The Unified Tertiary Matriculation Exam (UTME) forms are out again. The forms started selling last year and as usual, many young people are thronging to get it. Yearly, only less than 50% of those who applied for admission into our universities are admitted. Yes, we say universities because nearly every candidate that presents for that exam favours a university education above any other advertised in the admission brochure.
So again the hurdle begins. A negligible number of the candidates spending time to read through the brochures and selecting the disciplines that they feel suit them. Not with the guidance of a career manager. Many have stormed registration centers, just to get their forms filled by untrained personnels whom I recently learned fill up the form for a price and still fill up schools or course choices they assume suit the student. Ofcourse they do not administer any form of test to attest to the fact that these candidates will perform here and or there.
So goes the same challenges we will have yearly. Many students present themselves for courses they know nothing about. Often they are told they would change into a preferred course when they are admitted, and that usually is near impossible when they do not get an acceptable cummulative grade point required by the department they plan to migrate to. This scenerio is fit for those who gained admission in the first place. Sadly, the majority do not. They usually get exceedly high scores during their qualifying exams organisaed by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) but fail woefully at the University's internal exams because the ring is not the training field for victors!
I recently spoke to a young man who had written the UTME three times. He had vowed not to write it again, no, he was never going to waste his money on forms. He says he will go to any school of his choice and take a predegree form. He had and is spending most of his energy thinking about where to study and not what to study. At some point it appeared to me he was confused too. He was not sure if he should take lessons in computer appreciation or not since he confided in me that he was not computer literate. Then I wondered how he would have managed since a number of candidates now write a computer based test for university admission. This is beginning to get popular. And here is a man who has not developed a simple skill in computer use. How does he work in today's technologically motivated society?
Again and again, same old names will continue to apply for admission through the qualifying exams, yet no gaining access. Most candidates assume they are victimised. But we also know that most of them are not prepared academically and can't handle the simple heat from such standardized test.
The time tested line of argument will be to ensure that candidates take enough reading about the various career options available. They must learn about the subject combinations that make them possible to attain. They must learn about these and get a mastery over them. They must try to develop skills that are useful, one of which is skills in ICT. They must remain relevant because even a modern day driver will need to use computers for effective driving and navigation. There is no seating on the fence . Diligence will prevent a candidate throwing his dependence on a registration center staff to decide what and where he would study.
Parents on the other hand must continue to support their children's quest for knowledge. Already Our youth have a craving for education. That is a good indicator of something progressive. Tomorrow's success is planned today, so lets do the right things now.
As we prepare for the UTME 2014, let's one and all take time to identify what skills are within us and how we can effectively identify the disciplines that will sustain them. Only with this can we reduce the scourge of unsatisfactory career among the citizenry!
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