The SCAM

This book “The SCAM: Things you were not told about school
is proprietary to:
This book is a product of research and personal experiences by

the author.
Under the Copyright designs and patents act 1998,
no part of this publication maybe reproduced, stored in a
retriever system, or transmitted in any form by means of
electronic, mechanical, photographing, recording or otherwise,
without the permission of the author who is the Copyright
owner.
Copyright © 2022
by
Steven Loya
Tel: +234 810 710 4180, +234 704 503 8965
Email: Stevedanloya1@gmail.com
Front Cover Design: ALAGA Kreations
All Rights Reserved.

CONTENT
Guide: For interactivity, click on any of the chapters to take you

straight to the page.
Acknowledgment
Dedication
Foreword
Introduction
Chapter 1: School vs Education
Chapter 2: Coping with Harsh Realities
Chapter 3: Earning and Learning
Chapter 4: Building Social Capital
Chapter 5: Community Failure
Chapter 6: Building Capacity
Chapter 7: There are Future Governors and
President in this Room
Chapter 8: From the Horse’s Mouth
Chapter 9: Reality is Staring
Give Up!
1
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This book project has not been made possible without the support
of people who have given their support in various forms. Sincere
appreciation goes to my parents Mr & Mrs Daniel Loya, for
providing me an atmosphere of love and confidence in my
decisions all through my undergraduate programme.
Special thanks to Mr Johnson Abbaly, a man who has become my

father and mentor for his incredible role in birthing this book.
I wish to thank the following people for their contributions to my

inspiration and knowledge and their gracious assistance in bring
this book to life: Tobe Oforji, Uncle Pere Akrah, Olabimpe Bakare,
Opeyemi Ajala, Mary Bamidele, Shalom Yinka, Chidera Osih, Tope
Ejide, Winnie Ameh, Oluwatobiloba Adeosun, and Adeniran
Imran.
And to the entire University of Ilorin Students community, I am

grateful for all the lessons and experiences given to me directly and
indirectly.
Most importantly, I am grateful to God Almighty for being a source

that never runs dry.
DEDICATION
This Book is dedicated to every Nigerian Student giving their

best to thrive in the education system that is hoped to get better.
You are made for much more than you know. Go get it all!
I am rooting for you.
ii
FOREWORD
Intriguing! This title instantly startles the reader and creates
curiosity. I guess that's the whole idea.
Bold , daring, outlier are words that come to mind as you seek to
describe the audacity of this book to challenge conventional
wisdom and probe the deeper questions of "Why higher
education?”
I have sat as chairperson for youth development sub committee at

the Nigerian Economic Summit Group, I have trained at least 5000
teachers, school leaders and education policy makers...one thing I
can tell you for certain is this: we need to radically reform the
thinking of fresh men and women who aspire to get an education in
the 21st century. And this book has drawn first blood.
For the young who think education is a scam, brace yourselves for
the brutal honesty of this book . To those who hinge their life's
aspirations to cutting corners and just getting by any which way,
prepare for a rude awakening. Don't just read this book, use it.
Bookmark portions of it. Highlight ideas you can deploy.
Map out a winning study strategy from its precepts. Digest its
contents and wrap it as a gift of pure value to anyone you care
about. Steven Loya is loyal to the mandate of raising Africa's
Intellectual and Creative class and his brilliant work with the Elite
Smartan academy, as Chief of Operations is eloquent testimonials
of his credentials as an Education Reformer .
I'm recommending this as a must read for all undergraduates and

prospective candidates for higher education across the continent
and indeed anywhere. How about we push the SCAM PROJECT !
Johnson Abbaly
Founder, Achievers Consortium International
Author of UNLEASHED !
iii
THE SCAM INTRODUCTION
Is school really a scam?
At 7am, Dara sent me a message on the green app, she seemed

confused, scared, lonely, unsure of what she had gotten into.
T H I N G S Y O U W E R E N O T T O L D A B O U T S C H O O L
Dara was in a new environment, and as she considered the fact that
she is alone, left to cater for her own self in a strange land, she felt
tears gather in her eyes.
Everyone else around her was just like her, not sure of how to
handle the new environment, living every second, minute, and hour
of the day hoping to just get into the flow of the new normal.
Prior to that moment, she had been excited about the thrill of
starting a new phase of her life on in the University.
When I got her message that day, I called her over the phone and
said "would you like to cry to my ears?”
This was the experience of one of my mentees who just got

admitted into one of the foremost Universities of Technology in
West Africa. /////////////////////////////////////////////
Why did I start by sharing with you this experience?

Just like Dara, a good percent of university students had a similar
experience like hers, at least in their first year of school. While some
get to adapt quickly with the surreal realities of the new campus life,
others find it difficult to adapt quickly until much later after so many
terrible experiences.
“University” as used in this book, is used to refer to all forms of

tertiary institutions of learning in Nigeria; Polytechnics, and
College of Education.
iv
What you will discover in this book is going to change everything
you have ever believed about the University, the decisions you
will make and especially the way you think.
I spent three years and four months in the trenches of the

