By Oluwagbemisola Akinmade
First, leaving secondary school, there was a lot of excitement and anticipation. But at the same time, I was anxious and nervous due to the fact that I was starting a new phase of my life; I was going to university, a new environment with new people. I didn’t exactly know what to expect but the euphoria was still there. I started the whole application process, and in no time I got provisional admission to Afe Babalola University (ABUAD), and I was given a set date to resume. I was so excited to resume school and when I resumed I wasn’t disappointed.
I resumed school on the 7th of October as that was the set date for the College Of Social and Management Sciences to resume and that happens to be my college. I was set to follow my dreams by studying Media and Communication Studies, which some people also call mass communication, so as to become a journalist. I was advised by my seniors to come to school early so as to escape the stress of registration and excess crowds, and so I did. I resumed early and I was done with my registration in no time. I had the weekend to rest and on Monday, orientation began…
The orientation was a three-day program; it was an astonishing and astounding event. The nitty-gritty of the school was brought to light during the orientation for freshers. I was made to know the do’s and dont’s of the school, as presented in the handbook. An important issue that was spoken about during the orientation was the issue of drugs as it is very rampant in the school and it needed to be addressed. During the orientation we the freshers were also taught the ABUAD anthem which is always sung during any official gatherings.
The orientation was not only an avenue to get to know about the nitty-gritty of the school, it was also an avenue to make new friends. During the orientation I was able to meet my mates, the ones in my former college and the ones in other colleges and we were able to interact, and I was able to make friends with some of them. Also, during and after the orientation, I got to meet with my seniors, (stalites), especially during the departmental orientation. The departmental orientation was not only a means for us as freshers to meet the seniors, but also an opportunity to meet the seniors in our department. So then, I got to meet and have discussions with my departmental staff and my seniors.
Life in the hostel was a little convenient; however it was not what I expected. We have specific times for water to run, and it was not particularly comfortable as water is a basic necessity. We were not allowed to bring any form of cooking materials into the hostel; all our food were to be bought from the cafeteria provided by the school.
Lectures kick-started on the following Monday. The lecturers were nice and their lectures were very interactive, as they were not focused on giving notes. Rather, they were focused on having discussions and then we were to form our notes from that. However, at times it could be very stressful to go for classes as most of my classes for the week start by 8:30, but the school has a very strict rule on attendance. To write an exam, you must have 90 percent attendance, thus discouraging students from missing lectures.
After six (6) weeks, we had tests based on what we had learnt so far. For some courses, the test was hard as we were not provided with necessary textbooks, both in the library and from the lectures and we were not yet used to the lecturers’ style of setting questions. Aside from that, the test was a good start for freshers.
As media and communication students, we were taught a lot of things. At the same time, we were given assignments that would help us have a broader knowledge of what we were studying. A particular course called “Introduction to Fiction and Cinematography. It is meant to helps us to understand the basic concept of a camera and how to tell stories with cameras. This was fun, I must say.
Afe Babalola University is filled with a lot of aesthetic structures just like the anthem says. My school also has a multi-system hospital which has a lot of good equipment.
Overall, my stay in Afe Babalola University has been a worthwhile experience and studying Media and Communication Studies has made my stay even better.
Akinmade is a first year student of Media and Communication Studies, ABUAD.