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Tag: University of Lagos

  • Post-UTME screening: UNILAG invites candidates with 200 upwards

    Post-UTME screening: UNILAG invites candidates with 200 upwards

    The University of Lagos (UNILAG) on Tuesday said its Post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) aptitude test for prospective students for the 2017/2018 academic session would hold from September 18 to September 22.

    The institution’s Deputy Registrar, Information, Mr Toyin Adebule, said in a statement that online registration for the Post-UTME screening exercise for placement into courses/programmes for the new academic session would take place from August 31 to September 15.

    Giving a rundown of the modalities for admission into the institution, he said that only candidates who made University of Lagos their first choice in the 2017/2018 UTME and scored 200 and above are eligible for the screening.

    In addition, he said that candidates must possess a minimum of five credit passes at one sitting in relevant O/level subjects, including English Language and Mathematics.

    “Candidates who will not be 16 years of age by October 31 are not eligible and need not apply.

    “Candidates who do not participate in this Post-UTME screening will also not be considered for admission.

    “The screening fee has been pegged at N2,000 and candidates should follow the registration procedure keenly.

    “Eligible candidates should log on to University of Lagos website www.unilag.edu.ng and then take the following steps.

    “They should click on admission, then click on Post-UTME application, and login with their UTME number as their username and surname in lowercase as password,’’ the statement read.

    Adebule said this would generate a print payment advice which they would use to proceed to any commercial bank to make payment or pay online.

    He said that the prospective candidates are to return to the university portal to upload their passport photographs and complete the application forms.

    According to him, they will in turn print the Post-UTME examination Pass for the aptitude test which will hold from September 18 to September 22.

    He urged candidates to adhere strictly to the guidelines and not to hesitate to obtain clarifications where necessary.

  • Nigerians tasked on sectoral challenges in education

    Nigerians tasked on sectoral challenges in education

    A Federal lawmaker, Sen. Ben Bruce, on Tuesday said there was need to address all fundamental challenges facing the nation’s education sector, in order to attain the much-desired development.

    Bruce said this in his keynote address at the 4th Lagos State National Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) Stakeholders’ Conference on Education.

    The theme of his address was: “Media, Communication and the Challenge of Quality Education for National Development.’’

    According to him, there are a lot of misconceptions concerning the country’s education system.

    He noted that efforts should be made to seek and discover those critical issues that had persistently bedevilled the sector over the years, in order to move forward.

    “Every year, we have not less than 1.5 million Nigerian children seeking access to tertiary education, especially the universities.

    “But the truth is that we do not have the capacity to absorb all these graduates from our secondary schools.

    “Again, we must realise the fact that we do not have enough resources to even build and equip more universities, just as we do not have enough budget for education in this country.

    “We must start looking at ways to increase budgetary allocation to the sector as well as put modalities in place to adequately cater for the welfare of our teachers, otherwise we lose it all.

    “Again, there is also the need to change the ways we educate our children and also ensure that our girls are kept in school, rather than give them out early in marriage,” he said.
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    According to him, all hands must be on deck to confront issues facing the education sector as it remains the bane or bedrock of our development.

    He said there was also the need for people to be more discerning with the media as we cannot depend on others to tell our stories.

    “We must strive to develop our media capacity so that we can project positive things about our country to the outside world rather than allow them to do it for us the way they think,” he said.

    Earlier in his address, the National President, NIPR, Dr Rotimi Oladele, called on all public relations practitioners to use their professional skills to wage war against hate speech.

    According to him, now, more than ever before, there is the need for all public relations practitioners to ensure the total relegation to the background the monster which has recently emerged as a plague against civility, peace, cohabitation and unity of the country.

    “To this end therefore, I want to call on governments at all levels and the organised private sector to engage only certified public relations practitioners for effective communication, relationships and reputation management, in order to eschew violence which may arise if the menace of the hate speech syndrome is not curbed drastically,” Oladele warned.

    The chairman of the institution’s state chapter, Mr Olusegun Mcmedal, said that the conference was a viable bridge-building platform for interested parties to interact and proffer solutions to socio political and economic challenges plaguing the country.