University, involved myself in activities, volunteered my time and
experiences, got my shirt dirty and my hair covered with dust to get
all the information contained in this book.
I did not write this book to tell you what you want to hear, or sugar
coat things or make you pumped up, this book was written to make
you feel uncomfortable, to dare you to start taking actions that
would revolutionize your very existence.
If you don’t want to make a transformative shift, it is not too late to

close this book and return it back to the shelf.
If you have read up to this point of this book it means you are
interested to know about those things you were not told about
school.
Trust me, I am not going to promise you heaven and earth or even a
ride to the moon, but one thing I can tell you for free is that, you are
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in for a transformative experience, and guess what? I will be with
you all the way.
You have my word!
v
THE SCAM CHAPTER 1
School Vs Education
You have no excuse for you to be uninformed if you have the initiative to educate
yourself, absolutely no excuse.
So, why did I put those two phrases “school” and “education” on a
pedestal where I have to compare them?
Before I go further to share my thoughts on these two

misconstrued words, what do you think are the differences between
them?
Getting a full understanding of what school is and what education

is, would go a long way in helping you make the most of your study
year.
While there are thousands of literary, societal and scholarly

meanings of ‘school’ and ‘education’, I will explain in a few words:
A school is a system, a physical or virtual structure that is put in

place to allow you receive guided instructions for learning. While
/////////////////////////////////////////////
education is the manifestation of enlightenment that you have
received through learning.
A school provides you with instructions from lecturers in form of

lectures, it provides you with a community of diverse individuals
from all walks of life, like we have in a University (universitas
magistrorum et scholarium, which roughly means "community of
teachers and scholars) and it provides you with a truck load of
opportunities.
The description of what education is implies that, for you to say you
are educated, you must manifest some level of enlightenment,
1
education should bring out the perfection that is already instilled in
you. You should become a refined person being educated by
attending a school at some point in your life. Education helps you to
be cultured, to behave in certain acceptable ways.
By understanding this, your utmost goal in school is to get educated.

While this differs by the location and school system, you have no
excuse for you to be uninformed if you have the initiative to
educate yourself, absolutely no excuse.
Is school really a scam?
Students believe the notion “school na scam” because of their view

of what a school is.
You call school a scam because you see it for its exams, grades and
certificate only, not for the experiences and refinement it gives you.
When education is absent in the life of a man, it will show in some
ways, the sad truth is, when you suffer from the effect of not getting
educated even after you’ve been in school, the society won’t strip
the school naked, you will be the one stripped naked, affected by the
consequences, then you would wish that you’d paid your due
diligence when you had the opportunity.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
The University won’t teach you how to get educated, you will only
be provided deliberately or not deliberately a community, avenues,
and instructions that would help you learn.
It is you, who has to translate them into tools for growth and
refinement.
What you were not told about School #1
You were not told that you would have to use those tools and
opportunities provided by school as a tool for refinement,
perfecting what is already inside of you.
2
THE SCAM CHAPTER 2
Coping with Harsh Realities

Sometimes things will go your way, and on other occasions they won’t.
One fateful evening in September 2018, just like most of you
reading this book, I checked my admission status on my JAMB
portal and I saw the most anticipated message of the season.
I had waited about 10 days to get that message after seeing

admission in progress on my admission portal.
Prior to that time, I had applied to study Pharmacy at the University

of Ilorin without getting an admission offer. This time around, I
had gotten a clearer clarity of purpose, this led me to applying to
study Educational Technology. The most anticipated message was
this: Congratulations Steven Loya, you have been offered a 4-year
FIRST DEGREE Programme into the University of Ilorin, Kwara
state, course, Educational Technology in the Faculty of Education.
Below the message was an option to accept or decline.

/////////////////////////////////////////////
Guess what I did? You guessed right, I carefully hit the accept tab.
One of the most powerful abilities given to every individual is the

power of choice, the ability to make decisions.
Clicking on the accept tab is a first step to agreeing to take on every

challenge and opportunity that getting admitted into an institution
has to offer. Another step is paying an acceptance fee, confirming
that you have fully accepted your admission offer.
In between all these stages are moments where you could decide
not to accept the admission offer or even continue with the
3
admission process but you continued anyway.
The moment you pay the acceptance fee and go through all the
rigorous stages of admission clearance and thereafter wearing a
matriculation gown, you are in for it already.
The picture most teenagers and young people have of what

studying in a University is, especially a Nigerian university, is totally
different when compared to the realities they have to face when
they finally get into the system.
It is believed that you were offered admission because you have a

mission, the school just adds to it, that is why it is called ad-mission.
Ranging from Universities to Universities there are some harsh
realities you would have to face. While these realities might be
different across different Universities in Nigeria, there are some
common realities we all share.
Let me guess, one of the pictures you have of the University is this
cozy lecture room where everyone will have a seat to themselves,
the projector or interactive board is working perfectly well, and this
lecturer in a suit and tie stands in front of the class to talk as nicely as
possible, making you understand why benzene in organic chemistry
has to be cyclic, or explaining to you how Edward Thorndike’s
/////////////////////////////////////////////
learning theory led to the development of operant conditioning
within Behaviorism, or why Chinua Achebe choose a particular
theme for a novel, and with a class containing students who are
listening attentively.
LOL, while this is so beautiful and would be termed as a perfect

learning environment, you will have to cope with the realities of
attending classes with 250 to 300 plus students for a departmental
course in a small lecture room where a large amount of students will
be standing, and attend classes with other 1000 plus students for a
Faculty course if you are in a Faculty like Agriculture or Education
at the University of Ilorin.
4
Other harsh realities you would have to face are: unfavorable lecture
periods, unbalanced academic calendar, difficult times when you
have to write tests and exams in a single sitting termed as
“texamination,” financial difficulties, insecurity, mental health
depletion, transportation challenges, crazy workloads, getting
stressed till you feel like quitting. The list is endless.
Getting prepared ahead of time for these realities ahead of time
would save you a ton but if they meet you unaware? understanding
that these realities are just hiccups on your way to making the most
out of the university will help you a great deal.
I have been in literally all situations listed above and I can tell you for
free that I scaled through; took charge of the situations, took full
control of them and came out stronger than ever.
One biggest mistake you will be making is allowing the realities to

