Crescent University Shines at LASU Convocation as Alumni Bag PhDs, Master’s With Distinction

Three alumni of the Department of Mass Communication, Crescent University, Abeokuta, were conferred with Doctor of Philosophy, PhD, degrees at the combined 29th and 30th Convocation Ceremonies of Lagos State University, LASU, Ojo.

The three new doctors are Waheed Ogunjobi, Adeola Yusuf and Sussan Ngozi. In the same ceremony held on Wednesday, 19th August, 2026, another product of the department, Nurudeen Salako, who had graduated with a First Class from Crescent University, capped his Master's degree with a Distinction.

The feat has brought pride to the Crescent University community and further cemented the institution's reputation as a citadel of academic and moral excellence.

The Department of Mass Communication, under the leadership of Dr. Kola Adesina, a Nigerian-British veteran journalist and communicator, has been transforming media training in Nigeria. The department recently scored 93.5 per cent in the accreditation exercise of the National Universities Commission, NUC, and has now produced a cluster of doctoral graduates in a single convocation.

Dr. Waheed Abiodun Ogunjobi, a Senior Editor with the Ogun State Broadcasting Corporation, OGBC, and Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, NIPR, Ogun State Chapter, earned his PhD from LASU. He had earlier earned a First Class degree from Crescent University and a Master's degree from the University of Lagos.

Dr. Adeola Yusuf, the Team Lead and Editor-in-Chief of Platforms Africa, was also conferred with a PhD. Yusuf, who graduated from Crescent University in 2013, is a multiple award-winning journalist and publisher.

Dr. Susan Ngozi, the third of the trio, also earned her PhD from LASU.

For Nurudeen Salako, who had earlier graduated with a First Class from Crescent University before proceeding to LASU for his Master's degree, he earned a Distinction, validating the quality of foundation he received from his alma mater.

The LASU feat is only one chapter in a larger story. The Department of Mass Communication at Crescent University has itself recently crossed a historic milestone, conferring PhDs on its pioneer set of doctoral graduates.

Six candidates made up that inaugural cohort. They are Sunday Olakunle Somorin, a former Chief Press Secretary to the Ogun State Governor; Odenike Timothy Omolaso, a Lecturer at the Federal Polytechnic, Ilaro, who is the very first PhD graduate in Mass Communication in the history of Crescent University; Olufunmilayo Thomas-Kuye, also of the Federal Polytechnic, Ilaro; Morayo Ayoola, a lecturer at the Federal Polytechnic, Ilaro; Modupe Apanishile, a Senior Information Officer at the Public Relations Unit of the Federal Medical Centre; and Oluwatoyin Idehenre, Confidential Secretary to the Honourable Commissioner for Youth and Sports.

The pioneer doctoral candidates were examined by a distinguished panel of external examiners, including Professor Dele Odunlami, Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at Olabisi Onabanjo University, OOU, Ago-Iwoye; Professor O. Oyewo of the Department of Communication and Language Arts, University of Ibadan; and Professor Akanni Tunde Musibau of Lagos State University, LASU.

When asked what this moment means, the HOD, Dr. Adesina, said it means that their labour is not in vain and that the seeds planted in the lives of students are yielding fruit that will nourish generations to come.

According to him, the department does not just teach students about communication; it makes them communicators. From their first year, students are writing, producing, broadcasting, and publishing, with practical work being compulsory.

He also emphasised character and discipline, noting that the department trains both the head and the heart.

The department's slogan, "Our First Class is World Class," reflects a track record that includes alumni like Dr. Rafiat Gawat Raji, a First Class product who earned a scholarship to pursue a Master's degree at Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, Scotland, and graduates working with global brands such as the BBC and Nestlé.

Crescent University, Abeokuta, was founded in 2005 by the late Judge Bola Ajibola, a former Attorney General of Nigeria and Judge at the International Court of Justice.