    He noted that the thematic focus of this year’s edition with the theme: Media, Communication and the Challenge of Quality Education for National Development, was premised on the belief that the future of a state or nation was a function of the quality of education obtainable.

    “There is an obvious depreciation in the quality of education in the country today when compared to the years past.

    “The crisis in our education sector has nothing to do with money or morals but largely poor leadership.

    “We must never feel satisfied until all Nigerians have access to quality education to prosper and excel among the comity of nations,’’ he said.

    One of the discussants at the conference, Prof. Abigail Ogwezzy-Ndisika, however, emphasised the need for an improved reading culture, especially among students.

    Ogwezzy-Ndisika, also Head, Departnent of Mass Communication, University of Lagos, noted that no one can develop without reading, as it builds self confidence in discussing issues.

    She added that reading equipped one with skills needed to obtain a satisfactory personal life.

    According to her, reading culture will also have a critical role to play in national development, just as it provides access to culture and cultural heritage,’’ she added.

  • Don tackles household pollutants with research grant

    An academic, Dr Jamiu Adeniran, is working on a product that will absorb pollutants in house hold products.

    Adeniran of the Chemical Engineering Department, University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) is able to carry out this research thanks to a research grant he won from the Professor Ayo Ogunye Trust Foundation, University of Lagos (PAFOTFUL).

    The N1.5 million grant was presented by the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof Rahamon Bello, at a ceremony that attracted other principal officers and senior professors to the Senate Chambers.

    Adeniran, who studied for his Masters at UNILAG, thanked Ogunye, the pioneer head of Chemical Engineering, UNILAG, for endowing the prize and promised to make him proud.

    He promised three outcomes from his research on “hybridized titanium dioxide photocatalytic and absorption unit”.

    “The day I got the information (I was selected), in fact I started the process of filing a patent for this. I see this as an encouragement for me. I am thinking of having a product, a patent, and a paper from this study and I am promising you that at the end of the day by God’s grace I will make you proud sir,” he said.

    Adeniran said his research into indoor pollutants in household goods led to the discovery that many household goods, including insecticides, perfumes, air freshners, and emissions from stoves and air conditioners released harmful cases, like carbon monoxide in the air that could kill if the rooms are not well ventilated.

    The academic said many of such harmful substances remained in the air for long times after they must be used.

    “There are some pollutants in air fresheners, perfumes used in human environments. Right now we realised that some of those pollutants will stay even more than 12 days; some will retained even for years if you don’t have very good ventilation. I also realised to my surprise, there was a time I had concentration of carbon monoxide from hair spray going to about 93ppm.  In an unventilated environment this is killing. In fact if carbon monoxide is colourless and odourless; if one stays in the environment for one or two days he can die,” he said.

    Adeniran said he was working on a simple product that would absorb such harmful pollutants indoors and purify the air.  He said the product, which would be made from agricultural waste would be affordable.

    “A very cheap and affordable absorption material would be produced from waste agricultural products and those wastes would be used as absorbent.  They will be cheap and affordable that everyone can get for N100-N150.  It will be a hybrid of so many components I don’t want to mention,” he said.

    Chairman of the research grant committee, Prof. Oluwole Familoni, said the process that led to Adeniran’s selection was rigorous.

    “Within a window period of about three months, we received many proposals and after subjecting them to internal review, awarding scores on a scale of one to three, we employed external assessors who subjected the best five to the same process. Our selection matched with that of the external assessor,” he said.

    Ogunye, who contributed his gratuity of N333,370 towards endowing a professorial chair in the department of chemical engineering in 1990, said he did so to improve research in engineering.

  • Tears, tributes for hotel fire victim

    Tears, tributes for hotel fire victim

    Atmosphere of sorrow enveloped the Department of Mass Communication of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) on Monday, as students, lecturers and non-academic staff held candlelight procession for a 200-Level student, Roli Odogwu, who died in a hotel fire, last week.

    The late Roli and her friend, Linda Elegeonye, a 300-Level Law student, died from severe burns they sustained during a midnight fire at a Lagos-based hotel. The victims were guests in the hostel; they were trapped in their room during the inferno.

