A young woman, Oyindolapo Shittu, proved
that being married should not be a barrier to a resounding academic
success recently, when she emerged the best graduating student at the 40th convocation ceremony of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State.
Although she was a medical student,
which obviously made her experience more demanding, she won the Alhaji
Kabir Usman Prize for the Best Overall Student with the Highest Number
of Prizes for the 2012/2013 session.
Her other laurels are the Glaxo
Allenbury and the Paediatrics Association Prizes Prize for the Best
Result in M.B.C.H.B Degree in Paediatrics; Prof. O. Taiwo Memorial Prize
for the Best in Clinical Examination; Olaningbe Makanjuola Memorial and
the Nigeria Medical Association prizes for the best final M.B.C.H.B
degree examination.
Others include the Lawrence Omole Prize
for the Best in Community Health; Maj. Gen. Olufemi Olutoye,
Candido-Da-Rocha, and the Adekunle Okute prizes for the best in Surgery;
Tony Elemelu as well as the Prof. Adewale Akinsola prizes for the best
graduating student in Medicine.
But how did she cope with the marital
and domestic challenges not just to study Medicine but also to emerge
the best graduate in her set?
She noted that three basic incidents in
life fired her enthusiasm to excel. The first, according to her, was the
hospitalisation of her mother when she was still young. The second is
her religion – Islam – and the third, her friend who later became her
husband.
She said, “My mother encouraged me to
study Medicine. There was a time when my mother was so sick that she was
on admission in a hospital for a long time. Then I was about seven
years old. Many people thought that she was going to die. I was always
by her bedside even at that tender age, keeping vigil.
“It was on one of such occasions that my mother told me that she would want me to become a medical doctor when I grow up.
“Even when my mother finally recovered, I
recall that there were occasions too that my late father, who was not
so literate, would take me to the University College Teaching Hospital,
Ibadan just to observe the comportment of medical students at the
hospital.”
Besides this parental influence, the
valedictorian also holds the view that her husband, who is a lawyer,
encouraged her to study Medicine.
She added, “I personally wanted to study
Chemistry but he persuaded me to enrol for Medicine. He made me to
believe that I would make it in Medicine. But taking the decision not to
study Chemistry was not easy because it was a subject that I loved so
much. In fact, it was my best subject and I looked forward to studying
it until he encouraged me to enrol for Medicine.”
The young Muslim doctor added that she
was encouraged to study Medicine by her passion to help Islam. She said,
“In fact, the zeal to help my religion was another motivating factor.”
On how she managed to cope with all the
challenges in marriage, she noted that her matrimony actually brought
out the best in her. The lady, however, does not have a child yet.
Shittu, who married in her fifth year in
the university, said, “It has been very pleasant and interesting
experience. In fact, it was when I got married that I started enjoying
the course. Things actually became easier for me after marriage because
getting closer to my husband made the motivation to be more direct.
“I had most of the prizes I won after
getting married. I had all my prizes when I got married except one.
Marriage has a positive influence on my study. It aided me financially
and boosted my psychological wellbeing.”
For Shittu, the success did not come that easy. According to her, it took a lot of reading and planning.
“When it comes to studying, I am not
given to crash programme. I did not have to wait for the examination to
be around the corner for me to begin my studies. I read every day and
that way, there was never a time that I was under so much pressure.
“I tried to read six hours every day. In
the medical school, many people are usually under pressure and that
reduces their efficiency. But my secret is that I tried to work ahead. I
read other books outside medical books. I read novels, newspapers and
watched movies.
“During holidays, I rested and made sure
I enjoyed myself to the fullest and when we resumed, I continued with
my reading style,” Shittu, who has started her housemanship at the
Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital, Ile Ife, added.
Asked the kind of movies she enjoys, she
said, “I watch movies where advanced technology is being used. I watch
medical movies and the reason I watch such is to show me how medicine is
practised in advanced countries. It serves as a means of motivation for
me. They practise very diligently there. When I watch those movies, I
try to picture myself in that setting and working with that zeal. But
whatever I learn, I will make sure I come back to use it to influence my
people.”
While many graduates are not sure of
what would be their fate in the labour market, Shittu is already
planning to impact positively on the society. She said that she was
always moved to see some poor people dying due to lack of money for
medical treatment.
To contribute her quotas to the welfare
of humanity and especially the poor ones, she said, “I plan to establish
a hospital to treat people and majorly the less-privileged ones. That
has been my plan for a very long time. The reason is that not everything
is about money. It is about fulfilment.
Culled from Punch Newspaper
Congratulations to Oyindolapo Shittu…
CampusCamerazzi Team
CampusCamerazzi Team
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