Adeagbo Mujib, 20, was the best student in the School of Engineering and Engineering Technology, Federal University of Technology Akure in the 2013/2014 academic session, having graduated with a 4.73 CGPA from the Civil Engineering Department. He tells TUNDE AJAJA about the extra efforts he invested to have a first class
What was your most memorable moment as an undergraduate?
That was in my 300 Level second semester. It was during a class one week after we had a test in Engineering Statistics, the course offered by all students in the School of Engineering, so it was a full attendance. During the class, the lecturer stopped abruptly and asked that a student named ADEAGBO should stand up. I was the only one with that surname, so I stood amongst about 700 students in the faculty. I felt so intimidated because I did not know why he called my name. I couldn’t hide my joy when he announced that I had the highest score in his test, which he said about 85 per cent of the class failed. After that day, several people would meet me on the walkway and greet me, most of them I didn’t even know. So, that was memorable for me.
Have you always had such performance in your previous schools?
I was always the best student in my class during my primary and secondary school days. I was the best in eight out of the nine subjects I offered in secondary school. I wrote West African Senior School Certificate Examination in May 2009 and had seven A1 and two B2. My result was among the best 50 WASSCE results in Nigeria in 2009. I also participated in several quiz and essay competitions for Sharon Rose College, Saki, Oyo State, where I won prizes and awards at the local, state and national levels. When I wrote the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination the same year, I had 250 and I was so lucky to gain double admission that same year, one in the Federal University of Technology, Minna and the other in the Federal University of Technology, Akure. Since FUTA was and still is the best university of technology in Nigeria, I chose to study there.
What attracted you to engineering?
From my childhood, I was always interested in calculation works. I wrote WASSCE GCE and NECO GCE in my SS2 and the normal WASSCE and NECO in SS3. In the four exams, I had A1 in subjects like Further Mathematics, Physics and Mathematics. Also, my phobia for blood made me lose interest in medicine, which reinforced my passion for engineering. I am particularly interested in it because of its uniqueness in the creation and production of new things from available resources, and the control of such to make the existence of man in his environment easy. Engineers are like the bees – we’re always working; to overcome man’s problem. The joy of helping the human race to proffer solutions to problems and being the agents of “change” in man’s environment makes the engineering profession feel different, and I am proud to be one.
Some people think Civil Engineering is all about highways and buildings, but from what you have learnt in school, is there more to it?
Civil Engineering is that branch of engineering that is concerned with the planning, designing, construction, maintenance, operation of buildings, roads and highways, bridges, canals, dams, airports, water-supply systems, irrigation systems, railroad lines, harbours, water and waste treatment systems, power plants amongst other infrastructure. Suffice to say that civil engineering is the engineering aspect of man’s environment. And as opposed to some people’s belief, there are more to civil engineering than highways and buildings. It has well over 60 disciplines. I wish to specialise in Structural Engineering, which deals with the loading systems and safety of engineering structures and systems.
Some people think only the brilliant can survive in Engineering, was there any form of competition in your class?
There was little or no competition amongst us. We were like a family and we did help ourselves. As Ben Franklin said, “A man wrapped up in himself makes a small bundle,” so, we helped one another through tutorial classes, sharing of ideas, group studies, sharing and transfer of course materials etc. Those things made the learning process easier for us. I must say here that it was never my intention to lead the class; my only desire was to graduate with a first class.
So, when did you start having a first class?
I started with a CGPA of 4.71, that was in my 100 Level first semester, and I led the class from then but I didn’t get to know until the third year. I always have the mindset of setting the pace anywhere I am, and with my exploits during my secondary school education, my parents and teachers expected me to have nothing less than a first class. So, I’ll say people’s expectation and my aspirations spurred me to take a stand and not settle for anything less from the beginning. So, I led my department for nine out of the 10 semesters of my study in FUTA. The only time I did not was when there was a calculation error in one of my results; that was in the second semester of my first year, and it was the only course I had an E throughout because our results had been collated before I knew that my script was missing.
What was your growing up like?
My growing up was quite uneventful. I was an asthmatic patient, so I had serious issues with my health from when I started school till my SS1. I could barely attend classes in school throughout my elementary education. But through the tutelage of my father, even though I wrote my exams with injection strapped on my arms, I always came first each term in my class.
Would you say you are a genius or you were just hardworking?
I would say hard work, which was self-driven, blended with my God-given ability to remember whatever I had written. God rewarded my persistence and laborious efforts. I had read a lot about people who made it through hard work despite a difficult beginning and poor background, and I wanted to give it a shot, which was a motivation to work hard. Even though I never got the ‘big treats’ because my parents were civil servants, their encouragement and lifestyle (hardworking) helped me. Success, they say, comes by dint of hard work. It wasn’t on a platter of gold, but through God, it was much easier than I imagined.
Did you do anything differently to have a first class?
I don’t really think so. I only learnt to put God first in my dealings, studied smart and adhered to my rules regardless of the situation. My philosophy of study is that it has to be done in conditions where the mind is satisfactorily at peace; and that its goal should be only to learn more and add values. I also love to teach what I know, for the mind recollects repetitive events better and I always read ahead of the class. One of the most important ways I learnt was teaching others. I used to read ahead during holidays because I knew people would come for tutorials when lectures started, so I would have read the courses repeatedly and even learnt several methods of solving the difficult parts. So, the repetition in studying and teaching others helped me.
What was your reading schedule like?
I did most of my reading early in the morning and sometimes in the afternoon if the environment was quiet enough, or any other time I had the urge to read. I used to read for at least three hours and for as long as I could assimilate what I was reading and did not feel exhausted. What really guided my reading was setting weekly goals for all my courses. I didn’t have flair for reading at night so I slept very well, except in few instances.
Would you say you were social?
Being social as it connotes nowadays is not in me because of my upbringing and religious belief. However, I used my free time watching and discussing football with friends, watching movies, reading novels and playing video games. I had fun in school and I still followed my reading schedule, and one didn’t affect the other in any way.
While in FUTA, what was your happiest moment?
My happiest moment was when I was announced as the best student in the School of Engineering and Engineering Technology during our convocation ceremony. I never thought of it before because same award had been conferred on another fellow during the faculty students’ award night some weeks before our final exam. So, it was really a big surprise, and interestingly I didn’t lead my Faculty until the final semester.
What have you been doing since you graduated?
While awaiting the NYSC programme, I have been doing Civil Engineering Software trainings for some of my classmates because I always love to help others by imparting knowledge into them. It gives me joy. So, I also engage in coaching classes for some secondary school students and it’s free, because the intention is to help.
What are your aspirations?
I aspire to be a renowned Structural Engineer. I hope to go for my Master’s degree and Ph.D in Structural Engineering, preferably outside the country. I will also love to be involved in some research works in my field in the future. I wish to work in either an educational institution or a reputable multi-national engineering company, where I can utilise my knowledge to improve on the safety of human lives and infrastructure and gain more experience.
What is your advice to students, especially those in higher institutions?
I will advise students to put God first, be original, and desist from running their race by other people’s watch. The university only helps to know how to learn, so there is the place of self-development, which they would need in the real world.
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