Chrisland University, Abeokuta has recorded another laudable feat, as nine of her graduating students in the upcoming 4th convocation ceremony will be leaving the school with first class honours.
This was disclosed by the Vice Chancellor of the institution, Prof. Chinedum Peace Babalola, during a press conference held ahead of the convocation on Wednesday, November 2, 2022.
Babalola while speaking with Newsmen said that out of the 52 outgoing “stars”, nine recorded first class, 27 made second class upper, while 14 settled for second class lower division.
The VC also said that the valedictorian of the day, Miss Tolu Afolabi, from the Department of Biochemistry, hit the 4.92 mark on a 5-point scale, she is the second best graduating student from the department.
She said, “This is the 4th convocation we are holding. We have been holding convocations annually. We are happy because the number is increasing. The first we had 7, we call them stars, second we had 28 stars, third we had 44 and now 52. Out of the 52, nine made first class, 27 made second class upper, 14 made second class lower and 2 made third class. The best graduating student, Miss Tolu Afolabi, made 4.92, from the Department of Biochemistry. She is the second from the same department. Two years ago, our best graduate also came from Biochemistry.”
The Vice-Chancellor emphasized the goal set by the university which is graduating students with entrepreneurial skills and employable certificates that will make them not only job ready but also empower them to be employers of labour.
“We graduate our students with entrepreneurship and leadership certificate. This is to prepare them for the world outside. It is a must that our graduands graduate with a business plan which is assessed by experts. We ensure plagiarism is not tolerated. This is why we train them in research writing. Their projects go through plagiarism checks before they are certified.”
Speaking further, she expressed her delight in the school’s licence to offer Doctor of Physiotherapy as the first university to do so.
She further added that the Department of Nursing has been upgraded to a faculty, as the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria was amazed with the facilities available in the school, during accreditation, stating that the school is one of the best schools of Nursing in the country and the only one with the effigy of Florence Nightingale, thus increasing the school’s quota from 50 to 150 students within few months.
Babalola also disclosed that the University will be conferring honorary doctorate degree on two prominent personalities. According to her, the awardees are; His Imperial Majesty, Oba Adedotun Aremu Gbadebo, the Alake and Paramount Ruler of Egbaland, and Chief (Mrs.) Folorunso Alakija, the Managing Director of Famfa Oil Limited for their enormous contribution to human capital development and philanthropy.
The VC said the honorary Doctorate in Political Science will be given to the Alake of Egbaland, HRM Oba Aremu Gbadebo, Okukenu IV.
She also noted that this is the first convocation where awards will be given out.
The convocation events start on Monday, November 7 and end on Wednesday 9th. As part of the activities to mark the ceremony, the Chancellor, High Chief (Dr.) Winifred Awosika will on Tuesday, 8th November commission the College of Law Building as well as name a road in the campus after the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Aremu Gbadebo.
The Convocation lecture themed: “The Visible and Invisible Hands of Development: Interrogating the Roles of Tertiary Institutions and the Finacial Sector in Nigeria” will be delivered by Dr. Mrs Ajoritsedere Awosika, the Chairman of Access Bank, and Honourary Consul of Czech Republic.
Chrisland University, Ogun State was established in 2015 and began operation with two Colleges; the College of Arts, Management, and Social Sciences, and the College of Natural and Applied Sciences. The College of Basic Medical Sciences became the third college in 2019, while the College of Law received NUC approval to commence in 2022.
The institution started with just seven students in the 2015/2016 academic session and has been marching on strongly.