LASU Graduates Prepare for Life After School With Skills, Business and Further Education

LASU graduates are looking beyond university degrees, planning professional certifications, entrepreneurship, higher degrees and new skills to build sustainable careers after graduation.

For many graduates of Lagos State University, obtaining a university degree is no longer being seen as the final step into the labour market.

As the university held its convocation at the Ojo campus, several graduating students says that their plans after school included acquiring professional certifications, starting businesses, pursuing higher degrees and developing skills outside their areas of study.

The responses point to a growing emphasis among young graduates on combining formal education with additional skills and entrepreneurial opportunities as they prepare for life after university.

Abisola Ajala, who graduated with a master’s degree in Information Technology, said she was already working as a real estate consultant but planned to build a career in cybersecurity.

“I’m currently into real estate. I’m a real estate consultant. But apart from this, I’ll be moving into cybersecurity,” she said.

Ajala said her experience at LASU had also made her realise the importance of building professional relationships with lecturers and learning from their career experiences.

Dare Olagunju, an Educational Technology graduate, is preparing for a different route. He plans to pursue a PhD and eventually move into university teaching.

Although he currently works as an entrepreneur repairing computers, mobile phones and other electronic devices, Olagunju said higher qualifications remained necessary for his academic ambitions.

“I have passion for lecturing right from time. But if you don’t have the required qualification, you won’t get to that height unless you have it,” he said.

For other graduates, entrepreneurship is becoming part of their post-university plans.

Aisha Adedolapo Oyetade, a Biochemistry graduate, plans to pursue a master’s degree in Forensics while working towards establishing a business.

LASU Fisheries graduates Sophia Ododo and Praise Oladepo also spoke about entrepreneurship as an alternative to depending entirely on salaried employment.

Ododo provides catering services, while Oladepo sells jerseys. Both said their university training had exposed them to practical aspects of Fisheries, including aquaculture, economics, statistics and fish health.

Oladepo said the course could provide graduates with opportunities to create businesses and jobs rather than wait for formal employment.

Emmanuel Azubuike, a Botany graduate, said he had acquired skills in EdTech and intended to continue developing himself after graduation.

He said his university experience had strengthened his interest in plants and prepared him for the next stage of his career.

For some graduates, however, the transition will involve changing direction entirely.

Ododo said she would choose Nursing rather than Fisheries if given another opportunity to begin her university education, while another graduate, Akinwole Taiwo Roseline, said she was considering further studies and a business venture after completing Health Education.

Despite their different plans, the graduates shared a common message: the university degree provides a foundation, but graduates must continue building skills and finding ways to translate their education into sustainable livelihoods.

The convocation therefore marked not only the completion of their university programmes but the beginning of another challenge — turning years of academic training into careers, businesses and further opportunities in a competitive economy.