Daniel Oluwajoba, OLADEPO, GMNSE.
BSc., Materials Engineering (First Class Honours), OAU.
✍🏽 Second-best graduating student, MSE department.
✍🏽 Best graduating student in crystallography.
A miracle of mercy.
I’ve recently been seeing beautiful convocation pictures from graduates of the best university in Nigeria, OAU, on my timeline, and it truly gladdens my heart. 😊
If you’re one of them, quote this tweet with your picture, and I’ll repost.
Your professor does not want you to overwork yourself just to impress them. What they expect is simple: do your job, and do it well. When you do that consistently, you earn credibility.
Once you understand that the research is yours, not just your professor’s, it changes how you approach the work. You become more intentional. You plan better. You take ownership. You deliver results.
It is better for your experiments to fail than for you to keep giving excuses for why you are not meeting expectations. And when you are facing difficulties, communicate early. Don’t wait until the deadline has passed before explaining what went wrong. That is how you manage situations responsibly.
At the end of the day, what your professor cares about is the data. You must be able to show it, not once, but repeatedly. That is reproducibility. And beyond showing the data, you must be able to explain what it means and defend it with clarity.
Selah!
12 DAYS TO GO!
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This, right here, is why I will always hate these prank videos.
Nothing about them is funny. Unless the people involved are in on it sha (I don't think they are).
Let's ignore the dysfunction between the couple here.
What do men want?
When I was in my 20s, I was a different type of young man. Others were drinking beer and chasing girls, but I was building a business and not drinking, but still chasing girls.
As I grew older and became more stable in my career, I wanted a family. However, I went through many failed relationships before finally realizing that it wasn't about them, but about me. I looked inward and changed myself to a more patient, more generous, and less impulsive person.
I also found religion again, and it made all the difference. I got the best life partner I could have ever imagined. A blessing. It was given to me by the grace of God. I didn't create it. I learned a great deal from that process about what is truly important in life and how to achieve it.
We believe too much that everything we do is why we get what we want and that we deserve it. The best things you have today are likely things you didn't deserve but got anyway. We should not become conceited or arrogant as it could have been much worse.
Grace isn't about NOT hustling and waiting for miracles, but knowing that even while hustling, you could be a tool for blessing others while you are being blessed. I discovered that doing good to others in relationships and avoiding a transactional approach compounds blessings.
I was having a conversation with my cousin in his mid-30s this morning about career and settling down to build a family and realized that it wasn't going to be about anything he did right but about what God determined was right.
A good friend who had ticked all the right boxes in her life, got a first class degree and a PhD before 24, called me three days to her wedding and wanted me to tell her something to make her know if she was right about going forward. I sent her Psalm 127 v 1.
“Unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain”
This post wasn't meant to be all religious and “preachy” but it is International Men’s Day and I believe that what makes you a man is Grace and not bravado or hype. Real men pray and do good things. They are also blessed abundantly when they are blessings to others. Help a fellow human today.
Don't get carried away by all the fine, polished pictures of graduate students you see online.
The reality is that when you start your PhD, there will be days when you feel completely overwhelmed-days filled with silly mistakes, failed experiments, and moments when nothing seems to work.
Back then, whenever I felt frustrated, I would call a friend who had started his PhD a year before me just to rant. Almost every time, he would say, "Well, that's a common experience."
He never held back. He would share similar struggles he had faced and explain how things gradually got better with time. Hearing those stories gave me some peace. It reminded me that I wasn't alone.
I also remember my PI saying, "Let me know where you're struggling, and I'll help." There is something incredibly comforting about knowing that nobody is judging you, but instead is willing to support you and help you grow.
The truth is that a PhD comes with many ups and downs, and you don't have to carry those burdens alone. By sharing your experiences, you learn from others and often get the help you need.
I once met a random PhD student and asked him, "How is your research going?" It was almost as if he had been waiting for someone to ask. He opened up about his frustrations and how he wasn't getting the support he needed from his supervisor.
We talked through some of the challenges, offered encouragement, and that simple conversation was enough to help him keep going.
There are many things nobody will tell you when you start a PhD. Some lessons you will learn on your own. Others you will learn from senior colleagues. And in many cases, you will need the support of a good mentor and a supportive PI.
One thing I've learned is this: nothing beats having a kind and supportive PI. Choose that over and over again. It can make all the difference in your PhD journey.
@BlehisBack I don't know how sensitive or complicated the document is, maybe AI might help.
At least, it can give it back to you in plain text. Then you can handle the formatting relatively easily from there.
I have a confession.
I used to rate how well my day went by how much I kept God's thoughts on my heart.
I still do, but lately, it seems the chief measure is whether I successfully avoid yelling at my kids.
Children will test your spirituality in a very unique way.
Ikeoluwa Olaniyan is a First-Class graduate of Science Laboratory Technology (Biotechnology) from Ekiti State University, where she graduated as the Best Student in her major.
Her academic foundation spans molecular biology, microbial studies, genetic transformation, and biotechnology research, with practical experience in techniques such as PCR, gel electrophoresis, cloning, microbial transformation, and tissue culture.
Driven by a passion for applying science to real-world challenges, she is building a career at the intersection of molecular biology and forensic science. Her research interests include forensic molecular biology, genome stability, chromatin dynamics, epigenetics, and the molecular mechanisms that regulate gene expression and cellular responses.
Beyond research, Ikeoluwa is committed to leadership and community impact, contributing to initiatives focused on scientific innovation, sustainability, and youth development.
As she looks toward graduate studies, Ikeoluwa aims to advance research that bridges molecular biology and forensic science, leveraging scientific discoveries to strengthen justice systems and create meaningful societal impact.
@BlehisBack They said it's using tokens kinikan
I usually do it regardless sha, especially when the guy has just blown my mind.
And there's the occasional thumbs up 👍🏾😎
In dealing with fools you must adopt the following philosophy: they are simply a part of life, like rocks or furniture.
All of us have foolish sides, moments in which we lose our heads and think more of our ego or short-term goals. It is human nature.
Seeing this foolishness within you, you can then accept it in others.
This will allow you to smile at their antics, to tolerate their presence as you would a silly child, and to avoid the madness of trying to change them.