AjanleKoko: @OP,

Methinks someone answered a question in a way you did not like. Abi?

Well, you could say that but i guess the other responder knew what i was driving at.

My main reason for posting that original piece was to create some other form of career discussion than we are currently seeing. From time to time i will post some things that comes to mind and share for like minds to engage in something more thoughtful.

Go to the North and continue your job. Try applying for some other jobs whilst on that. If you get a better offer you can go back to where you were coming from.

Well, the problem is that i really don't think you have any good job experience if i am right. Again you don't know if you really like to study HSE.

Can you say what your first degree was?

@Op,

I think what you have not explained well is, can you do some other form of calculation except for the ones in Accounting. Or you just don't want to use a calculator for anything?

Maybe people in Finance do a bit less of calculation. T22 what do you think?

Okay, i will help you out with what i think is best if i was in your shoes.

Getting experience on the job can be a very hard nut to crack these days. If you have worked before after your B.Sc for at least two years, i can advise you to go for the masters. But if you have no experience, go for the bank job and defer your admission to the next year. The schools are never against such decisions. As long as you have not processed your visa. But if you have the visa, you must go.

Well, i should have rephrased my statement with *at least are in an undergraduate studies*. My general assertion was to say that everybody should be able to answer questions more technically than those who have never been to an higher institution.

well, my navigation through the country lands me on the front page and career section respectively. So i guess i sampled my observation on the numerous politics, religion, and what have we sections i can see from the front page. And trust me, you don't have to go further from the front page to start wondering why and how do we think so differently.

MRbrownJAY: @OP
i suggest you check some of the threads on the RELIGION or POLITIC section.

Well yeah, part of what brought about the topic and how educated or enlightened people can be so differentiated by simple topics that only needs common sense to conclude.

yamakuza: Have you been to all parts of Nairaland?

[s]Fallacy of Hasty Generalisation, methinks![/s]

Did you know what aroused my interest in this topic? Before i answer you, in what area did i generalize?

I look at this forum always as a convergence of bright Nigerians. So many professional inquiries on career, academics and so on. Everyday we keep seeing people from all walks of life coming here for some sort of advice. Illiteracy as we know can be pointed out as one of the drawbacks of our suffering democracy. But looking around Nairaland, i would assume more than 80% of the forum users have atleast a B.Sc. I really don't have any estimate on the figures of the forum users but i can conclude on one fact that the number is quite on the upside. Above 100K? Someone help me!

If the population of Nairaland was to be made a country, do you think it will be better off in decision making considering the level of education of the users than the current Nigeria we have? or are we just made as a country to speak in different tongues regardless of our level of education and civilization?

Please help me out my people...

well, i think if you can analyse the Nigerian economy and see how things are done at the moment and what could probably change in the nearest future. I think operations and supply chain management looks good to cover some manufacturing topics for you. But for your job, i think you should do the first one. Supply chain is supply chain nobody can tell if you studied operations management or not. Just develop yourself with self studies towards the operations aspect and defend yourself well in interviews. I think you will be roaring to go.

Secretary? i think you took the op to the extreme.

@Opebiyi,

That is why if you have a masters from an accredited university, you could be exempted from the exams. A work experience of 3 years is all you need to get the qualification.

Well, you are psyching yourself to something difficult from the start. I hope people working in these areas have good advise to give you.

Why don't you go for a post graduate course which cancels out the B.Sc syndrome anyway? and then continue with a masters degree with a professional certificate somewhere ICAN? ACCA?

Dimeji,

I don't think you need anything to market your B.Sc in Mechanical Engineering. you know what, people in your field are employed based on their core technical skills. So wherever you work, the company can always see your impact even from far.

What i will advise you to do i get the best grade possible and then after your studies come back here and let people tell you how you can move on with a very good masters which enables you to specialize. From there on, you can begin to develop skills in a focus area.

Relax and boost your grade for now.

nell07,

To be honest, i haven't really seen a bachelors degree in project management. Maybe, i haven't looked enough. But intuition tells me that studies in project management should be designed to support specialization in a particular field be it in IT, business, construction, etc.

Considering your case, i am of the opinion that you stand a chance of combining your project management with IT within a short period. Adding an MBA to it in the future after relevant experience should cap it for you. But don't forget to look for the necessary combination of IT certifications or degree that can put you in good stead(obsolete) when competition shows its ugly face.

All the best

AjanleKoko: ^^
Let's look at both public and private sector.

