LAGOS, Nigeria — In a country where education has long been regarded as the ultimate pathway to success, rising unemployment and disillusionment among graduates are raising urgent questions: is education still the way forward?
A first-class graduate from a prestigious Nigerian university now working as a point-of-sale (PoS) operator is one of many examples fueling doubts about whether years spent in the classroom truly translate into opportunities in today’s economy.
For decades, Nigerian families have placed immense value on academic achievement, often seeing it as the only ticket to upward mobility. But with unemployment at stubbornly high levels, and many graduates underemployed or working in fields unrelated to their degrees, the narrative is shifting. More young Nigerians are turning to content creation, forex trading and small-scale entrepreneurship as alternatives to the traditional career path.
Critics argue that while education remains important, its structure and outcomes no longer match the realities of a fast-changing society. The credibility of the system has also been called into question. The Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), once regarded as a merit-based gateway to higher education, has been marred by allegations of favoritism, leaving high-scoring students sidelined while others gain admission through connections.
The frequent disruption of academic calendars, often due to prolonged strikes by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), further deepens public frustration. Many parents now encourage their children to learn trades or acquire vocational skills, citing quicker returns and fewer uncertainties compared to pursuing a degree.
Still, education advocates insist that formal learning is indispensable for national development. They argue that the solution lies not in abandoning education, but in restructuring it to meet the demands of Nigeria’s digital economy and entrepreneurial realities.
“If we insist education is the way forward, then we must ensure it reflects the needs of this nation,” one education analyst noted. “Otherwise, we risk producing graduates who are ill-prepared for the opportunities and challenges before them.”
The debate continues: is education in its current form truly the nation’s ladder to success, or has Nigeria reached a point where alternative paths are becoming more credible than the once-revered university degree?