    The late Roli’s colleagues turned out in their numbers for the candlelight organised by Mass Communication Students’ Association (MCSA).

    The procession started at 6:30pm from the department with a crowd of students, wearing black clothes and holding candles. Chanting elegies, they moved from the department through Honours hostel, Faculty of Social Sciences, Fagunwa Hall and returned to the department to gather the candles and say prayers for the deceased.

    The MCSA Welfare Secretary, Beatrice Nwoko, led the prayer, during which the late Roli’s close friends broke down in tears.

    The students sent their condolences to her family. In their tributes, her friends recalled their moments with the deceased. One of them recalled their participation in Dare2Dream, a campus talent hunt show, where the late Roli entertained the audience with her “exceptional dance steps”.

    “This sad incident really calls for sober reflection,” she said.

  • UNILAG students get soft skills training

    Graduating students of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) have received employability skills (soft skills) traning, courtesy of General Electric.

    The seminar, which held at the UNILAG, centered on preparing the students for employment.  It was anchored by Soji George & Co. (JSG Business and management consultants) in conjunction with the Foundation for Leadership and Education Development (FLED).

    MrSoji George & Co. founder, Soji George, said the training was aimed at exceptional brilliant graduating students.

    He said soft skills deficiency in graduates was a major reason for unemployment in the country as top recruiting firms look for these attributes in aplicants.

    He said the training was focused on students’  presentation and communication, personal branding, how to work with others, among others.

    George said: “I was in England for about 26 years, and I lectured in top universities in England. When I came to Nigeria, I saw many good first class graduates but they couldn’t get a job. I recruit for top companies, but I’ve not been able to get graduates from Nigeria because simply there is no soft skill. That’s why I felt that is the problem and we are very grateful to General Electric (G.E).

    ‘’We are going to Port Harcourt next year for this soft skill training . So, we say that in Nigeria, we need soft skill and that’s why we are passionate about it. The value we are bringing on board has to do with presentation and communication, personal branding, what to wear, how to work, how to sit down and interpretation of your body language and of course, most especially comporting yourself. All these you will need to be a complete person. It doesn’t matter if you have the best degree, the best part is are you able to work with people? Are you able to look for an area where you are better than the other? All of these we need to bring together.

    ‘’The truth is that most employers ask for first class or second class upper. So, we want to position these ones that have hard skills and are deficient in soft skills to be all rounded. Those who have lower degrees have to struggle because the resources are limited.”

    Rosemary Danesi, a lecturer in the Department of Employment Relations and Human Resource Management in UNILAG, urged universities to include soft skills in their academic curriculum, adding that students require it for job opportunities.

    “Right now, our students do not need this. Unfortunately, our curriculum in UNILAG does not have soft skill as a part of the curriculum. In the future, university authorities should think about this,” she said.

     

  • Research: UNILAG to display cashew nut crushing machines, others at conference

    Research: UNILAG to display cashew nut crushing machines, others at conference

    The University of Lagos says it is set to display cashew nut crushing machines, among other research outputs, at its 12th Research Conference and fair scheduled to begin on Tuesday, Aug.15.

    The institution’s Director, Research and Innovation, Prof. Wellington Oyibo said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Lagos.

    NAN reports that a statement by the institution’s Deputy Registrar Information, Mr Toyin Adebule, had stated that the theme of the 3-day conference is: Governance and National Development; Issues and Implications.

    According to Oyibo, the theme for this year’s conference is apt as the university remains committed in its quest to discharge its mandate of teaching, research as well as community development.

    “During the conference and fair, we shall be displaying our research outputs such as cashew nut crushing machines as well as other nuts crushing machines.

    “These are part of the things we are going to showcase among many other of our research products and outputs, and how they can contribute to national development.

    “Looking at the theme also, we expect that there will be engagements and discussions on how the country can move forward, economically and technologically.

    “There will be solutions proffered in different sectors of the country’s economy, where there are challenges,” Oyibo said.

    He said that already, there were a number of technical solutions proffered by his colleagues, designed to drive national development and growth.