sit at the driver’s seat of your life.
Just like in a vehicle, the driver is in full control, and God help you if
the driver is drunk or having mind battles, or reckless, you would
have to pray until you get to your destination or get off the bus to
find the next sane driver.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
Instead of letting these realities sit at the driver’s seat of your life as
a student, you’ve got to sit on that seat, steering the wheel, stepping
on the accelerator and switching the gears. These realities are
enough to make you want to pull your hair out but by learning how
to cope well with these realities, you will be able to live happily as a
student, maximizing the opportunities that comes with the
University community without succumbing to the pangs of stress
that these harsh realities can cruelly impose upon you.
University, just like the world, is an utterly unpredictable place; it’s a

frightening thought, but at the same time it’s also kind of
5
wonderful, if you’re prepared for it.
Putting yourself in the mindset that absolutely anything might be

lying around the corner in wait can actively improve your
personality and help you to deal with life when times get a little
tough.
In the course of this book project, I carried out a survey on students
“things you were not told about school”. Part of the survey
question was to find out if the ideas students had about school are
the same as what they experienced. 60% of students asserted that
the ideas they had about school were totally different from what
they experienced, forcing them to find ways of coping well with the
new normal.
Were the ideas you had about school same as what you experience when you got in?
500 responses
/////////////////////////////////////////////

You were not told of the harsh realities that come with the
University and how to cope well with them, you were only given
beautiful pictures and stories of how the University is.
6
THE SCAM CHAPTER 3
Earning and Learning

Remember those times when your parents delayed getting what you wanted?
Now you will appreciate them more when you have to work some hours to earn
your urgent 2k.
Growing up, atimes I had to wait till the end of the month to make
some kind of request or even get part of my school fees paid. While
I attended quality private schools all through primary and first 3
years of secondary school, I didn't get the opportunity to have my
school fees paid upfront.
As a first child, I have seen how hardworking my parents are while

trying to give me and my siblings the best.
Besides my dad’s job at a company, he runs an interior & exterior
business, this exposed me to learning how to paint at an early stage
of my life. I started doing some basic painting activities before age
12 and at age 15, I could paint a whole room, yes! a whole room.
While those experiences shaped me up, they became assets and
survival tools for me in the University.
It is no longer news that many young people go into the University

unprepared, unskilled, and naive. /////////////////////////////////////////////
One huge mistake you would make is going into the University
without acquiring some basic skills. As basic as creating
presentations using PowerPoint, it's appalling to know that even at
final year level, you will still find a large population of students who
can’t change the font type and size of their name on PowerPoint.
If not technical skills, building other competencies would give you
an edge while in school.
Let's say you don't even have skills in video editing, graphics design,
or photography, you should know how to write, or sell.
7
Question:
If situations should flip, what do you have that is marketable?
University life has to be one of the best periods of your life, and a
time where you not only lay the foundations of a successful career
but a time to learn how to earn. The good part is, you don’t even
have to resume physically at a location or own a big shop before you
can make money.
With the internet, earning has been made easy. While it takes time
and consistency to build a regular income, the returns are great.
Here is a short list of 20 things you could do to earn money legally
• Get paid by • Sewing

writing • Make-up
• Get paid for • Voice over artist
watching videos • Painting
• Video editing • Gift/Jewelry/wri
• Photography st watch plug
• Graphics design • Thrift wears
• Event compere store
• Advertise for • Mini importation
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businesses on • Laundry
your whatsapp • Private tutoring
status • Baking
• Accomodation • Hair making
agent
• Food services
Earning in the University exposes you to certain experiences you

would ordinarily not get if you are a ‘regular’ student. If your
earning in school is on salary bases, that is, you get paid at the end of
8
each month, you will quickly understand what I termed as the
“salary circle'' early enough.
Let me quickly explain what I call the salary circle; let's say you get
paid N30,000 at the end of the month as a student, you would
realize that after taking out some part of the money to sort out
some basic stuffs like, internet subscription fee for a month,
savings, as a Christian you give tithe, you pay yourself a certain
percentage, if you are like me, you take out a certain percentage to
buy a book for the month, etc.
You would realize that what’s left will not be enough to take you
more than 15 days of the new month. It continues month in, month
out. This is what I call the salary circle. The earlier you get exposed
to it, experience it, the better for you.
Now you are getting to understand why your salary earning parents
will have to ask you to wait till the end of the month before they sort
some things out.
One thing is clear, as you grow older, your commitments and

responsibilities increase, so will your bills increase. Among the
numerous benefits earning as a student does for you is that, you
/////////////////////////////////////////////
would have understood the salary circle such that you would be able
to negotiate a fair salary when you decide to take on a job after
school.
Making money even while studying will help you not to get freaked
out by the N33,000 “alawee” that is being paid to Corp members
monthly during Youth service year.
It could be frustrating when you have to ask your parents for money
to get everything you need as a student. Making your own money
would help take care of some basic necessities like, paying to attend
a masterclass, club/association commitments fee, pair of sneakers,
etc. 9
One benefit of earning your own pay, is that it helps you learn how
to manage your finances early enough.
Activity:
1. Write out three things you are really good at
2. From the three things, which one is your strongest that could
potentially be your source of income as a student?
3. Let's say you can't even write three things. What skill would you
like to learn while you are in school?

