Samuel Lawal, who graduated with a distinction in Pharmacy and emerged as the best student in the Department of Pharmaceutical Microbiology and Biotechnology at Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ogun State, tells EMMANUEL OJO about his academic journey to excellence and the strategy that stood him out.
Tell us more about yourself.
I am from the Ose Local Government Area of Ondo State in Nigeria. I grew up in a family of seven and had my first degree in Pharmacy at Olabisi Onabanjo University where I graduated as the best student in the Department of Pharmaceutical Microbiology and Biotechnology.
You said you took the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination four times. Can you tell us how that happened?
Yes. I actually took UTME four times and it was with the last one I wrote that I was able to secure admission to study Pharmacy. I tell myself most of the time that my strength lies solely in tenacity because if I didn’t get what I was looking for, I would have gone for it. I took my first UTME and I was able to secure admission to study Electrical Electronics. I got admission to Adeyemi College of Education, Ondo State. I got another one at a polytechnic but those were not my standards then. I told myself that I would not stop trying until I got Pharmacy. So, it was with the fourth UTME that I was able to secure admission to Olabisi Onabanjo University where I got the course of my choice which was Pharmacy. Pharmacy was my primary choice.
Did you also take the West African Senior School Certificate Examination several times?
Well, I took both WASSCE and the General Certificate Examination. Those were the two certificate examinations I took.
What informed your choice of Pharmacy?
First of all, I grew up among healthcare practitioners and medical sales representatives who worked for multinational pharmaceutical companies. At first, I stayed with my brother who is also a pharmacist. He worked for a multinational company that found the COVID-19 vaccine with Oxford University.
But beyond that, I have always had that innate passion within me to proffer solutions to recurrent healthcare problems that keep affecting us in our country. It has always been my dream to play a major role and contribute significantly to the ravaging healthcare problem in Nigeria. I realised that Pharmacy was the bridge I needed to understand the pathogenesis of the diseases and to understand as well the medication that will be prescribed, to be able to manage those issues. So, that was why I chose Pharmacy.
Were there areas you worked on as an undergraduate that made you better or made you stand out?
For me, consistency is key. Consistency was the cheat code for me during my course of study. I also reached out to my seniors, people I knew did so well during their course of study too. What I did was reach out to people, and ask them how they overcame some mild hiccups that came their way. I did not make myself so comfortable with what they taught us in class alone. I went beyond my class to reach out to seniors, read textbooks and journals to understand the latest trends in healthcare practices. I had a futuristic approach when I was at school that immediately after graduation, I would study for a master’s and PhD and become a professor. So, I realised that if I have to actualise these, I need to do well beyond the normal target of an average or a pass. For you to match up with the international standard, you have to get excellent grades in the university at the undergraduate level, so, these were the things that informed my decision to also go beyond my comfort zone.
I discovered that for me to do well, I needed to study extensively. So, every other person basically has what drives their passion. For me to be at par with international students, I need to go beyond my comfort zone. So, I was not really looking at what my colleagues were doing, although I knew that the people in my set were doing well, my interest was different from what my other colleagues were doing because I already had a futuristic approach to it.
Did the kind of education you received at the lowest level help you in any way?
I grew up on a street called Oshinleye in Akure, Ondo State, and it was quite a ghetto. My childhood education was okay because I was able to access quality education within my city, although it was sort of a ghetto. At that time, many children of my age group came down with different infections due to the poor environment and so on. Those were the things that also triggered my passion to want to make an impact. I believe we are measured by the number of lives we are able to touch. One didn’t come to the world just to live. One has to make an impact and contribute substantially. However, I had supportive siblings and my education was good based on Nigerian standards.
What was your greatest source of inspiration all through your years on campus?
My greatest inspiration during my campus years was the foresight of my future. I knew where I was going. I had an idea of the things I would achieve thereafter through God. I realised that I was just in a local setting but that there was an international setting waiting thereafter. So that picture in my mind inspired me to really be consistent with the things I was doing while in school. It wasn’t like I had a smooth path throughout my stay in school. There were times I would need to sleep in the teaching hospital. I deprived myself of sleep to study.
Pharmacy is quite challenging and the coursework is quite voluminous. Did you adopt a style of study to help you achieve your goals?
I believe proper planning prevents poor performance. One has to set priorities right. While in school, it was not only about my academic study. I was the president of the faculty as well. I used to travel from Sagamu, in Ogun State, to Lagos to source funds and returned very late because of the gridlock on the roads. So, I usually got to Sagamu as late as 10pm but I always had plans in place that a day must not go without reading my books and before my exams, I ensured that I had covered about 70 to 80 per cent of my courseworks. Each time I went to Lagos, I had to pay for it by staying awake all night to compensate for the lost time during the day. What I did was strategic planning. Once strategic planning is in place, it will prevent poor performance.