For public sector, government structure permits progression based on certificate. An OND graduate may enter government service at level 06, while NYSC graduates enter service on Level 08. NYSC graduate can get to Level 18 or 19 (permanent secretary), while OND or similar grad usually cannot get beyond Level 13. That's the government service rule.

For private sector, there is no graduate position in Nigeria that doesn't require NYSC. Which automatically rules out OND and similar certificates from graduate employment. Some MNCs and other large organizations employ a large contingent of support staff, but that has changed over time, with outsourcing services. Companies don't hire office assistants, cleaners, drivers, clerks, etc, anymore. So, for that uncle story, even though it happened years back when there wasn't so much competition from fresh graduates, it ain't gonna happen in 2012.

In summary, NYSC's catchment is validated in my view.

Is it at law or just companies requirement?

Sagamite: What I don't understand is how people with OND are not required to do NYSC but those with BSc and HND must do it.

Yet the former and the latters are allowed to work. So is the OND prevented from rising in work in any way?

How does the government reconcile restricting working rights of BSc/HND but yet the OND is allowed to work anytime and get to the same position as the NYSCers?

Aj is right with in response. OND can also take up a job that requires minimum B.Sc if the person has the required experience to do the job. So many people without a degree rise up to managerial roles in the past when the craze for B.Sc and M.Sc is not this much. Some things you just learn on the job and bone school.

@Op, you haven't provided the needed information for people to help you with.

@V

Pursue your mechatronics. There is no point for chasing those three components at a time. During your mechatronics degree, apply for an exchange semester that way you can go to France or Switzerland to learn French and then some elective courses in Management.

Running up and down those three countries might look appealing initially but trust me, when the time comes, you will need lots of money you can save for something useful.

Y,

ed!ots,

just make Nigeria a manufacturing hub for these companies for instance to serve the African region. Provide infrastructure and a good investment atmosphere. That way, the technologies will be diffused into Nigerians naturally and they will pick things up from there.

Where does this govt get advise?

As someone said, the name Bimbo

means an uncomplimentary word for a heavy set woman, but I've also heard it mentioned (as American slang) for a heavyset blonde woman who acts stupid..

actually fits him

nitrogen: @ all, i had a chat some weeks ago with with a friend that was a set ahead of me in the university, after all the 'long time, no see' stuff, the remaining part of the conversation went this way:
Nitrogen: how service nw, hope u dey enjoy that place?
Friend: nitro, forget, i don ja o( am nt serving again)
Nitro: why? Cos of the insecurity saga in that place or what?
Friend: no, am out of the country doing my masters.
Nitro: what?? You left nysc for masters?
Friend: dnt dull yourself o,,,,,,,

After the conversation, then i got myself into a slight pondering, 'how on earth could a fellow in his late 20s abandone nysc program because he got a chance to further his studies abroad'. But later, i generalized it that everybody has got his or her own way and the level of risk that can be taken by individuals differ.


But seriously, do you share in this wonderful evolving theory?? That even the only programme (nysc) that helps give experience (although sparingly) is neglected by recent graduates in the name of getting a scholarship in an average university abroad for further studies, to me, i think it is crazy.

Unfortunately again i am of the opinion that nothing is crazy. See you might not know, that friend of yours might have a destiny of never coming to Nigeria to work anymore for the rest of his life. I met a man in Europe who said he was a Prof in Nigeria and moved out about 35 years ago to work as a practicing surgeon. You see what i mean, till today that man still advises people not to go back to Nigeria. He further said he is happy with his life abroad.

Come to think of it, no one is guaranteed a job in Naija and not everyone will get into a multinational in Nigeria. There are only a few exceptional students in Nigeria that can always conquer the highly competitive tests conducted by multinationals in Nigeria and rewarded employment on a fair basis. These set of students are not easy to come by and everyone won't be like them. So for your friend, abroad is an alternative but i am sure he will get is NYSC certificate (the Naija way) anyway since he started it already.

Well, the more reason many people troop to the U.S. is simple. English is the language and they are more welcoming for foreign grads into their work place. But the same can not be said in Europe. The first barrier is the language and there is this element of discrimination and ego that drives some European countries from taking grad students into their working environment. Language because that is the working language in most organizations. Ego because they have stereotyped citizens from developing nations as not equally able to add to what is already on ground like their own people. But of course some countries i know can be an exception, for instance i hold the Netherlands and Germany in high regard when it comes to integrating foreign grads. In fact Germany is even making it more easier these days especially for students in Engineering and maths related field. If you then learn the language then you are ready for numerous options.

nitrogen: Different perspectives to these two has may be been part of constituents to many fresh grad's problems (especially nigerian graduates).