You were NOT told about opportunities to earn, invest, and
master the art of selling while studying in the University. What
you were told is work really hard at school to get better grades
which would translate to better prospects then more money.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
10
THE SCAM CHAPTER 4
Building Social Capital

Today's most valuable currency is social capital, defined as the information,
expertise, trust, and total value that exist in the relationships you have and social
networks to which you belong -Keith Ferrazzi
Recall that in my definition of what a school is in the earlier chapter
of this book, I mentioned that a school provides you with a
community of diverse individuals from all walks of life.
A school with an average population of forty-four thousand

undergraduates like the University of Ilorin, represents a
population that is larger than some of the world's smallest countries
according to a year 2021 ranking. This is mind-boggling, realizing
that I am literally schooling in an environment equivalent to a
country.
Building and sustaining many solid, strong relationships would be

one of my biggest takeaways from the University. Across all phases
in life, one of the phases where you have the opportunity to build a
strong and vibrant network is the University.
Before delving into all what you need to know about building a high /////////////////////////////////////////////
value-yielding social capital as a University student, it is important

to have a little knowledge of other types of capital:
Human Capital: This is what you have inside of you, your

expertise, your experience, your skill, your education. We often
think of how we can improve our human capital, that is why we go
to school to get an education, sign up for masterclasses and other
upgrade programmes, take online courses etc.
Financial Capital: This is your economic worth in terms of

money used to set yourself up, start a business, pay for services
11
rendered, and in reserve for future use. This could be gotten
through legal earnings from working in a job, profit from business,
investments, etc.
Physical Capital: These are your tangible assets in terms of

mobile gadgets, machineries, etc.
Social capital is a measure of the value of a relationship that exists
among people and the impact this relationship has on the resources
involved in the relationship. Social capital are intangible assets such
as trust and goodwill that emerge from our relationships and social
interactions. To put it in a simpler term, social capital is the strength
and quality of the people you call your network and the value their
relationship brings to you and them.
Social capital cannot be talked about without the exchange of

values. One thing you will feel contrite about is leaving the
University without building the right social capital.
The University has a truckload of potential industry leaders,

business unicorns, top professionals, excellent international
realtors, politicians, governors, ministers, the list is endless. The fact
is, so many students you meet on campus exhibit these traits, but
/////////////////////////////////////////////
you ignore the signs and decide to go solo on campus.
One profound thing I enjoyed during my undergraduate days is my

relationship with some of the A-list students on campus. These are
students with crystal clear vision, laser-like focus and unrivaled
passion for impact. These are the kind of students that constituted
my network, I call them “my guys”. My biggest surprise in life
would be, these guys not making global headlines.
Now you are thinking, in a school having over forty thousand

undergraduates how did I manage to build a network of some of
the finest students on campus? I will provide you with the answer in
the following paragraphs. 12
There is no rule of thumb in building a strong vibrant social capital
as a University student, but one sure thing to note is, it starts with
You!
One of the principles of attraction is the principle of similarity,

contrary to the law of magnetism that opposite attracts while
similarity repels.
In the principle of similarity, you attract people who share similar
interests, beliefs, goals, aspirations or motivation with you. Those
who share similarities with you validate your thoughts and actions,
hence in building relationships, the first and most important
component is YOU.
You shouldn't expect to attract positive people with huge dreams to

change the world when you are all negative with mediocre thoughts.
I see people talk about fake friends every now and then, the truth is
fake people attract fake people, real people attract real people.
Life happens, people change, it still doesn't dispossess the fact that
you attract who you are.
You attract the kind of people you want to associate with. You want
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to have a network of highly valuable people who will challenge you
to be a better version of yourself ? people who would help you get
more creative? people who would bring out the best in you? people
who would connect you with opportunities? Then work on who
you are by taking ACTION.
The word capital means value. It's astonishing the kind of value we
get from our relationships.
While as humans we have a natural proclivity to always look at what

we can get out of something, building relationships shouldn't be
transactional but transformational.
13
What would make you get value from relationships is when you
focus on what you can give, not what you always want. You should
be able to give real value to your networks within a social capital. To
get real-time value from your social capital, you have to be playing a
role, you shouldn't expect to get things on a silver platter when you
are complacent in your network. It takes being trustworthy,
possessing integrity, and embodiment of consistency to enjoy the
benefits of social capital.
Through relationships, I usually with reciprocity get things that
ordinarily I would have to pay for as a student. Building social
capital as a student and throughout life gives you instrumental
value- saves you money. The theory of Dunbar's number holds that
a typical person has 150 important relationships in their lives to
maintain per time.
As a University student, you need to build valuable relationships

with the following persons:
• people that would prop you up,

• people that would help you get creative, that second when you
need it, and
• people that would inspire you.
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With a strong social capital, anyone in the network can open the
gate for those who are coming behind.
The length of your connection: Contrary to what you are

thinking about having a very large network to build a vibrant social
capital, your energy should be exerted towards quality over quantity
because it takes time and conscious efforts to maintain very large
relationships.
The strength of your social capital matters over the quantity of your
social capital. There should be a balance between the number of
14
relationships and what they can do for you and the amount of time
you want to spend on them.
For example, having a large Facebook or Instagram followers

