My name is Ekeledirichukwu Jinanwa and I graduated from Dority International Early Learning School in 2015.
I was head of the Press Club editorial board and had a reputation as a story writer.
Somehow, I ended up as a science student, even though I had a tough time with Physics, Mathematics and Further Mathematics.
In Dority, science students wanted to study Engineering or Medicine at tertiary institutions, while art students preferred Law or Mass Communication.
I wasn’t thrilled with any of those courses but I decided to study Medicine and Surgery.
I wrote JAMB in 2015 and had a relatively good score of 242. But it wasn’t good enough to secure an admission to study Medicine.
Alternative courses like Biochemistry and Nursing were available but I didn’t consider them lucrative.
I discovered courses like Forestry and Wildlife Management, Human Kinetics, Medical Laboratory Science, Anatomy and other courses I had never heard of. But I didn’t take them seriously because of the Medicine/Engineering orientation I got from D.I.S.S.
When I finally gained admission to study Forestry and Wildlife Management, I was appalled and ashamed.
What would I tell people about my course of study? I asked myself.
I told people I was studying Agriculture. Luckily, they didn’t ask me which department.
Eventually, I made peace with my course. I now love Forestry and Wildlife Management. It’s a fascinating course, and lucrative too.
I can proudly state what I’m studying.
But I only got to this point after floundering and vacillating between art and science. I was so confused that after graduating from Dority, I rewrote WAEC as an art student.
I realize that the current crop of Dority students may be as ignorant about career choices as I was. They could be getting the same faulty orientation.
Medicine, Law, Engineering and other prestigious courses are not as lucrative as they were fifteen years ago. Times have changed and valuable courses of study can be found in unlikeliest places.
Young people need to be taught how to exploit their talent and skills, not asked to study prestigious courses.
A lot of young people bury their talents because of a lack of information. I get paid as a writer even though I’m still a student of Forestry and Wildlife.
Nobody told me in Dority that I could earn a living as a writer.
I plead with members of Dority International Alumni Association to talk to the present generation of Dority students. Reach out to them and ask them questions about their chosen careers.
Guide them through this confusing subject and let them know that they have several career options. Not just Medicine, Engineering, Law and Mass Communication.
They would be better prepared for the world out there.