By: Adamu Mubarak
In the pursuit of academia, dreams often tangle with unforeseen events and in a chase for a brilliant career, the tale of how I suffered from the delusions of JAMB is very worthy of narrative.
Achieving a dream of studying your desired course with a degree, and realizing a successful career starts with JAMB in Nigeria.
Established in 1978, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) oversees the standardized examination for undergraduate prospects of Nigerian universities. The Board conducts Matriculation Examinations for entry into all tertiary institutions across the country.
My unpredictable voyage to the university is not without a tale. The falling hours of July 2016 are the least days with me in secondary school. Soon after graduation, the fresh graduate would not wait to hear the mention of JAMB registrations.
As a fresh graduate from a local school, I thought I possessed the qualities to face JAMB, and then I started anticipating a course that fit my standards. In that process, something happens that grows the wants of the legal profession in me until today.
On a fateful day, as the sun rose to the twilight, alongside my mother, I was in the midst of my brothers, making some wordplay. Not surprisingly, some words escaped my mouth that amused my brothers. The facial expression of our mother is enough to detail her happiness, she can’t even manage to hide her smile until she alters “Wallah, you see, this son of mine is a lawyer.” Perhaps, to her, lawyers must have been the only good speakers of English.
At first, even though my mother was so antagonistic, the thought of being a soldier has always been in my mind. Then, in 2017 through Jamb, I applied for the Nigerian Defence Academy (N.D.A). However, the result was so disappointing. Out of 400, JAMB was able to rate me with only 165. That ended my dream of being a soldier.
Another incident that geared my thoughts in the pursuit of the legal profession is not without a surprise. On a sunny day at the farm, after our usual work, my father called for a chat under the shade of a mango tree. In the course of our conversation, he asked if anyone amongst my siblings and I had chosen the legal profession. However, with such a question, my mind immediately took me back to the day when my mother called me a lawyer.
Two plain mirrors are held parallel to each other. But what happens if a third mirror appears in the scene?
Two different human perceptions appear to be the same, nothing is seen out of the ordinary until a third party appears. This time, it’s a formal declaration from my uncle, who calls from the capital city-state, Ilorin. On a phone call, he made it known to my mother that I must come to Ilorin before tomorrow. In a flash, my mother prepared the necessary preparations.
My journey to Ilorin is the beginning of my life in search of knowledge of the legal profession. However, this journey is not without some delays, until God put me together with a blessed soul.
This work would never have been completed if I failed to recognize the role played by Ahmad Shereefdeen Sawe. I was already in the 200 level at CAILS when I met Shereef, he was then a 100-level student of law, at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto. I was a law student but of a lower level compared to him. We got to know each other better on Facebook, and I found out we are of the same tribe and he’s very intelligent. We talked about anything and everything and that was how we delved into the topic of jamb which made me discover he scored 289 which was his first and last jamb score.
My meeting with Shereefdeen Ahmad was indeed the turning episode that fulfilled the dreams of three. When three different human perceptions appear to be the same, the fourth to make it happen was Shereef who is now a 400-level student of law, at UDUS.
After rejecting a provisional admission in political science 2018/19, in the year 2020 I was already a student of literature in English, at UDUS. Upon preparation for 2020/21 JAMB, I was tutored by Shereefdeen Ahmad. He champions the belief that getting a high score in JAMB is not a matter of luck. According to him, the JAMB examination is not as easy as we think. He maintains the belief that, whilst poor preparations posit poor performance, proper preparations posit powerful performance. In his words, “ JAMB examination is not a piece of cake”. Accordingly, to get a lion score in JAMB, one needs to have proper preparations.
Although I learned more about JAMB under Sawe’s tutorship, the 2020/21 JAMB was never to favor me, for the second time, I was offered provisional admission in political science. This time I was about to give up until Sawe advised me to try again.
Whilst studying literature in English at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto. I applied for 2021/22 JAMB keeping in mind that proper preparations posit powerful performance. This time, I did not hesitate to get all the necessary textbooks, novels, and the four premium JAMB past questions and answers booklet. In a nutshell, I wrote the exams and got my deserved score points.
During the 2022 JAMB admissions process, I was offered a provisional admission to study Common and Islamic law and today, I am a bonafide student of the faculty of law, at Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto. Ab a happy ending that is well deserved despite the several stops and disappointments. A true indication that hard work and dedication surely pay in the end.