Emmanuella Ejime, doctorate student on Marketing and Insurance at Bournemouth University, United Kingdom, and convener of Get Ahead, a refreshing and valuable seminar that addresses real challenges hindering employment and career progression of most graduates, speaks on empowering graduates to acquire requisite skills to succeed in their various endeavours. Excerpts

Realnews: What do students stand to gain from the Get Ahead programme?

Ejime: My programme, the Get Ahead Seminar, is to empower students and help them acquire skills that are relevant to what employers are looking for. Today, we will give them tips on writing good curriculum vitae, CV, cover letter, about interviews and good entrepreneurship. The youths must realise that they must not work under someone. You can be your own boss, which today is better than working under someone. I’m here to equip the students with the right skills and give them the tips on how to do all of that. And equally encourage most people who want to further their studies to do so because of  so many opportunities open for you once you further your studies. You can become a research assistant, teacher or lecturer, a consultant for a particular firm and do so many other things.

Realnews: Why Get Ahead?

Ejime: During my MBA in Coventry University, United Kingdom, I realised that it is kind of challenging to transit from law to business. At first, I was having difficulties but after that I picked up and made a distinction in Global Business Administration. While doing my MBA I was given an opportunity to develop myself and other students and I worked as president for the mentoring class, where I had to mentor different students, undergraduates, graduates alike. While mentoring them I realised that I have passion for it. I have passion to transfer my knowledge to others free of charge without any conditions attached and I started that. We started Get Ahead in Coventry University when I was called upon to become a research assistant. And while we were researching it I realised that most Nigerian universities lack the idea of employability in career advice for their students. Hence, once a student graduates he does not have anything to offer apart from the qualification.

Realnews: Is this the maiden edition of the programme in Nigeria?

Ejime: Yes it is.

Realnews: The once you had abroad was there any follow up to access the impact?

Ejime: The programme is like a Coventry University Get Ahead programme but my programme here is a very different one just for Nigerians. So that one is for UK and international students but mine is to target Nigerians because I feel that is where the vacuum is.

Realnews: Do you have sponsors for this programme?

Ejime: I had a very short time to prepare this programme because I was waiting for some of my appoints. So I didn’t really speak to so many sponsors. Because I had only five days to organise all these, the only sponsor I got was Mass Communication Department of the University of Lagos, and the Centre of Excellence. Teju Baby Face said he will be one of my sponsors but I’m still waiting for him.

Realnews: How long is this programme going to run in Nigeria?

Ejime: I hope it will be quarterly because this is just the Lagos division. We still have Abuja and other states to go to.

Realnews: How are you going to ascertain the outcome of this programme?

Ejime: Of course, once we are done we will send feedback form to everyone to tell us whether they got something insightful or not. So through that I can measure if this is something the students really want or not. This particular training is what students pay millions of Naira to get from universities in UK, US and Canada. So if we are giving it to you here free of charge, we should actually try to tap in to it.

– Aug 24, 2017 @ 15:50 GMT