Graduate School

Graduate School(s)
In the Spring of 2002 when I began my undergraduate studies here at the University of Memphis, I believe my very first class was Calculus I. 10 minutes into the class, I thought to myself, "Am I really in a united states university?". I asked this question to myself because
1. Growing up in Lagos, I had way better teachers who were paid at a lower wages but had passion for their students to learn and understand.
2. My teacher at U of M was so terrible, she made me think I did not understand the subject matter that I was already very familiar with.

So what happened? I got upset & disappointed. I asked my very close friend if this was how American universities were. I did not stop there though, I went to my college advisor's office and complained to her. For a supposedly shy student to mention to his adviser that he thinks his teacher is incompetent, you know that I was serious. Looking back, I had 6-7 years of foresight. What do I mean?

Throughout my 4.5 years of undergraduate time, I put that teacher-incompetency behind me & pushed through with my grades with little or no help or inspiration/ motivation from most, but not all, my teachers. I graduate with two (2) Bachelors of Science degrees in 4 1/2 years with a 3.34/4.0 GPA. My degrees were in Computer Engineering & Electrical Engineering.

However, when I applied to other more prestigious universities for graduate studies, but did not get admission, I had to settle for my alma mater, I totally lost any inspiration which was reflected in my grades.

At this point in time (Nov '08), I am temporarily taking classes at U of M. I gained admission to Gainesville, Fl...University of Florida for a Masters in Management (MSM). In about a week, I will get news of my Teachers Assistantship offer.

The MSM program is ranked #11 best in all U.S. colleges, I have told myself: either I go to UF, or I do not go to any other university that I have to settle for. Also, I should not have to pay tuition to attend college, that system just does not even make sense to my mind, at all. After all, U.S. public universities are not-for-profit/ non-profit organizations.

Speaking of,...,I read in the U of M Daily Helmsman newspaper today that the median salary for public university presidents is $427,400...

...almost a year later...

I have completed my Spring semester at University of Florida on a graduate assistantship teaching students for a CLAST exam. This summer, it turns out the state of Florida decided to cancel the exam and pull funds out of the department where I teach. Great, this leaves me without an assistantship. The Fall starts in exactly a month so I've been searching all over the place for a GA or TA. By God's grace, I'll find one.

...about a month later...

And by God's grace, I found a great assistantship on campus that pays my tuition, and the stipend is more than double what I was getting before. When one door closes, another one opens...in my case and better door opened.

Praise God.

...now October 2011, I graduated with a Master of Science in Management from the University of Florida. I had amazing teachers/professors and had an absolutely great time in Florida.