doesn't translate to having a vibrant social capital, in most cases you
don't have a really close relationship with up to 50% of your
Facebook followers.
Another relatable example is this, in your department, instead of
trying to build close relationships with every student, you should
focus on building and maintaining close relationships with those
with similar interests and values like you.
According to Pareto’s principle also known as the 80/20 rule, 20%

of the people in every space produce 80% of results or impact,
likewise, 80% of your results are caused by 20% of your efforts. By
now you should understand what I am driving at; streamline your
close relationships.
The breadth of your connections: In building social capital, you

need to think about how many different connections you have that
provide you with different things, different ideas, different access to
resources, different access to contacts, and different ways of
/////////////////////////////////////////////
thinking about the world. The broader your connection, the well-
furnished you are, you will get access to different ideas, different
resources and different influences.
Breadth doesn't mean lots of connection centered within a

particular group or location, it means making connections across
different groups. Let's explore the practicality of this concept in
three stages, using my alma mata, University of Ilorin for example.
University of Ilorin has fifteen (15) faculties and each faculty has
numbers ranging from 3 to 10 departments under them.
15
Scenario 1
Department: Educational Technology
My department has three units, consisting of 100-400L across each

unit. The units are: Technology Education, Computer Science
Education and Educational Technology.
I am in the Educational Technology unit; hence it is only normal
that I build relationships with people in my unit.
As an individual who is committed to giving value, transforming

lives and influencing people, what I did was to build a small network
of valuable relationships among my course mates and a very small
network across each junior level, that way I could literally have
access to a very large percentage of students in my unit. In my unit,
2 out of every 5 students are familiar with the name Steven Loya.
There are still two other units left. Instead of trying to build
relationships with a small network of students across each level of
these two units, what I did was building relationships with
influential students in these other two units. That way, if I need a
flier to get across each level of these two other units, it will, due to
my relationship with the influential students.
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This is how to build a breadth of social capital in your department.
Scenario 2
Faculty: Education
My faculty of education has 9 departments. It would be draining

and unproductive to try to build relationships with students across
each level, each unit, and each department. Rather, what I did was to
build a few networks across some of the departments then use the
strengthened close network I have with students in my department
as mentioned in the first scenario to reach other students.
16
The beautiful thing is, somehow, everyone is connected to each
other directly or indirectly.
Scenario 3
Campus: University of Ilorin permanent site.
University of Ilorin has fifteen faculties and I can tell you for free
that I know at least five to ten influential persons in each of these
faculties. That is how you build social capital in a school of an
average population of forty-four thousand undergraduates larger
than some of the world's smallest countries.
From the scenarios above you would note two things, quality
network and breadth of network. I will sound too perfect and
unrealistic to say I built this quality of social capital within a
semester.
As a matter of fact, I got admitted into 200L i.e. Year 2, through a

direct entry admission. At 400L (year 4), I have built vibrant
relationships with a large percentage of students doing great stuff
on campus, those who I don’t have a direct relationship with, I have
someone in my network who has a direct relationship with them.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
In my network of social capital, I have student politicians, faculty
and departmental presidents, Students Union officials (the highest
students’ leadership body on campus), campus journalists, leaders
of students’ clubs and associations like (the American Society for
Quality, Achievers Consortium, the Investment Society, Tax club,
Junior Chamber International, AIESEC, etc.), students running
businesses, and organizations and leaders of Christian campus
fellowships.
These relationships were valuable relationships that took time to

build, I ensured I was also giving value to those directly involved in
the relationship. This is how social capital works; you consistently
give value. 17
Managing Social Capital
In managing social capital, you have to consider the following:
• Set your goals (what value are you getting and what do you hope
to gain from the relationship).
• Manage your time (your major commitment is to your academic
activities. Creating time to manage your relationships should in
no way affect your academic performance).
• What connection and resources you need and the part of your
connection that would be providing you with them. Eg,
financial capital, influence, and contacts, etc.
• How broad your network has to be? (Depending on your goals
as a student, the breadth of your network might not necessarily
have to be as large as mine. Irrespective of how broad it is, make
sure you are building a good reputation of trust, integrity and
consistency.)
Meeting the 20% of students
You will be the clown of the year if you expect to meet 20% of
students by staying all day behind closed doors in your student
apartment all through the semester and session.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
“Every association is a fellowship. And every association is a
Leverage...They accelerate your acquisition of a behaviour or
habit” -Johnson Abbaly
The 20% of students moving the needle, blazing trails and calling
the shots are out there doing what they know how to do best,
making an impact. If you want to have them in your network, you
will have to go out there where you can find them.
You can find them on the walk ways, at events, students club and
associations (most of the trail blazers on campus are part of an
18
organization, they caught-on early enough to know that you can't
grow and gain competency in isolation. “Great things die in
isolation”-Johnson Abbaly), they are out there on social networking
platforms like LinkedIn (if you want to go into the professional
space, this is one place you must be).
As an undergraduate, I was a member and Chief Strategy

Coordinator of Achievers Consortium UNILORIN, Public
Relations Chair of the American Society for quality, organizing
team of the HULT Prize UNILORIN. I have also functioned as a
committee member for different programs on campus including
the Students Union Writers Workshop where I anchored the
physical event.
After University, you would likely forget your course codes and sad
experiences. One of your biggest takeaways from the University
should be a vibrant social capital that would see you through
beyond your time in the University.
As mentioned in the earlier chapter of this book, the school

provides you with opportunities to meet people, leverage on these
opportunities and make the most out of it. To be successful doesn't
just entail what you know, it entails who you know and what they
/////////////////////////////////////////////
know about you and their willingness to help you.
The question is, why should they help you? How many people have
you helped?

