About 709 students of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) will graduate with First Class honours out of a total of 16,506 graduands as the institution prepares for its 56th convocation ceremony.
The figure was disclosed on Wednesday during a press conference to announce activities for the convocation. Of the 16,506 students graduating, 10,584 are receiving first degrees, while 5,922 are postgraduate degree recipients.
UNILAG’s management announced that the week-long convocation programme will commence on Friday, January 16, with a Jumaat service at the University Central Mosque.
Addressing journalists, the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Folasade Ogunsola, revealed that the Federal Government has approved the recruitment of 350 academic and non-academic staff to tackle manpower shortages at the university.
According to her, the recruitment will help reduce the effects of the “Japa syndrome.” She added that the hiring process is already in progress, alongside notable improvements in staff promotions, welfare, and capacity-building initiatives in digital skills, research, administration, and entrepreneurship.
Providing a breakdown of the graduating students, Prof. Ogunsola said 709 undergraduates earned First Class honours, 5,543 graduated with Second Class Upper Division, 3,910 obtained Third Class degrees, 69 earned Pass degrees, and 330 graduated with unclassified degrees.
She also announced that Chukwuzubelu Umeozo of the Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Management Sciences, emerged as the overall best graduating student with a perfect cumulative grade point average (CGPA) of 5.0.
The Vice-Chancellor further disclosed that the university will confer honorary degrees on notable Nigerians, including former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice of the Federation, Barrister Kanu Agabi, CON, SAN, who will receive the Doctor of Laws degree, and Jubril Tinubu, CON, who will be awarded a Doctor of Business degree.