around the city centre, and as such within walking distance to the naija restaurant.

Searching for accommodation, bank account opening, registration with GNIB and other related matters

Most backpackers place sell sim cards, you should endeavor to get one, mostly Lyca mobile is what most Naija people buy. The subscription is 15 Euro monthly which comes with unlimited voice calls to all network in Ireland, unlimited sms, and 10GB of data. Other network providers include '3', Tesco, Virgin mobile et al. '3' has the best network but the subscription is 30 Euro. I guess you now see reason why people go for Lyca mobile. There is no need for sim registration before usage. You really need this subscription on your phone as you will be making calls to houses advertised on the internet.

Before getting on the accommodation search journey, endeavor to get a student leap card at Dublin bus office on O'Connel street or at a designated point in your school as they normally have a place there when school resume newly. The leap card will offer you the opportunity of not spending more than 5 euro a day no matter how much you travel on Dublin bus or 7.50 euro a day if you use train coupled with the bus.

Getting an accommodation is about the toughest part of what you will be facing on settling down at your temporary residence. Most places are also over priced. As a room in a shared flat could be as high as 700 Euro monthly. But getting a place is a matter of determination and persistence by checking websites like daft.ie, rent.ie, hosting power or any platform as recommended by your school for new listing posted on the aforementioned websites. There are also agencies that assist with getting a place - this agencies charge as much as 200 Euro for their services. The search for accommodation is real, and some home owners are not usually willing to rent their place to naija people. What some folks do to get away with this is saying they come from neighboring African countries - like I always tell my friends, being from naija is about the toughest thing in the world. If you are lucky to get appointment for viewing a place like they say here, you should ensure you visit the place as soon as possible as other people might have been scheduled to come see the place too. It is important to ensure whatever accommodation you settle for is on a frequent bus route to your school. As some buses on a specific route comes once every hour. I believe you don't want to be on such bus route. Once you ascertain you like the house and that the house is on a frequent bus route, you can pay to the landlord and get key to the place. Don't ever pay rent for a house you have not seen! Some home owners might request for deposit which in most cases is usually the same amount as the rent. Need I say, ensure you understand the contract the landlord is presenting you. Clarify or seek to change the status of whichever you are not comfortable with. Some landlord don't allow tenants have anyone visit them at home or spend the night without their consent especially for homes occupied by the owner.

Once accommodation is sorted, you need to register the address on your school registration portal and get a document they call certificate of attendance. The next thing to do after this is to open a bank account. The choice of bank is dependent on some factors. Some schools usually require their students to open account with a specific bank while others don't which make some students to opt for bank close to them. The requirements mainly for opening a bank account is your international passport and certificate of attendance from your school. After you open the account, it takes some few days for it to be activated. You can only make deposit into the account when it has been activated. Your bank will send you an email in respect to that. You need to lodge in your cash at this point as your bank statement is needed for the GNIB registration. ATM card for your account will be sent to the address you opened the account with, so ensure you don't use the address of the place you stayed temporarily.

Now that bank account is sorted, the next thing to do is to book appointment with GNIB for your residency registration. This could also be a pain. But an app could help in this regard. The app is called GNIB - Ireland. It can be downloaded from Google play for android users or apple store or what it is called for i-phone users. On filling your personal details on the app and turning on the notification, you will be sent available appointments date from time to time. Once you are able to book an appointment, the require documents you need to take along for your appointment include: international passport, admission letter from your school, certificate of attendance, proof of health insurance, bank statement and your debit card as you have to pay 300 euro for the card that will be issued to you - Irish Residence Permit card. They don't accept cash! Other channel for payment is through bank giro which takes about 5 working days to go through. I won't advice you follow this route. After the successful registration at the GNIB, your card will be sent to your address within 5 working days.

It is important to get registered with GNIB before school starts as you don't want to bother yourself with such by the time lectures starts.

That is all for now.

I will discuss on PPS number, and how to get a part time job later.

Cheers and welcome to Ireland once again.

Jenniliousatoe:
I couldnot get Turkey flight for the date I am to leave nigeria is full. How is ethopia flight?

Ethiopian airline is good. Though some of their staff in Nigeria act in unfriendly way. Waiting time at Addis Ababa for connecting flight is also minimum compared to most airlines from Asia. Please I will urge you to consider waiting time. Sitting at the airport for 8-14 hours in some instance could be boring and tortuous.

In all, you will get a good deal plus arriving Dublin very early in the morning.

Op,

I sent you a pm. Get in touch.

MzDeeb:


Unilag doesn't issue transcript to individuals. Its super annoying.


I guess i will print out DIT's response and add to the supporting documents. So they will know the transcript is with DIT and they can request from them if need be.

Thanks

Go ahead with your application. Your certificate is a pointer that you have completed a program that qualifies you for the course you intend to study in Ireland.

Transcript basically is to evaluate suitability for admission by schools by weighing your performance in each courses you took in the previous program.