You were not told that the school is a place where you can build
valuable relationships and social capital that would see you
through the next phases of your life. These relationships are like
landed properties, they appreciate overtime
19
THE SCAM CHAPTER 5
Community Failure
You see this course ehn, even the scholar of our department failed it. If you have
a “C” in this course or a “D” just thank God, at least it is not carryover.
During my second semester of 200 level, we took a course with the
code EDU 212, titled Tests and Measurements. Prior to taking the
course, I had heard several remarks about the course from people
who had taken the course before us and those who know someone
who has taken the course. The reputation of that course preceded it
so much that at 200 level first semester the winds had started
spreading its fear among students.
Your guess is right! All the remarks we got about the course was
centered around how scary the course was and how many people
failed the course. You will hear statements like “even some of our
departmental scholars, carried over the course”. Was I affected by
the remarks? Yes, I was! Infact, I had started accepting the course as
a difficult course before attending its classes.
Let me remind you that this book was written just for you, you have
made a very wise decision by getting this book. I care so much about /////////////////////////////////////////////
you that I don’t want you to make the same mistakes I made during
my undergraduate days.
While carrying on with the mindset of how scary the course was, I
took my first CA test. Damn, from my performance from the test, I
knew that I had to do something drastic, otherwise I would have to
finish the course with a grade I won't be proud of for the rest of my
life.
I sat with the course material and began to study the course just to
find out that I was scared for nothing. I found out that I could
20
actually pass this course and there is nothing to be scared of. I
beefed up my preparation, organized tutorials, which my friend
Faruq Kelani and I took. Before the exam day, I had covered about
80% of the material and with the help of the Holy Spirit, I prepared
for the exam. If at all you want to fail, at least fail trying!
Fast forward to when the result was made available, I ended up with
a “B”. Check out my grade below. The 13.00 was recorded for my
performance at the test over 40 while the 49.00 was recorded for my
performance at the exam over 60.
Everything you can ever become starts from your mind. Your
success starts from your mind and your failure originates from your
mind. You begin to pass a course right from your mind and you also
begin to fail a course right from your mind. Everything starts from
the mind!
Just like me I had believed public opinion and that affected my view
of the course, the moment I decided to set the record straight, I
began to see entirely new possibilities different from what I first
had, then my mind began to adjust to the new possibilities.
That is how powerful the mind works.

/////////////////////////////////////////////
Your mind doesn't care what you say to yourself, good or bad, right
or wrong, it doesn't give a darn!
Whatever is processed in your mind has a physical reaction and

emotional response, once you've accepted that course is difficult, an
emotional response follows it. Once you accept the lowest of
grades even before you sit for the exam, you will get the result just as
you have thought in your mind.
Wait a second, I found out something, failure seems to be louder

than success.
21
Let me put it another way, failure gets more publicity than success
.
How did I know this?
I have studied several times that, for every examination result
released, the failures are more announced than the successes.
Each time we get updated on the upload of a course result, most

people who rant about the result are those who had lower grades,
the department WhatsApp group gets flooded with messages of
people who are lamenting, complaining or catching cruise about
how poor their result was. And because people are very
comfortable when other people fail like them, they come out to talk
about theirs too to find succor.
This is what I termed as “community failure”.
Since the group chat is flooded with messages of people

complaining of how poor their results are, it gives off the notion
that everyone had low scores unbeknownst to them that for every
course people fail, there are still the 20% of students who got As
and Bs.
During my 300 level second semester break, I had to show a friend a

/////////////////////////////////////////////
page on my portal. It eventually led me to checking my result portal
where I discovered that the result of a dreaded course had been
uploaded.
I had an A!
I went on to my department group to announce the result upload

without mentioning my grade.
Guess what? A few minutes later the group was flooded with
messages of people ranting and complaining as usual, their ranting
gave a perspective that the course was a total failure.
22
And that was not true, because I knew friends in my circle who had
an A grade. What I observed was, most people who had ‘A’ didn't
say a word. Same thing goes to other general courses; you only get
to hear of the failures.
As a student you will also experience the same, you will hear
feedback on how scary a course is. When you accept those opinions,
your mind accepts them as facts and in turn affects your reality.
The words you use form your reality and when you change your
words, you change your reality. The way you respond to anything is
hinged on two things, the picture you make in your head and the
words you say to yourself.
The pictures you use and the words that come after it forms your
reality, hence when you paint a picture of difficulty and failure in
your head, your result will reflect the same.
You must have the mindset of, if anyone is passing this course, let
me be that person. Be that one person who refuses to succumb to
community failure, when they say students usually fail the course,
you say to yourself if there are only ten students who will pass this
course, I am going to be among those ten.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
I understand that as a student there are challenging courses, I
understand that as a student sometimes you can't control the
outcome of some courses, still, that which you can control, you’ve
got to control it.
The concept of community failure isn't just something that

happens in the school, it's a culture that has been ingrained into the
very fabric of our existence as Africans. When we don't have a
power supply in our homes and discover that our neighbour does, it
hurts us, but when we don't and our neighbour doesn't as well, we
feel comfortable in it, after all we are all in the same condition.
23
That is how community failure works, you have to be that one
person.
Even if you end up not passing a course after intensified

