₦airaland Forum

Good evening. I have an interview scheduled for tomorrow at Virginrose hotel located at the following address:

Virginrose Resorts which is situated at no 1231a , Bishop Oluwole street, Victoria Island.

I've never been to the island before, so I need help with direction and possible estimate of the cost of transportation.

I'll be coming from Ayobo. So, I can get to Iyana ipaja from my house. I just need directions from where to go next from Iyana ipaja.

EducatedMind369:
Good evening. I have an interview scheduled for tomorrow at Virginrose hotel located at the following address:

Virginrose Resorts which is situated at no 1231a , Bishop Oluwole street, Victoria Island.

I've never been to the island before, so I need help with direction and possible estimate of the cost of transportation.

I'll be coming from Ayobo. So, I can get to Iyana ipaja from my house. I just need directions from where to go next from Iyana ipaja.

Sorry I saw this late. How did it go?

Good morning Gerrard. I've been a keen follower of your posts for years now and I believe you're the right person that'll give the needed input to the issue I have on ground.

So, I'm a recent graduate of Mathematics and I've had thoughts of furthering my education outside the country for some time now, but unfortunately for me, I graduated with a second class lower grade.
I know it sucks, but it has happened. My university education was really rushed by my school (name withheld) to the point where I spent two years for a four year course(this actually is real) and as a result, I had little time to adjust myself to a whole new field(university Mathematics is different from secondary maths. We do proofs and little to zero calculations).

But I've always had an aptitude for Mathematics right from secondary school. I'm relearning my entire undergrad Mathematics syllabus, which I'm learning way better compared to when I was in school [remember, I have a knack for Mathematics? Double A's in maths and further mathematics in Waec(never had a further mathematics teacher in secondary school. Learnt it on my own and still made an A in Waec)].

Well, what is the essence of this unnecessary story? Simple. It's to show that I have the aptitude, but unfortunately it didn't reflect in my undergrad grades. People with the good grades will always be looked at first before me.

I take full responsibility for everything, and I'm not giving any excuses. What I need now is a solution.

I'd love to further my studies in Mathematics in a developed country. I'm taking the path of least resistance, a philosophy espoused by your friend Tensa, and I'm not looking towards North America or those popular countries. I've been looking at South America and some Asian countries.

I also forgot to mention that I come from a poor family too. So, self funding any education overseas is out of the equation for me. So, those ptdf, mext, Erasmus scholarships are probably out of reach for me.

My main issue now is how do I prove my competence to admission committees so I can get funding, knowing my grades will be a limiting factor for me? I need a way to prove myself. I was thinking of doing an Msc in Nigeria and graduating with good grades, but honestly I really don't want to school in Nigeria again. And besides, that'll take too much time and immigration laws are changing everyday. I need to be fast.

I've been following that Japanese thread and seeing some people there get funding, has arisen hope in my body. I don't mind learning a new language at this point, or experiencing racism.

So, I've been checking out some Japanese schools, and it's still need to me though. So, I need some time to learn about their process and all. I don't want to ask any questions since you generally frown at people asking questions that can be gotten online or from the thread.

Please, I just want you to help look into my case. Thank you.

Cc Gerrard59

EducatedMind369:
Good morning Gerrard. I've been a keen follower of your posts for years now and I believe you're the right person that'll give the needed input to the issue I have on ground.

So, I'm a recent graduate of Mathematics and I've had thoughts of furthering my education outside the country for some time now, but unfortunately for me, I graduated with a second class lower grade.
I know it sucks, but it has happened. My university education was really rushed by my school (name withheld) to the point where I spent two years for a four year course(this actually is real) and as a result, I had little time to adjust myself to a whole new field(university Mathematics is different from secondary maths. We do proofs and little to zero calculations).

But I've always had an aptitude for Mathematics right from secondary school. I'm relearning my entire undergrad Mathematics syllabus, which I'm learning way better compared to when I was in school [remember, I have a knack for Mathematics? Double A's in maths and further mathematics in Waec(never had a further mathematics teacher in secondary school. Learnt it on my own and still made an A in Waec)].

Well, what is the essence of this unnecessary story? Simple. It's to show that I have the aptitude, but unfortunately it didn't reflect in my undergrad grades. People with the good grades will always be looked at first before me.

I take full responsibility for everything, and I'm not giving any excuses. What I need now is a solution.

I'd love to further my studies in Mathematics in a developed country. I'm taking the path of least resistance, a philosophy espoused by your friend Tensa, and I'm not looking towards North America or those popular countries. I've been looking at South America and some Asian countries.

I also forgot to mention that I come from a poor family too. So, self funding any education overseas is out of the equation for me. So, those ptdf, mext, Erasmus scholarships are probably out of reach for me.

My main issue now is how do I prove my competence to admission committees so I can get funding, knowing my grades will be a limiting factor for me? I need a way to prove myself. I was thinking of doing an Msc in Nigeria and graduating with good grades, but honestly I really don't want to school in Nigeria again. And besides, that'll take too much time and immigration laws are changing everyday. I need to be fast.

I've been following that Japanese thread and seeing some people there get funding, has arisen hope in my body. I don't mind learning a new language at this point, or experiencing racism.

So, I've been checking out some Japanese schools, and it's still need to me though. So, I need some time to learn about their process and all. I don't want to ask any questions since you generally frown at people asking questions that can be gotten online or from the thread.

Please, I just want you to help look into my case. Thank you.

Cc Ger.rard59

The way you write this, random person go read am and think say I get sense.