    According to him, the university is expecting the full participation and collaboration of captains of industries during the conference in a bid to promote research and development.

    He said this would also give visibility to made in Nigeria products as well as promote their competitiveness.

  • Two die in hotel fire

    TWO students of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) have died in a midnight fire at a Lagos hotel.

    Roli Odogwu, a 200-Level Mass Communication student, and Linda Elegeonye, a 300-Level Law student, died of burns, days after they were trapped in the hotel room where they were guests.

    Until their death, the two students were residents of Fagunwa Hall.

    CAMPUSLIFE gathered that the duo left the campus on Monday to attend an evening event off-campus. When it dawned on them that they could not return to the campus late in the night, they reportedly lodged in the hotel to pass the night.

    The late Roli’s friend, who did not want to be named, said she spoke to her mother to inform her of her decision to pass the night in the hotel.

    It was gathered that the victims were asleep when the inferno started from a faulty air conditioner. CAMPUSLIFE learnt that the victims were trapped for several minutes before they were rescued from the room. They sustained first-degree burns. They were rushed to Gbagada General Hospital.

    Last Saturday, Roli died at 4am and was buried at Atan Cemetery in Yaba. On Sunday, news broke that Linda, who had been in coma for six days, had also died.

    A friend, who pleaded for anonymity, said she was informed about the incident by a policeman who picked up the late Roli’s call on Tuesday.

    She said: “The policeman told me that the owner of the phone (Roli) and her friend were involved in a fire accident and they were unconscious. I was told they had been moved to Trauma and Burns Unit of the Gbagada General Hospital. I informed other friends and we went to the hospital. When we got there, we were not allowed to see them immediately. Three hours after, we were allowed in with their parents and other family members.

    “Roli was conscious and responding to treatment, but Linda was still in a coma. The burns were severe and we hoped both could make it. We are deeply hurt by their death.”

  • UNILAG wins Maritime Competition

    The University of Lagos (UNILAG) has won this year’s edition of the Maritime Blueprint Competition organised as part of the Taiwo Afolabi Annual Maritime (TAAM) Conference last week.

    At the competition held at the Faculty of Law, UNILAG, the duo of Oguntade Damilola and Greg Ikageri saw off stiff competition from teams from the University of Benin (UNIBEN), University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), University of Ibadan (UI), Bowen University, Babcock University, and the Lagos State University (LASU).

    The schools were paired in the first round and given seven minutes to debate various topics, including: “The Lithuanian Rules is more suitable for the carriage of goods by sea than the Hamburg Rules;” “The most effective means of settling maritime disputes is through arbitration;” “Reduction of Port charges is more favorable to Nigerian Maritime sector;” and “Insurance is the most effective means of settlement of maritime claims”.

    In the second round, the finalists, UNILAG, UNN, OAU, and UNIBEN, debated the topic: Port reformation as a viable tool for the diversification of Nigeria’s economy.

    The host university beat OAU’s team made up of Adebowale Faith and Ayoshola Oluwaseun to second place; while UNN’s Michelle Eigbobo and Kelechi Ogbu came third.

    Top among the recommendations by the debaters were  that the reformation of ports will increase revenue for the country, and that the urgent need for diversification from oil to raise the country’s economy to global pedestal.

    They also urged the government to pay more attention to industrialisation and more engagements especially in the agricultural sector. They suggested reforms in three areas: legal, operation, and institutional reforms.

    The judges, Mr Aso Kalu, a lawyer in Corporate and Commercial Law, Taxation, Oil and Gas, Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) and Entertainment Law, and Mr. Kelechukwu Okwujiakwo, a senior Counsel in the Shipping and Litigation Practice Group of the ACAS Law firm, praised the students for their performance.

    “You guys did excellently well and I applaud your efforts ,” said Etea.

    Okwujiakwo also told the students to display the spirit of sportsmanship and be graceful in defeat.

    “This is not a competition, this is a friendly chat,” he said.

    The students were encouraged to think about going into the Maritime sector.

  • Chinese consulate donates borehole to UNILAG

    In furtherance of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in Nigeria, the Chinese Consulate in Lagos has donated an industrial borehole to the University of Lagos (UNILAG).