preparations for the exam you should have a mindset of; I don’t fail,
it's either succeed or I learn. That mindset helps you get up after a
setback.
How you handle or respond to low grades is also determined by the
kind of association you keep. Surrounding yourself with people
who don't feel comfortable with succumbing to low grades will go a
long way to help you set high targets for yourself.
Check your circle of friends right now, are you surrounded with
people who say things like “Even if na D, I go manage am”, “make
the lecturer just give me C, I go dey alright” or you surround
yourself with people who have a target of getting A’s in all courses
and in the worst case scenario have a “B”.
These things matter a lot, if you want to say school is a scam with
your full chest even if school isn't, say it having good grades that
you can be proud of. Say it after you must have made your parents'
investment in you worth it.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
Don’t be a bad investment!
Don’t join the bandwagon of students who won't study and

prepare for tests and exams until the morning of the exam, while
some may pass the examination narrowly, something is lacking-
Discipline in execution, excellent work ethics and culture.
It is normal, in fact it's a phenomenon that is part of the school

community to be told about how difficult a course is and how no
one passed the course. When you accept those opinions, your mind
accepts them as facts and in turn affects your reality.
24
. You were not told about how to handle failure as an
undergraduate or how to ruthlessly deal with community failure.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
25
THE SCAM CHAPTER 6
Building Capacity
You most likely won't make the most out of school if you only see
the school as a place where you get the grades only.
As mentioned in the earlier chapter of this book, the school
provides you with lots of amazing opportunities that would last you
a lifetime. Building your capacity is one of those enormous
opportunities the school provides you with. The time spent in the
University can be used to your advantage, it is supposed to create
opportunities for you, opportunity to invest in yourself,
opportunity to build capacity.
Building capacity is a conscious effort of investing in yourself.
While it is a foul idea to go into the University unskilled and without

some level of human capacity, it would be more devastating to
graduate out of the University without building capacity.
Building capacity is in the form of human capital development.

During one of my mind-shifting conversations with my best friend,
/////////////////////////////////////////////
Opeyemi Ajala, a 400-level medical student of Medicine & Surgery
at the University of Ilorin, he mentioned that “you have no excuse
for not developing yourself.”
It is believed that the 400-level phase of Medicine is the most

rigorous and one of the defining moments of your study as a
Medical student, the phase spans a 14-months stretched academic
activities combined with a series of exams, practical and postings.
Now you are beginning to imagine how rigorous that phase is, yet
Opeyemi is of the opinion that you have no excuse! None at all.
One of your biggest deceptions as an undergraduate will be “there

is no time.”
26
The truth is, there can never be time, you’ve got to create that time.
As an undergraduate, I have seen students complain about

everything, they complain about how long classes are for the day,
they complain when there is no class, they complain when exams
are fixed, they complain of how hectic it could be leaving campus
after the day’s activity, they complain of having no time, the list is
endless.
All these are still not an excuse for not building capacity while you
are in school, do you know why?
Reality hits differently as soon as you are released from the strong
jaws of the University. In the real world, you would have to put your
time management skills to good use, but you can't use what you
don’t have. I will elaborate on this in the final chapter of this book.
There is no better time to build capacity as a young person other

than the time spent in the University. The University provides you
with:
• Free access to programs/conferences.

• Masterclasses.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
• Internationally recognized associations/societies
• Crazy young people who are hungry for growth, relevance and
impact.
• It provides you with time to read books and listen to podcasts.
• Opportunity to get direct teachings from your religious leaders.
• Opportunity to be mentored and coached by people who have
gone ahead of you.
You are as relevant as the content inside of you, as a matter of fact

you can’t go farther than what you have built capacity for. Building
capacity stretches your mind, changes the way you think and how
you see the world around you, it increases your chances to “roll with
27
the big boys.”
So many people out there would have done better in making the
most out of school if they had the opportunity to read a book like
this one right in your hands, c’mon you can do better. In the process
of building capacity in school, you will discover new and exciting
things about yourself, this is what education is meant to be-
Perfecting what is already inside of you.
There is no rule of thumb in building capacity, but here are the
important things that would help you to be a stellar person, in no
particular order:
Read books asides your regular academic materials: One of

my regrets as an undergraduate would be, not investing in buying
and reading hard copy books early enough. I discovered late that,
when I spend my hard-earned money to buy books, I will have no
choice but to read them. In the past I read eBooks, but I wanted
more. Now, you have no excuse to not read a book when e-copies
of any kind of book are flying around. There are even audio books
you can listen to. At the time of writing this chapter, I had bought
eight hard copy books within a space of 8 months through my ‘buy
a book per month commitment.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
Listen to podcasts: This is one of the fastest ways to consume
content on the go. On the google podcast app, anchor, Spotify,
apple podcast, etc., there are podcasts across almost every topic you
want to explore, from spirituality, personal development, business,
tech, down to education, etc. In the last page of this book, I will be
recommending some podcasts.
Be a part of registered Campus organizations: Some of the

brightest students are found in campus organizations. Being a
member of registered campus organizations gives you the
opportunity to access contents and people you would ordinarily not
28
come across. Membership to most, if not all campus organizations
are free to students, but joining them after school usually requires
some sort of membership fee. Why not join when it's on FREE
access?
Take on leadership roles: Taking up leadership roles in campus

organizations and at my church helped me a great deal in stretching
myself. I was leading some of the most brilliant students on
campus, this kept me on my toes, and it paid off.
Engage in intellectual debates and conversations: When you

engage in intellectual conversations with people, it opens your mind
to new information and possibilities, helps you to unlearn, relearn
and learn, it also helps your communication and people skills.
Attend physical & virtual programmes: We should honor you

with the award of “snoozer of the year” if after 4 to 5 years in the
University you cannot identify one to five programmes you
voluntarily attended with the aim of gaining new knowledge or
skills. On average, before you graduate as a university student, you
will see the flyers of at least 100 seminars, workshops,
masterclasses, conferences, crash courses, inaugural lectures etc.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
These programmes are usually organized by spiritual communities,
campus organizations, departmental associations, faculty
associations, private organizations, and individuals like myself, etc
and are usually packed with lots of benefits at mostly FREE access,
all you have to do mostly is to register and attend. What is going to
be your excuse for not getting your seat at the table?
Acquire & develop digital skills: According to UNESCO, in

