83 bag first class as JABU set to graduate 1,043

No fewer than 1,043 students of Joseph Ayo Babalola University (JABU), Ikeji-Arakeji, Osun State, will graduate at the institution’s 17th convocation ceremony on Friday, with 83 earning First Class Honours and 22 completing doctoral programmes.

The ceremony will also mark the 20th anniversary of the university, which has awarded 10,448 undergraduate degrees since its establishment.

The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Olasebikan Fakolujo, disclosed this at a press briefing to announce activities for the anniversary and convocation ceremony.

He said the graduating class comprised 897 first-degree recipients and 146 postgraduate students, reflecting the institution’s growth since its pioneer class of 246 students matriculated in February 2007.

Of the undergraduate graduands, 83 earned First Class Honours, 429 obtained Second Class Honours (Upper Division), 301 graduated with Second Class Honours (Lower Division), while 74 and 10 students earned Third Class and Pass degrees, respectively.

The postgraduate graduands comprise 22 PhD recipients, 94 academic master’s degree holders, 27 Master of Business Administration (MBA) recipients, and three postgraduate diploma holders.

Fakolujo disclosed that Miss Misturah Elizabeth Oseni of the Department of Food Science and Technology emerged as the best graduating student for the 2025/2026 academic session, with a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 4.96.

Speaking on the university’s contribution to Nigerian education, the Vice-Chancellor identified entrepreneurial learning, professional training, and human capacity development as key areas of its focus over the past two decades.

He said the institution was established to equip students with practical skills for self-reliance and entrepreneurship while directing research towards addressing Nigeria’s social, economic, and technological challenges.

“Buildings matter, but the true product of a university is not concrete. It is human capacity,” he said.

Fakolujo said the university had awarded more than 800 postgraduate degrees and qualifications in addition to the 10,448 undergraduate degrees, noting that its graduates were making contributions across business, academia, research, technology, finance, public service, and other professional fields.

Highlighting the institution’s performance in professional examinations, he disclosed that its Medical Laboratory Science students recorded a 100 per cent success rate in their 2026 professional examinations for the third consecutive year.

He added that Nursing Science students also recorded a 100 per cent success rate in the 2026 registered midwife professional examination.

On the performance of its law graduates, the Vice-Chancellor said five JABU graduates earned First Class Honours in the Nigerian Law School examinations in 2024, while three graduates achieved the distinction in each of 2025 and 2026.

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He said the university’s approach to higher education was based on the principle that graduates should be equipped not only for employment, but also to create jobs, develop enterprises, and apply their knowledge to solving societal problems.

According to him, the institution remains committed to producing graduates capable of responding to changing labour market demands and contributing to national development.

Reflecting on the university’s 20-year journey, Fakolujo acknowledged that the institution had experienced financial constraints and periods requiring reforms, but maintained that it had continued to improve its academic and administrative systems.

He also acknowledged the sacrifices of parents and guardians in supporting their children through university education, describing the forthcoming convocation as a celebration of the determination and achievements of the graduands and their families.