A situation whereby when one is through with his/her first degree, the next necessary thing is to go get a job in order to increase one's experience in his or her field. After getting the necessary experience,then you can further your studies.

The other is depicted this way: 'Now, i have a degree(first), since the resources are available, am going for further studies, i dont need related experience to break into the job market because when am through with my studies( maybe to a MBA level), i will break in easily'.

These two stated above has been generating a lot of debates, where different opinions are put forward by different individuals. Please, elaborate on these because it has been a concern to many 'soon to be graduates' and graduates.

Unfortunately, i don't think that is the case. It is a case of the work experience syndrome. Many people continue with studies because they do not have the chance to exercise what they are trained to do. I don't think anybody will reject a good job to continue studying. The problem with Nigeria is even more with many bad work environment where they don't give you the requisite experience rather just use you as a messenger tool of some sort. Salaries are very difficult to come by in the west so if they employ you they are actually guiding you through how you can be on your own after some time.

I think this is the reason Nigerians in particular have one of the highest acquisition of degrees in the world because they have to prove their ability over and over again to be given a chance at work. At least in Europe, most employers don't emphasize masters degree that much because their people are trained on the job anyway and that is why you see most workers with just a B.Sc and the competition is not that fierce like you see in the U.S.

Pennywise: Very well deserved appointment. The next big challenge is the accent thingy. We yorubas dont let go easily.

Hater post? Watch this and see if tommorrow they make this man a VC at stanford, where will you be to complain about accent?


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0dExw3es40&feature=relmfu

Have you thought of those prof. certs like CIPS, CILT? If not i think Nigerian companies are crazy about it because i see many Nigerians getting those these days to stay competitive at work place and elsewhere.

You can join Supply Chain group and Purchasing professionals in Nigeria group on Linkedin. There are many Nigerians working in the field on that site, it might be a good way to network with them.

Good luck.

IQ or no IQ, never ignore the Nigeria factor.

For those making the case of Aruma Oteh, i think she is just an equally corrupt executive. IF you are straight forward in your dealings, you don't pause for long before you answer easy questions before a panel.

Let me tell you, if you have an above average IQ and can always judge between right or wrong, good or bad, choosing to do the right and good, there is no stopping you.

sharp man: OP......great thread.

I absolutely agree with your points, 7 and 8 most especially.

I know someone with two degrees..........one a third class.......the other a first class. How did that happen? He did not follow the rules (though he knew them) in the first one......and the result......a third class degree.

He learnt and followed the rules in the second one.....the result? a first class degree.

One more point you did not add......although it might not be for everyone........TEACH some of your friends what you have learnt. Understanding is enhanced when you teach.

Exactly what happened to me although in contrast. I was top 10% in my class out of about 90 students. I abandoned the programme to study abroad. I stopped using all the tricks i was using back in Nigeria and financial challenges and found things really difficult with my grades. I could not change anything because i graduated before i knew it. But i have taking the responsibility of advising those who are still in it, if they want to make their lives easier.

^
Where did you get your degree?

Donmeca:



If I were sure to sponsor myself, then I would have to send a mail to a lady who does the financial calculation, opens an account in my name and sends me d deatils for a transfer. As soon as they have the stated amt in 'my account', the school will issue an letter to d embassy on my behalf stating that i have a secured means of livelihood in Belgium and that a type D visa shud b issued.

In d event of another person footing d bill, the said sponsor goes to d Belgian embassy in Abuja or d sponsor's country of residence to fillout a Financial Guarantor Form (normally in Dutch). A friend's rough calculation says the guarantor (depending on his/her family size) will have to prove that he/she can spare atleast 700 euros monthly for the student. So invariably, a married man with 2 kids wud have to earn 150 monthly 4 each of his wife and children, 1250 4himself and abt 300 euros 4d stdt. So we are modestly lookin at btw 2k and 3k monthly earning...after tax...4 someone to qualify as a sponsor.

Docs needed as proof: one yr bank statement, six months pay slip, one yr tax clearance, cert of inc and memat(4 bizmen), id card

Well, i can see from your what you said earlier that this is not feasible from your end. Its unfortunate this visa requirement is getting tougher. I can only suggest you try what you can and ask people you know that can assist. Cos personally, i don't know of any other way this can be executed.