Prof. Kayode Adebowale, Vice-Chancellor, University of Ibadan, has advised the 4, 255 newly matriculated students to raise the bar of excellence, which the institution is known for.
Adebowale gave the advice at the 2021/2022 Matriculation Ceremony of the university on Tuesday in Ibadan.
He said that the university has a track record of excellence, which it treasured so much, hence, the newly admitted students must ensure to raise the bar of excellence or at least maintain it.
“So, you have both a unique opportunity as well as a challenge ahead of you. Opportunity, because you have giants on whose shoulders you can stand.
“The challenge, however, is that the bar in the University of Ibadan is rather high.
“Each succeeding set of giants raised the bar significantly: a bar of academic excellence, morality, proper conduct and service to humanity.
“They set a standard for you to beat or at least, maintain,” he said.
Adebowale said that only 6.7 per cent of all the 63,000 applicants to the university were admitted.
“By the day that the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) closed its application portal to your set of applicants, a total of 63,791 applicants had selected the University of Ibadan as their university of choice.
“Of the figures, 20, 799 managed to score 200 or above in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
“Out of these, 12,798 sat for the post-UTME in the University of Ibadan. Among these, over 13, 000 candidates, only 6, 065 scored 50 or above in the post UTME.
“From among these, only 4,261 were offered admission based on the rigorous and transparent admission process of the University of Ibadan,” he said.
In her remarks, Miss Ifeoluwa Olatayo, Founder of Soupah Kitchen Ltd. and an alumna in 2012, tasked the matriculating students to make learning their priority.
“Set a high academic standard for yourself and start now. The best time to start building a solid academic foundation for yourself is now.
“You have to manage your time wisely and persevere,” she said.
Olatayo, also urged them to be well-rounded and not leave one aspect of their lives for another to suffer. (NAN)
