How to Graduate College in the First-Class Division (Distinction)

Success means different things to different people. For me, success is being absolutely sure I did my best in any given situation and navigating through difficult situations. Success is making sure everyone I come in contact with realizes how special and important they are. Success is being the best that I can be in whatever situation I find myself. For my undergraduate degree, success was getting a distinction.

Sometime in first year

I wanted to have a distinction for several reasons.

1. I believed I needed to stand out because this is my heritage in Christ.
2. My dad was in the same department as I was in and I wanted to make him proud.
3. My siblings are very smart and I wanted to be smart too, even if I am not scientifically or mathematically inclined, I could excel in the Arts.
4. I like challenges and working under pressure, the feeling of accomplishment afterward is unparalleled.

I will not lie to you and pretend it was easy or that graduating with a distinction has exponentially changed or added to my life. I do believe that it was easier for me to get into an MA program and get a scholarship upon completion. Most importantly, I think it boosted my confidence. During my MA, I had multiple moments when I doubted myself. The fact that I had completed my undergraduate degree within the First Class division revived my confidence and helped me press on.

What did I do?

1. I prayed before I picked my courses — one thing my parents and God have taught me is that there is nothing too minute (small) for prayer. There were times I was stubborn and tried to take classes because I thought the prof was funnier than the one I was originally assigned, but I learned after my second year not to listen to friends but to listen to God. If he said to switch to a different prof, I did it. If he said to stay, eve if the prof was tough, I stayed and it worked out every single time ( my highest grades are from classes I took with “tough” profs).
2. I listened to my parents’s advice — before I started my undergraduate journey, I believe it was during registration, I remember my father telling me: “most students think they get their classification grades in their final year, but it’s actually their result after their first year that determines what they finish with.” He also said “it doesn’t matter what course or degree you finish with, what matters is that you do well and then doors will open up for you.” Yes.. my dadddy is a brilliant man! My mum constantly encouraged me to be hardworking and put my best into whatever I did. She is the best in the world!
3. I developed relationships with my professors and staff— apart from the Head of Department that I hounded everytime I was unsure of something, I developed relationships with the secretaries, and other professors that taught me. I was the kind of student that dropped by a prof’s office to have a chat about a certain theory or a project they were working on. It got to the point that my friends knew they would leave me behind when we went to pick up our test papers from profs.
4. I read all the things I was supposed to and at the right time — a popular misconception is that you can do well at university level without reading. If you were in the science, that may be true, however in the Arts, reading is integral and determines how well you understand and internalize concepts. I did not just read madatory texts but I loved going to the library to see the contents of the books arranged next to the mandatory texs. I found simplified versions of the texts and harder versions and each version added value to me. I did this before topics were covered in class… I read ahead.

Finals outfit!

1. I studied during the semester and revised for mid-terms and finals — mid-term and finals seasons were my most relaxed times. Midterms and finals were my happy seasons because I slep really well, dressed and ate well, and looked forward to surprising my profs. I studied intensely every week as we tackled new topics and not as much during test season. I basically quizzed myself and made sure I had memorized what I needed and had studied earlier in the semester.
2. I made sure I enjoyed what I was doing — there are always classes that are difficult or uninteresting. My brother once remarked that if a class is uninteresting it’d be great not to take it twice so I studied extra hard to do well in them so I could move onto more interesting stuff. I also made sure I took a really interesting class each semester that was a bit out of my depth. I took a theater class that required writing plays and a class that required acting. I enjoyed those classes and they added spice to my semesters.

Theatre class was a blast with these ones

1. I hardly ever missed a class — I was barely absent from class and I was ontime too. I showed up early and I put distractions away. I was the kind of student that cried if I was running late and studied before going to class. My mum would tell my brother to hurry up and would lead with “she’ll start crying soon…come out!”. When profs asked “where did we leave off,” I knew because I studied and I revised. I did miss classes due to menstrual pain, tonsillitis, and … that’s about it. I showed up consistently.
2. I maintained a clean and organized environment at home and planned for everything — I do not know anyone that has accomplished getting a distinction that is really untidy and disorganized. I think decluttering and cleaning up creates the right environment for assimilation and sets the right tone for study. Managing time enables you to see pockets of time that can be used for study even when you seem really busy. I planned when to study, cook (my mum had deservingly resigned from the position of chef at this time), clean, and study. Thankfully, my dad did the groceries and helped with the dishes so I got some help. I liked order and it worked out well for me.
3. I had a no series policy during the semester — I watched movies but I did not watch serial shows. I have heard people say, ‘you don’t have a social life if you do well at school’ and I think that’s weird. I did have a social life, it just didn’t look the way young people expect it to. I didn’t go drinking but I was involved at church and alot of my time went into the things I was involved with there. I went out occasionally with friends for birthday parties, game nights, and school invents like inter-varsity and International night. I did plan for these things and made sure they did not interfere with my schedule so I did have a life.

Inter-varsity contestant — fashion parade -won best dressed

6. I rested well — Before tests and exams, I rested. I religiously ensured that I had a Sunday afternoon nap. I started going to bed early because the doctor said I should ( I started having stress headaches in first year). I knew my limits and used holidays and weekends to get some down time. In-between exams, I watched movies to take my mind off a previous exam and reset for the next one.

7. I helped other students out — I find it interesting when students don’t help others out or can’t ask for help. I did both. I took pictures of my notes and sent them to classmates that requested them. I explained difficult concepts to my friends and I asked a student that was a year ahead of me for help, Wumi. She gave me past questions and notes that were very helpful. I did not condone cheating but was willing to provide any legitimate.

Classmates from my first Shakespeare class

8. I was friends with good people — I interacted with people who wanted to do well and not cut corners. I changed friends over the course of four years and had different friend groups. The first lady from the left, Neo, turned out to be a wonderful friend. She is one of the boldest people I know and we had a blast together.

There are different roads to the same destination. Yours is different from mine, but once in a while we learn a thing or two from others that can add value to our journey. I hope this was either a good exposition of my undergraduate journey and/or you can learn a thing or two. I appreciate the time you spent reading this.