We were raised - without a clue.

Growing up in Nigeria, we were asked as kids: “What do you want to be when you grow up—a doctor or a lawyer?”
With the exception of some children that had the opportunity of exposure to lesser-known professions like rocket science, dietetics or archeology, the future dreams of the average Nigerian child were expected to revolve around the Big Five: Medicine, Law, Banking,
Engineering, and Business.

We made it through primary and secondary education with mild adjustments to our dreams if any, until we came face-to-face with the Almighty JAMB.

Almighty JAMB: Come over, little Nigerian child, come over! Now what would you like to be?
Nigerian Child 1: (gasps excitedly) an Engineer, an Engineer!
Almighty JAMB: Really? Well, sorry no. Have this Physics degree or the Mathematics one if you wish. Next!
Nigerian Child 2: Good morning Almighty JAMB sir! I have dreamed of being a Lawyer since I was five years old.
Almighty JAMB: Law gini? Come and take this English Language degree my friend! Or go over to the Creative Arts section over there if
you like. Who’s next on the line?!
Nigerian Child 3: (moves closer) Please… I want to be a Doctor….
Almighty JAMB: (rolls over with laughter) Dokita whaattt! Don’t let me kill myself with laughter. Come and take this Microbiology degree.

And so it happened - to 50-60% of us.

Now we are at the other end of the academic journey, with a degree certificate for a course we most likely never heard about before we got into the university. And the folks are saying, “It’s time to look for a job”.

A job? Fine, we guess the National Youth Service Program should give us openings in that arena.

But we are barely two weeks into the Program’s orientation bootcamp when the national head of the youth service program drops the bombshell:

“No jobs out there. Go set up small businesses of your own.” i

Wow. Like seriously. We could have been told this before we went over to saturate our brains for four to five years.

The heads-up about the saturated job market might have come up much earlier for you. Not that it matters when exactly you learned this mind-bending fact. The big question is: what are you going to do about it?

Do you plan to:
1. Walk the streets, drop CVs at hundreds of offices, and go back home to cross your fingers/commence a vigorous prayer session
till you get a call or a response?
2. Start a small business like the youths’ service head recommended?
3. Get the information you need to enhance your chances of success in the already jam-packed job market?

If (3) appeals to you, then you want to get the book "Navigating the Nigerian Job Market". It's filled with strategies and tips for winning in the job market. Available on OkadaBooks.

(i) Don’t wait for white-collar jobs, NYSC DG tells corpers (25 January 2021). The PUNCH Newspapers.