It’s a familiar script in many societies, especially in countries like Nigeria: go to school, earn good grades, graduate, and success will follow. For decades, this narrative has driven how young people define ambition and how parents measure their children’s future. But in today’s world where degrees are abundant, and opportunities are scarce, this script is no longer enough. Education remains essential, but the belief that school alone is the gateway to success is outdated, limiting, and dangerously misleading.
The truth is uncomfortable but necessary: schooling alone does not prepare young people for the full demands of life, work, and relevance in a fast-changing world. In many ways, formal education provides the foundation, basic literacy, numeracy, discipline, structure, but that foundation must be built upon with other competencies, experiences, and values that school curricula simply do not cover.
Graduating from school, even with excellent results, is no longer a guarantee of employability or personal fulfilment. Thousands of young Nigerians hold degrees, even advanced ones, yet remain unemployed or underemployed. The system prepares them to pass exams, not to adapt, innovate, or thrive in complex real-world environments. It teaches them what to think, but rarely how to think independently or critically. It teaches them theory, but often disconnects them from context, problem-solving, and practical relevance.
Success today requires more than grades or certificates. It demands initiative. It demands the ability to learn beyond the classroom, to seek knowledge independently, to adapt to new technologies, and to navigate challenges that cannot be solved with textbook answers. It requires communication skills, emotional intelligence, creativity, discipline, resilience, and a mindset that sees failure as feedback, not finality. These qualities are often not taught in school but they are essential in life.
Part of the problem lies in how the education system is structured. Many schools are still locked into 20th-century models of education, preparing students for a world that no longer exists. Classrooms remain rigid and exam-focused. Teachers are often under-resourced, overburdened, and forced to “cover the syllabus” rather than nurture curiosity or critical thinking. In such an environment, students learn to memorise rather than internalise, to pass rather than to understand. And when the certificate is finally handed out, they are released into a world that demands far more than what they’ve been equipped to offer.
But school was never meant to do everything. It is a starting point, not a full solution. That’s why students must learn to take responsibility for their own growth early. They must read widely, not just class notes but books that challenge their thinking. They must develop skills; technical, vocational, digital that increase their value in real-world environments. They must learn to manage time, collaborate, lead, and innovate. They must seek mentorship, gain work experience, and learn how to learn.
Success, especially in today’s knowledge-driven economy, also demands a keen sense of self-awareness. What are your strengths? What problems do you care about solving? What skills do you need to master to remain useful and valuable in your chosen field? These are the kinds of questions that determine long-term growth but they are rarely asked or answered within the traditional school system.
In a country like Nigeria, where infrastructure challenges and economic volatility often put additional strain on young people, waiting for school alone to prepare you is not only risky, it’s unwise. Those who thrive are often those who take initiative outside the classroom: volunteering, building projects, joining communities of practice, attending workshops, leveraging free online courses, or starting small ventures. These experiences expose them to the practical demands of the world, teaching them agility, resourcefulness, and the ability to connect knowledge to reality.
Parents, too, must adjust their expectations. The pride of raising a “first-class graduate” must be balanced with a broader vision: what kind of person is this child becoming? Do they have initiative, resilience, emotional maturity? Can they solve problems and collaborate with others? Do they possess a sense of purpose and integrity? School alone cannot instill all of these. It must be supplemented with mentoring, exposure, responsibilities at home and in the community, and deliberate cultivation of non-academic capacities.
This is not to diminish the role of school. Education is still a powerful tool. But schooling is not the same as learning, and a certificate is not the same as competence. The real world does not hire people for their degrees, it hires people who can deliver value, who can think under pressure, who can communicate clearly, and who are able to keep learning as industries evolve. That’s the future we must prepare for.
The reality is that the most successful people today are not necessarily the most academically gifted, they are the most adaptable. They know how to learn fast, how to unlearn when necessary, and how to pivot when things don’t go as planned. They are not afraid to start from scratch, to work across disciplines, or to challenge outdated norms. These are traits developed in the real world, through exposure, intentional practice, and often, through failure.
If you’re a student, you need to understand that school is important, but it is not enough. Your success will be determined not just by what you know, but by what you do with what you know. If you’re a parent, support your child’s academic journey, but also encourage them to build skills, pursue interests, and develop character. If you’re a teacher, go beyond the curriculum, help students make connections between the classroom and the world. Because in the end, it’s not just the degree that opens doors, it’s the depth of who you are, what you can do, and how well you can keep growing after the classroom lights go out. That’s what truly makes the difference.
