This article is the second edition of IndyPress’ story highlighting the experiences of final year students at the University of Ibadan. You can read the first edition of the series here.

 

By: Abdullah Oladejo

Being a final-year student at the University of Ibadan comes with its own challenge. As undergraduates in their final year, students are expected to attend lectures, administer their projects, prepare for examinations and even see to their non-academic endeavors simultaneously.

The academic struggle continues into the  current second semester, with mounting pressure on this community of students. Final lap has always been a period when students treat their academic endeavors as paramount as any unseriousness can impede graduation.

Despite the cumbersome responsibilities, some have learned to strike a balance between their academic responsibilities and personal lives.

Speaking to IndyPress, some of these final-year students at the University of Ibadan shared their mixed experiences.

Issues 

For Akinleye Aishat, a 600-level student of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, the experience has been both demanding and rewarding. Aishat disclosed that her project progress has been so slow due to her supervisor’s unavailability.

She said,“Despite the stress of 8–5 hour classes and clinics, I have been doing great. Waking up every day and counting down to December when the session ends has been my only major motivation.”

“My supervisor hasn’t checked my work yet, and as result, I have not been progressing. He is always busy and unavailable,” she added.

She also described the challenges of finding respondents for her questionnaire and conducting laboratory practicals as mentally exhausting.

Besides academics, Aishat runs a makeup business, Looks by Toke, and holds leadership positions within the University of Ibadan Veterinary Students’ Association.

“There is no easy final year project, both lab work and questionnaires would always be tasking. I thought using a questionnaire would be easier, but I was wrong. Getting people to fill it out has been equally difficult, especially since my population size is large. Also, I have been able to balance my extracurricular activities well. It’s been stressful, but have been trying to cope,” she explained.

Similarly, Adeoti Mubarak, a final-year student from the Department of Political Science and the department’s President, described the challenges of final year as expected but surmountable.

“We all expect these rigorous challenges. It’s been going wonderfully, though. Discipline and time management are key, especially when conducting research and writing a project. All hands must be on deck,” Adeoti told IndyPress.

Balancing student leadership with academics, he said, has not been an easy task for him. Adeoti further described his relationship with his project supervisor as healthy.

“It requires persistence and total commitment. Leading a students’ association while maintaining good grades isn’t easy, but I rely on strict time management and self-discipline,” he noted.

However, he admitted that the research process itself has been mentally exhausting, emphasizing that smooth collaboration between students and university management is essential for project writing.

“Spending numerous hours online searching for materials, and ensuring every sentence in your project is backed by solid content is  the real challenge. If student and management alike do the right thing at the right time, the system will work. It is about a collective effort,” he advised.

Speaking to IndyPress, Ahmad Olanrewaju, a 400-level student of Mathematics and the Speaker of the department’ Legislative Council, admitted that the final- year experience, for him, has turned out to be more demanding than he had imagined.

“Before getting here, we did  hear how stressful final year could be. I thought I was prepared, but when I got here, I realized it was even more demanding than expected,” he said.

According to Ahmad, final-students in his department, Department of Mathematics, experienced a delay in the assigning of project supervisors.

“We started a bit late compared to some other departments. our supervisors were assigned towards the end of the first semester,” he explained.

Nonetheless, Ahmad described his supervisor as supportive and patient. Although he found project writing “tiring, stressful, yet interesting, admitting that the experience has enriched his minds.

“He has been like a father to us always, guiding and teaching us with dedication. Learning about research methodology was challenging at first, but exciting. Balancing classes, project work, and extracurriculars has been tough, not to mention the financial strain,” he noted.

He further urged the university to prioritize the culture of assigning project supervisors to students earlier and organize seminars on research methodology and time management for them to ease the burden attached to project writing.

Adekunle-Oni Daniel, another finalist from the Department of Social and Environmental Forestry, described his final-year experience as “stressful and scary,” though his project was progressing well.

“Data collection has been the most stressful part. I had to travel to Eruwa to gather my data. My work is practical, so I had to go into the forest to collect samples,” Adekunle explained

Daniel also faced financial challenges in the process. Despite being a member of the press, Daniel has been able to strike balance a between his Journalistic  responsibilities and academic endeavors.

“Multitasking has always been my strength. Sometimes it feels impossible, but I eventually finish every task,” he added.

Peleyeju Abayomi, best known as Chief Tenant, from the Department of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, described the final -year period as a summary of all previous years’ efforts.

“If you can survive 100 level, you can survive any other level. In my department, 300 level is actually the toughest, final year is just a wrap-up,” he explained.

Like Daniel, Abayomi faced major challenges during data collection for his epidemiological study.

“I’m working across six local government areas in Ibadan. Sometimes I spend money on transport only to get there and not be attended to. That’s been really frustrating,” he added.

Reflecting on his project experience, Peleyeju admitted that it has taught him the value of rigorous research.

“Our supervisor always tells us that a good project must be rigorous. It’s challenging, but it’s worth it,” he noted.

He also emphasized the importance of ethical use of Artificial Intelligence in academic work.

“With the advent of AI, students must learn how and how not to use it. AI can be helpful, but only when used responsibly,” he advised.

The Silence of ‘Team Auspicious’

Relentless efforts by IndyPress to obtain comments from the Students’ Union Vice-President, Owadayo Olabisi, regarding the unaddressed and persistent challenges faced by the final-year students were unsuccessful as of the time of filling this report.

Despite being constitutionally saddled with the responsibility of addressing the students’  academic welfare, Owadayo Olabisi, just like her predecessors, has failed to address the concerns of this community of students, raising concerns about misrepresentation.

It is pertinent that the challenges affecting the final-year students are addressed with all sense of urgency they deserve. The University of Ibadan Dean of Students, Professor Ademola Lewis, the UI’SU Vice-President, Owadayo Olabisi, and other necessary stakeholders must act fast to attend these unaddressed issues.

The issues, as decried by the final-year students, include delay in assigning of project supervisors, lack of orientation on project writing, lecturers’ unavailability, among others. It is fair that all hands are on desk to fix them.