By Dadson A. Musa
Graduation ceremonies are moments of fulfilments for many hardworking students. On the flip side, they are moments of regrets for those who have failed to make it to the finished line either through lack of finance or not being equal to the academic challenge. Years of hard work and huge expenditures get to get their crowning moments. Graduating from university is gratifying and leaves the graduands and their family’s sweet memories. It is also an inspiration to students who have just entered college. Over the years in Sierra Leone, the number that graduates from our universities has quite doubled or even quadrupled so coming out to compete for very limited job opportunities is a mixed bag for many of them.
Previously, most of them didn’t go into job finding but to become entrepreneurs by creating their own businesses and wait for the opportunity to get a job one day or remain as entrepreneurs until retirement or death. Some students who have made it through and are fully paid up are going to graduate by proxy due to flying out of the country or job engagements. Graduating in absentia and by proxy costs more.
Across the three constituent colleges that make up the University of Sierra Leone, IPAM, COMAHS and Fourah Bay College, the number is so large that it cannot be done in one fell swoop so it has to be segmented for convenience and to save time. The University of Sierra Leone now has a new Chancellor in the person of P. C. Dr. Margaret Gbanie and his Vice Chancellor/ Principal, Professor Lebbie. Their appointments came after some disagreements and the dissolution of the university court coupled with the unexplained and controversial resignation of Dr. James Sampha Koroma as Chancellor. And when the PRO of the university, Dr. Tonya was asked by this medium if that is going cast a slur on the graduation ceremony his response was “it is going to be as smooth as it should be. “Being dressed in the graduating regalia are moments that every graduand wants to be captured which is when photo montage is collected and put in albums or hung on walls in offices and homes.
Before going to view the concerns of those who made it through and are fully paid up this medium first spoke to those who through no fault of theirs are not going to graduate this year. “The registry fumbled in compiling and collating our cumulative grade points and so have deprived us this year of an opportunity of a life time and we are not going to forgive them. Our future has been toyed with “, they lamented. They were very irate and threatened to cause havoc but for security intervention. In response to these claims, the university registry at Tower Hill in Freetown when contacted by this medium said that ” these students were not consistent with their various courses and some even didn’t pay fees so cannot be included for graduation.”
So, I bumped into some students who have made it through and are fully paid up who were clearly elated and could jump for joy. Marcella Gbonda who will be graduating as a State Registered Nurse from COMAHS second class had this to say ” it was not easy getting to this stage of my life as transportation cost, hard work and the fees but this certificate is going to put me in a good stead for promotion, better salary and further studies. Now I can practice nursing safely”. Another graduand from Fourah Bay College, in Mass Communication department, Anthony Gassimu who has been a practicing journalist without qualification and was paid pittance had this to say, ” I jumped into journalism because I was in the Art stream and my English language was good but I realized after entering university to do a degree in the field of work was a whole different thing. Journalism isn’t just about writing or speaking good English.”
And then I met Bintu Koroma who’s graduating with a degree in Business Management who owned a restaurant and a bar already. She said this, ” I am very happy to have gone through this course as it has sharpened my business skills and increased my sense of self – worth. I also stand the chance of picking up a job anytime which I will do alongside my business.” The feeling of elation could be sensed from almost all the graduands although there is also the hanging fear of not enough jobs around could also be sensed. And the president of Sierra Leone, Julius Maada Bio once told graduands before relinquishing the chancellor role that “graduates, they should strive to be entrepreneurs.”. Another concern is the brain drain that the country envisages as most of these graduands at the slightest opportunities they leave the country for greener pastures abroad. Graduation ceremonies are moments of joy in the lives of academics.
Copyright –Published in print in Expo Times Newspaper on Friday, April 24TH, 2023 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)
