Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has awarded a cash gift of ₦10 million to Isioma Nwosu, the best graduating student of Lagos State University (LASU) for the 2023/2024 academic session.
Nwosu, a graduate of Biochemistry from the Faculty of Science, finished with a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 4.93 out of 5.0. The award was announced on Thursday during LASU’s 28th Convocation Ceremony held at the Buba Marwa Auditorium, Ojo, by the Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, who represented the governor at the event.
The convocation also featured the conferment of honorary doctorate degrees and distinguished professorships. Among the honorees was Brigadier General Mohammed Buba Marwa (Rtd), Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and former military administrator of Lagos State, who was conferred with a Doctor of Humane Letters in Infrastructure, Security, and National Development (Honoris Causa).
In addition, former deputy governor of Lagos State, Olufemi Pedro, received a Doctor of Business in Banking, Entrepreneurship, and National Development.
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However, in her valedictory speech, the BGS shared how she initially struggled after not gaining admission to study her preferred course.
“In 2019, after graduating as the valedictorian of my secondary school, I faced a setback and had to rewrite UTME,” she said.
“A valedictorian writing UTME again? It was a bitter pill to swallow. My dream was to study medicine and surgery at the University of Ibadan. I fell just two points below the cut-off mark. The news of my repeat spread like wildfire in my secondary school. I thought I had failed in life.”
She also stated that she applied to LASU with the hope of studying medicine but was again offered Biochemistry.
“This time, I made LASU my first choice and again aimed for medicine and surgery. However, I was offered Biochemistry, a course I had never heard of. My heart broke the second time,” she said.
She added that embracing the course took time. “I could not embrace the course in my first year,” she said.
Meanwhile, LASU awarded diplomas, degrees, and certificates to graduates across various faculties during the convocation ceremony.