Which of the departmental courses did you find the most challenging?
Well, I’m not sure. I did so well in all my courses. I can’t really say that I had any issue with any course. They were all just there for me. It’s just that when it comes to Microbiology, I’m always at the top of my game. I can go all night reading about Microbiology without getting tired. I did so well too in my other courses. I had A grades.
Did your lecturers also make the journey easy for you?
One thing I realised in life is that for you to go far in academia, you must have supportive lecturers. I couldn’t have got to where I am today without the help of God and my lecturers because you need people that can write references or recommendations for you to get into graduate schools.
During my course of study at the university, I had a good relationship with my lecturers. I could walk into their offices at any time, at least to a good level. Each time I had a challenge in a course or I wasn’t clear about something, I went online to study and if I still didn’t have a clear understanding, I went to my lecturers to get clarity. I talked to some of my lecturers and they put me through and some even helped me with insights on graduate schools. So, my lecturers made the journey easy for me. I wouldn’t have attained this alone without the help of my lecturers.
Was there times you felt like throwing in the towel or walking away because you did not achieve your target for each year?
No. In my first year of study at the Olabisi Onabanjo University, I had a grade point average of 3.76 on a scale of 5.00 which a random person can tell will not guarantee a first-class degree but I told myself that I must get better grades. I told myself that if others did it and succeeded, I could do it. And one of the best ways to compensate for my elongated days at home was to finish with a good degree from the university. In my subsequent years, I made sure that I had a first-class grade point each semester. So, I was able to finish with 4.63 on a scale of 5.00, or distinction as we call it at the Pharmacy school. Though it was tough, there was no point during my course of study that I considered giving up and where I am right now, there are challenges and all but we have to be consistent. If one has to achieve success in life, one has to be consistent. To be consistent by not doing anything is equivalent to failure. So, consistency is key in every sphere of life, be it success or failure.
Apart from being the president of your faculty, what other social activities did you engage in?
I participated in spiritual activities too while on campus. I was the drama coordinator of one of the biggest campus fellowships at Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital – the Redeemed Christian Fellowship, and we had a proper drama concert during my tenure as the coordinator. So, I was able to strike a balance both in the political and spiritual aspects of leadership. I was not just involved in school politics alone, I was able to spread the tentacles to the spiritual aspect of it. Asides from being the president of the faculty, I also served as the chief whip of the students representative council of the school. That was before my administration as the president. I also tapped from the experience of some of my mentors that have gone ahead of me. I learnt how they managed academics and other activities and were able to strike a balance.
How did you feel when you got the news that you emerged as the best graduating student?
To start with, I felt elated and it was one of the best moments of my life. I was not just the best student in my department, I was also the best project student in the department. So, I had two awards on that singular occasion. We had different departments and I was the best student in my department which is one out of many other departments. It was one of the happiest moments of my life. My parents also came out to take pictures with me and I felt like I made them proud.
How did your parents feel?
It’s the joy of every parent to see their children taking them to places. My parents were able to come out and take pictures before everyone. I knew I made them proud on that very occasion and thereafter at my induction, I pulled out my gown and gave it to my mum to wear and my dad as well. It was one of the happiest moments of their lives.
Did you receive any form of grant or scholarship?
Yes. To the special grace of God, I had numerous awards. I know that there are still more to come. Aside from the ones I got at the university, I was able to secure a fully-funded scholarship to study at the University of Manitoba, in the Armstrong Lab, where I am working on inflammatory bowel disease, IBD, in Canada. I got a funded scholarship from the lab. I got an international graduate students scholarship to study at the university of Manitoba as well. Asides from that, I recently got accepted to the first ever organised scientific communication conference in Canada. It’s the first of its kind. Out of over 400 participants in a national competition, the organisers selected only 50 and I was part of those selected. I have been receiving different positive results and I am quite elated that I made the right decision by graduating with a distinction.
Recently, I got accepted as well into a workshop for infectious diseases and all. In the next few days, I’ll be attending a funded conference at the University of Calgary, all-expense paid. I’ve been able to travel to different provinces in Canada within my period of stay which is quite unusual. I also got a scholarship from the Federal Government Scholarship Board which buffered my fees during my undergraduate years. I got the scholarship while at 200 level and had it up till 500 level.
