Study Abroad: Reasons Why Nigeria Students Become Topnotch When Studying Abroad. 

Have you ever wondered why Nigeria's are considered one of the most intelligent people in Africa and in the world? Have you ever thought about it why someone who you had studied with here in Nigeria and graduated with low grades becomes an excellent student overseas? Or have you thought of the fact that Nigerians especially from the southern part who are highly motivated to study make exceptional records home and abroad? 

Well let look at some very good points. Considering our educational system, we know and easily conclude that it is very poor and that is a fact and a simple truth. Our educational system does not encourage us to think outside the box or become much more productive people, we mostly face with reading and passing out of the school system, not even with proper research background. When we talk about 3 or 6 months industrial training, it is absolutely most at times nothing to write about because the school system has no structure of where to send their student to. 

But the fact still remain that we excel abroad especially those that have a good educational track record here before leaving Nigeria to other Western or Asian Countries to study. I have heard of a Second Class Lower Graduate from University of Benin become a First Class Graduate in her Masters Degree Program in the USA. 

Here are some reasons why we do extremely well abroad:

 1.  Learning Environment: Most universities or polytechnics in Nigeria have poor studying environment, the class room are not conducive enough, couple with most if our overcrowded class rooms and most at times when the high sun temperature hit on us during lecture, and there happen to be no electricity, which is a norm in our state and federal schools, we find it difficult to assimilate and understand. We force hard to do so and we get part of the gist and the rest become talk tales. But when finally revise it at one our free time at our various hostels we understand it better. Though this becomes an extra work because we put much efforts in reading it. 

When we eventually leave to study abroad, having a good study environment trigger fast understanding in us. Reason being that we have had much stress on studying and assimilating. We tend to leverage on the calm, comfortable and organized environment and this becomes a plus to us in terms of understanding and assimilating. 

 2.  Teaching Style: This is a very important one. Have you at any time had a lecturer who comes and talk to himself and walk away?  Or have you had that one time lecturer who ask if the class understood what he or she is teaching and the whole class said No and out of anger he or she replied if only one person understand they are good to go?  Yes this happens, I'm a living witness to this and in this case it was a calculation course and on exam day almost everyone in the class failed (lol).  

The teaching style of most Nigeria lecturers are so poor. They come talk to themselves, give you assignments and set some real unexplained questions on exam day and expect so many students to perform magic.  Though this give room for proper preparation of this students. They study extra and sort out various textbooks and materials including using the internet just to properly understand what some lecturers are teaching. At the end of the day they understand better and know more about that particular subject and topic and that becomes part of them. Those who fail to carry out their own research or team up to study with other becomes scapegoats of carryover or poor grades. 

Now, check this out. Having a good teaching style abroad will make you assimilate faster and when you revise your work, it becomes part of you immediately. You have understanding of the topic and more insight on related topic and when you carry out research on it you become more ready and well informed for your test questions in exam. When a lecturer explains well, and give room for questions, that help student to express their knowledge in order to gain understanding. 

 3.  Reading for Exams (La Cram, La Pour): The way we study for exams here is one of the most difficult ever, most at times we have our exams back to back and this brings about exam pressure in us. I remember having exams back to back in my final year and one of the night I couldn't sleep throughout to relax my brain, our of fear I kept staring and crying. It was really terrible for me but when I finally had time to sleep I did for 1hr, woke up 5am studied till 6am and prepared for my 7am exam. 

What helped me here was that I leveraged on my previous course that was similar, I was in the exam hall for 40mins, rested and closed my eyes before I could remember a thing and when it started coming I started answering the easier ones first before moving to the hard ones. The pressure in me made me studied different things and even cram them too and I pour it down and left at the end it was a B (lol). 

I also have this one friend, who give lecturers word to word and get all A because that his how the lecturers prefer it. We end up calling the First Class Student but the average ones who write and understand in their own terms and words become the second class upper. Studying for exam in Nigeria is so difficult so we go through brain stress and anxiety and when we finally scale through it becomes a plus to us. 

When this is applied in a more conducive and organized school, we become excellent, we are less stressed, we can pay for a course and be done with it before going for the next one. They are not giving student back to back exams, and they have the choice to move their papers depending on how ready they feel emotionally or health wise unlike here. When we leverage on this we become topnotch over there and we have more understanding than we could ever have over here in Nigeria.