    The project, which was executed under the framework of ‘China-Africa People-to-People Friendship Action’, was handed over to the university by the Consul General of China (CGC) in Lagos, His Excellency, Mr. Chao Xiaoliang.

    Xiaoliang said the project, which is located within the Faculty of Education, was meant to enhance water supply on campus and make the university environment more conducive for teaching and learning

    He explained that the ‘China-Africa People-to-People Friendship Action’ is aimed at fostering better relations between Chinese companies and their host countries.

    He said the Consulate, which opened 34 years ago, has been paying attention to public sector needs as its CSR in Nigeria.

    He said: “CGC began operation in Nigeria 34 years ago, that is 1983. Ever since then, we rapidly grew into business including consultancy, investment, infrastructure, logistics and trading with its footprints across the world.

    “We pay a lot of attention to public activities as our CSR in Nigeria such as yearly donation of material and food, combating flood and disaster, supporting development of communities in several states in Nigeria.

    “We decided to donate this borehole as soon as we realised that lack of potable water in the campus of   UNILAG. Now, we fulfill this CSR by completing this project with good quality. We hope it will be an effective way to abate the shortage of potable water here.”

    He also pledged that the Consulate would continue to identify with the development of the university. “We hope to learn from your successful experience and strengthen cooperation with you, and also take part in the development of this university together with you, because we believe that friendship and cooperation will empower development,” he added.

    The highpoint of the event was the presentation of the ‘China-Africa People-to-People Friendship Action’ plaque to the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Rahamon A. Bello.

    In his response, Bello appreciated the Consulate for selecting the institution to benefit from its CSR programme, assuring that the university would make good use of the facility.

    He, however, stressed that the infrastructural needs of the university were largely unsatisfied and appealed to other consulates and corporate organisations in the country to emulate the Chinese Consulate General in Lagos and come to the aid of the institution, adding that government cannot do it alone.

  • Don to parents: prioritise education

    A professor of Adult Education at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Cecillia Oladapo, has counseled parents to make their wards’ education a priority.

    The Head of Department of Adult Education said that parents who invest their resources in the education of their children would yield immeasurable rewards in the future.

    The don spoke at the graduation of Matmonique Nursery and Primary School in Egbe-Idimu, Lagos.

    She said some parents would not pay the school fees of their children, but would readily spend huge resources on needless material properties.

    Prof Oladapo said education should be a priority of any family, but noted that parents should not expect immediate benefit from such investment.

    She said: “There is no amount too much to spend on children education. Parents must know that there is no guarantee for immediate profit from this investment. The benefits are for the future. Some parents prefer to spend money on Aso Ebi (clothes) and big cars, rather than paying the fees to keep their children in school. A huge loss awaits any parent who prioritises material wellbeing over children education.”

    She urged parents not to waiver in inculcating good values in their children, saying the efforts would help their wards achieve their future goals.

    The academic also admonished parents to reward their children when they excel in their academics.

    “When children put up good performance in school, parents have duty to reward them. Doing this would prepare the minds of children psychologically to do better in their studies. Parents must create time to listen to their children and attend to their needs. Whatever they become in future would show the foundation they had as children,” she said.

    Advising parents not to force careers on their children, The Nation’s CAMPUSLIFE coordinator, Wale Ajetunmobi, said children should have free will to choose any discipline and vocation they desire.

    The school proprietress, Mrs Monisola Ilori, said the school was established to raise the bar of quality in basic school. Being a certified Early Childhood Education expert, Mrs Ilori said she was disturbed by decline in standards of basic education, adding that the foundation was key in raising brilliant children.

    She said: “In education, we say a child is the father of the man. Whatever values you want to inculcate in children would be perfectly done between the age of zero and six. After this period, it is difficult to change that attitude. When children have good foundation in education, they grow to cherish the value of knowledge and dream of good future.”

    The highpoint was an interactive session, during which some parents gave testimonies of how the school turned their children around. Pupils who showed brilliant performance in academic and extramural activities were rewarded with prizes to encourage them in doing better.