I have nothing against people asking questions in the Japan thread (I am not Seun. Nairaland no be my property). I just find it ridiculous for people who want to pursue grad studies in a country where the student is expected to hit the ground running on day one to expect answers so easily in the age of ChatGPT. My time, nothing like ChatGPT o. That said, that stuff works so well. I pity management consultants sha. I knew what I experienced as a graduate student, and I have asked two Nigerian postdocs what it is like to be a postdoc or to get a postdoctoral fellowship directly from Nigeria to Japan. It is pure hard work and a you-know-what-to-do system.

As for your situation, I will recommend getting a job in Nigeria, and if you are within the age range for entry level jobs, apply to them. Yes, having a lower grade does limit folks in applying for jobs, ditto age caps. My friend in school has two degrees (life sciences and engineering) from two universities (he did them concurrently), but has a "strong 2.1" in the life sciences degree and 2.2 in the engineering. Since there are more graduate trainee jobs in engineering than in life sciences, he faces disqualification for most of them. Then, we have stringent immigration rules that have prevented folks like him from getting a visa.

But try to get a job, or if you can, learn some tech skills that can enable you to get a job. Why a job at the moment over a master's in Nigeria? Because nothing beats experience, and you earn an income at the same time. School will always be there, but Trump won't last forever as president. The job will provide a source of income to either learn Spanish (to pursue South American countries), if you can, run visa processes when the time comes. Yes, the path to least resistance is great! It worked for me, otherwise I would have competed with the rest of the world in sourcing for scholarships. Even then, my competitors for scholarships were Chinese, and I defeated them! For this reason, I will always recommend the likes of China, Japan and South Korea. The Korean govt has been championing more international student enrolment. These countries have great universities at a fraction of the tuition fees in Western nations and can be stepping stones to other places/endeavours in life.

So to convince admission committees, you need to show some years of experience, and except you want to target the top universities (they have more scholarships and int'l students), you can undergo a master's in Nigeria. Since funds would be an issue, target first generation federal universities - UNN, UI, UNILAG, ABU etc. Get a distinction and fire at the top universities in those Asian countries. So you do a master's at say, UNN, then another master's at Tohoku University, then a PhD and so on.

As we know, we are in the age of AI and advanced technologies, and mathematics and physics are the bedrock of these emerging technologies. East Asians are naturally good at these subjects. I know the admission path to Japanese universities pretty well. Countless schools would be GLAD to admit you, but might not readily offer you scholarships until they see some grit in you.

p.s. There are more scholarships when you are in the country compared to when you are outside. All but two of the MEXT scholars I have met from Nigeria and other African countries had a first class in their undergrad studies. This corroborated my LinkedIn search before I came to the country. Those two had cognate work experience, and one of them almost had a distinction in his MSc program before coming here for another MSc, then PhD and now a postdoc.

Your issue now is the funds; otherwise, I would have said go for it - apply to those Asian countries. Japan is "cheap" as the yen is in the toilet.

Gerrard59:
The way you write this, random person go read am and think say I get sense.

I have nothing against people asking questions in the Japan thread (I am not Seun. Nairaland no be my property). I just find it ridiculous for people who want to pursue grad studies in a country where the student is expected to hit the ground running on day one to expect answers so easily in the age of ChatGPT. My time, nothing like ChatGPT o. That said, that stuff works so well. I pity management consultants sha. I knew what I experienced as a graduate student, and I have asked two Nigerian postdocs what it is like to be a postdoc or to get a postdoctoral fellowship directly from Nigeria to Japan. It is pure hard work and a you-know-what-to-do system.

As for your situation, I will recommend getting a job in Nigeria, and if you are within the age range for entry level jobs, apply to them. Yes, having a lower grade does limit folks in applying for jobs, ditto age caps. My friend in school has two degrees (life sciences and engineering) from two universities (he did them concurrently), but has a "strong 2.1" in the life sciences degree and 2.2 in the engineering. Since there are more graduate trainee jobs in engineering than in life sciences, he faces disqualification for most of them. Then, we have stringent immigration rules that have prevented folks like him from getting a visa.

But try to get a job, or if you can, learn some tech skills that can enable you to get a job. Why a job at the moment over a master's in Nigeria? Because nothing beats experience, and you earn an income at the same time. School will always be there, but Trump won't last forever as president. The job will provide a source of income to either learn Spanish (to pursue South American countries), if you can, run visa processes when the time comes. Yes, the path to least resistance is great! It worked for me, otherwise I would have competed with the rest of the world in sourcing for scholarships. Even then, my competitors for scholarships were Chinese, and I defeated them! For this reason, I will always recommend the likes of China, Japan and South Korea. The Korean govt has been championing more international student enrolment. These countries have great universities at a fraction of the tuition fees in Western nations and can be stepping stones to other places/endeavours in life.

So to convince admission committees, you need to show some years of experience, and except you want to target the top universities (they have more scholarships and int'l students), you can undergo a master's in Nigeria. Since funds would be an issue, target first generation federal universities - UNN, UI, UNILAG, ABU etc. Get a distinction and fire at the top universities in those Asian countries. So you do a master's at say, UNN, then another master's at Tohoku University, then a PhD and so on.

As we know, we are in the age of AI and advanced technologies, and mathematics and physics are the bedrock of these emerging technologies. East Asians are naturally good at these subjects. I know the admission path to Japanese universities pretty well. Countless schools would be GLAD to admit you, but might not readily offer you scholarships until they see some grit in you.

p.s. There are more scholarships when you are in the country compared to when you are outside. All but two of the MEXT scholars I have met from Nigeria and other African countries had a first class in their undergrad studies. This corroborated my LinkedIn search before I came to the country. Those two had cognate work experience, and one of them almost had a distinction in his MSc program before coming here for another MSc, then PhD and now a postdoc.

Your issue now is the funds; otherwise, I would have said go for it - apply to those Asian countries. Japan is "cheap" as the yen is in the toilet.

Thank you for the advice. I really appreciate it. I need to make a plan now.