Islamiyat Ojelade, a talented Nigerian muslim lady who holds a Higher National Diploma (HND), has made significant progress in the US after being awarded seven PhD scholarships at 7 prestigious US universities.

She got her HND from the Science Laboratory Technology (SLT) Department at The Federal Polytechnic Ilaro in Ogun State with a remarkable CGPA of 3.89, Chemistry option. Islamiyat, a native of Ibese town in Yewa North Local Government Area of Ogun State and whose parents are petty traders, demonstrated that investing in a girl’s education is not a waste but rather a worthwhile endeavor.

Islamiyat enrolled in the school, gave it her all, aced it, and received the top grade in her class. “After the completion of my National Diploma at the Ogun State Insitute of Technology in 2015, I went for my Industrial Training. Thereafter, I enrolled at the Federal Polytechnic, Ilaro for Science Laboratory Technology while majoring in Chemistry. I honestly didn’t want to major in Chemistry, but an error in my application got me Chemistry. But immediately I saw my name on the list of Chemistry students, I fell in love with it,” she told The Muslim Voice NG.

Performing a remarkable accomplishment according to Islamiyat, her success in getting scholarships for PhD without going through a masters came with a lot of hard work and many years of consistency. However, she asserted that it is a great milestone in her life and that she is excited about it.

Given the HND/Degree dichotomy in Nigeria, one would typically assume that Islamiyat would need to complete a master’s or pre-masters programme before moving up the academic ladder. The fact that the scholarships are for PhDs only, nevertheless, is astounding. She penned: “Considering the dichotomy between HND and BSc in Nigeria, I was scared and confused on what next to do after my undergraduate studies. “I am so elated to inform you all that I will be starting my PhD program in Chemistry at the Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, USA this Fall, having received full scholarships from 7 universities in the United States of America with my Higher National Diploma in Science Laboratory Technology (Chemistry Major).”

Florida State University, University of Massachusetts Armherst, University of Kansas, University of Kentucky, University of North Texas, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and Marquette University are among the institutions she was accepted to.

Miss Ojelade has currently begun her studies at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida, USA, after accepting one of the offers.

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