It was a moment of pride and celebration at Abiola Ajimobi Technical University (AATU), Ibadan, as the institution announced that 69 of its graduating students earned First Class Honours during a combined convocation ceremony for the 2022/2023 and 2023/2024 academic sessions.
Speaking at a pre-convocation press conference held on the university campus along the Lagos-Ibadan expressway on Thursday, the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Adesola Ajayi, revealed that a total of 310 students will be conferred with degrees in Natural and Applied Sciences and Engineering.
The breakdown shows a commendable performance across both faculties. In the 2022/2023 academic session, 15 students from the Faculty of Natural and Applied Sciences bagged First Class, with 32 achieving Second Class Upper Division, 12 earning Second Class Lower, and four graduating with Third Class.
From the Faculty of Engineering in the same session, 17 students earned First Class Honours, 42 made Second Class Upper Division, 16 were awarded Third Class, and two graduated with an ordinary pass.
For the 2023/2024 academic year, the Faculty of Natural and Applied Sciences produced 13 First Class graduates, 30 in Second Class Upper Division, 23 in Second Class Lower, and two with ordinary passes. Meanwhile, the Faculty of Engineering celebrated 24 First Class graduates, 46 in Second Class Upper Division, 20 in Second Class Lower, and nine in Third Class.
Aside from academic degrees, AATU also awarded Diplomas in French Studies and Certificates in Vocational Training, underscoring its commitment to holistic and practical education.
“There is no going back on vocational training. There’s no alternative to it. Indeed, every institution in Nigeria today has keyed in into the issue of vocational,” Ajayi emphasized.
Highlighting the institution’s strides in skill development and global partnerships, the Vice-Chancellor noted that discussions are ongoing between German state agencies and Nigerian institutions on skilled migration, with AATU recognized as a key player.
“I want to say that Technical University has made some strides here. I will give an example. Some states in Germany are in discussion with agencies in Nigeria by way of skilled migration.
“Technical University is one of the institutions that have supported this. We’ve been in several discussions with the German Consulate in Lagos, with the GIZ. And they’re looking up to us to be able to provide skilled workers.”
Corporate interest in AATU graduates is also growing, Ajayi noted. “Coca-Cola has approached us. Dangote Agrochemicals has approached us, among other ones, to say we should give them right of first refusal in offering jobs to our graduates.”
He further disclosed that the university has signed several Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with ICT-related firms and industry stakeholders to enhance student employability.
“So all institutions have recognized the fact that society is not placing so much emphasis on the paper certificate as to what you can do. And Technical University has taken the lead in this area,” he said.
Ajayi explained that vocational training is not only about manual skills but includes the broader concept of employability, such as communication, presentation, and personal branding.
“The only thing that we are trying to do is we want to strike a balance between making an artisan out of our graduates, that we don’t turn them into artisans, but that we are inculcating in them not only vocational activities in terms of what they can do with their hands, but also in terms of how to identify opportunities, how to utilize these opportunities, and how to leave a legacy of impact through this,” he added.
The convocation ceremony, holding on Friday in Ibadan, is set to celebrate not only academic achievement but also AATU’s forward-thinking vision of blending technical education with practical life skills for sustainable development.