2018, 95 % of the global population lives in an area covered by at
least a 2G mobile network. UNESCO defines digital skills as “a
range of abilities to use digital devices, communication
applications, and networks to access and manage information. So,
29
your excuse is “I don’t have a laptop.” Where there is intention and
drive, nothing can stop you from acquiring a digital skill. A lot can
be done for a start on your mobile phone. You start with what you
have to get what you want. Developing yourself with at least a
digital skill goes a long way in building your capacity. Having a
digital skill as an undergraduate has proven to be one of the survival
tools you will need at this phase.
Have a mentor or coach: As an undergraduate, I have enjoyed
easy rides on the back of mentors and coaches who have gone
ahead of me or have more experience in certain areas than I do.
Experience is the best teacher doesn’t mean you have to fall into the
same pit others have fallen. Getting mentored or coached by the
right person(s) would increase your chances of growth and prevent
you from falling into some avoidable ditches.
Travel: People don’t get to talk about this as a means of building

your capacity. You will be comfortable with the mindset of “my
dad’s farmland is the largest”, until you leave your environment and
see a larger farmland. When you can, it doesn't have to be a very far
location from your school; travel.
Commit to a spiritual community: Nothing in this world works

/////////////////////////////////////////////
without a spiritual backing, absolutely nothing! Humans are
spiritual beings and it’s only appropriate to develop a spiritual life.
When a spiritual life is absent or not developed, we tend to find
means of filling that vacuum by engaging in some physical activities
like drug addiction, cultism, etc. As a Christian, I have learnt that,
committing to a spiritual community- church, helps in forging you
for the present and future.
It is important to reiterate that your time in university is one of the

defining phases of your life that will chart the course of your life
forever. If you fail to build capacity at this phase, you might have to
start playing and praying catch-up prayer.
30
Building capacity is simply developing your volume (content), what
you have in your content will determine the kind of result you will
get after this phase
Take Online Courses: The School is feeding you with outdated

information uh? improve yourself by taking online courses. You
can find some on Coursera and other platforms for free or at an
affordable cost. The world won’t take your excuse of not being
taught in school.
It is okay to not have a wide repertoire of digital skills, but it is

devastating to not have at all.

You were not told that the University is a defining phase of your
life, hence the need to build capacity while in school- read other
books other than your academic books, join organizations, have
a mentor, acquire digital skills, travel, commit to a spiritual
community, for this is what bring out the perfection that is
already in you.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
31
THE SCAM CHAPTER 7
There are Future Governors &

Presidents in this room
Growing up, I heard stories of how dirty politics could be even at
the University level. While there are understandable reasons to why
such picture is painted, we still can’t leave politics at national and
school level in the hands of incompetent, and intellectually average
people.
Among other things that was yodelled in our subconscious while

growing up especially in some settings is “don't join politics on
campus”. Do I blame them or condemn them for saying such? No.
However, where the confusion lies is when the same people during
conferences and sermons utter statements or declarations like
“There are future Governors & Presidents in this room.” As an
inquisitive person, I get to ask myself the “how” question.
How will one become a governor or president without participating

in politics? Well, maybe that can happen, but I am yet to see one of
/////////////////////////////////////////////
such cases.
Joining the University, I had that mindset of “don’t join politics on

campus.” I took time to study the whole politics thing and how it
affects students.
One of my conclusions is this, even if you are not going to get fully
involved in politics, you should have student politicians in your
network, especially those who are not just blinded by the charades
of politics but are true leaders with vision.
Ordinarily, I am a leader who has coached other leaders to become

much better. It is believed that participating in politics and going on
32
to take on a political position could have given me the opportunity
to do things I ordinarily wouldn't be able to do as a student leader;
however, I believe strongly that there are those who have influence
because of the man they have become.
My decision not to participate in politics wasn't hinged on the

notion of “don’t join politics on campus”, but on my belief of
influencing students, shifting their mindset from a place of a
weakling to a place of possibilities, this is my singular job as a
student leader, and it earned me the opportunity of providing
leadership and coaching to some student politicians.
I became that guy you go to when you want to think strategy, I was
the think tank for two Students’ Union presidential aspirants, and
also doled advice to political leaders on matters pertaining to
leadership.
While I am not a student politician, I have built a strong social

capital with student politicians, some of whom have the tendencies
and aspirations to go into mainstream politics in Nigeria.
This chapter is not about me, it's about you. You have the
aspirations of becoming a Governor, a Senator, or a President one
/////////////////////////////////////////////
day, one sure place to start building the skills, grits, and network is
the University.
You know how we can infiltrate the political space with people who
have been processed, equipped with the right skills and capacity,
people who have the economic strength, people with foresight,
influence built on results, people who are ruthless leaders?
We can infiltrate the political space by building these capacities right

from the University and getting ourselves involved one way or the
other in the political leadership of campuses that have the
population equivalent to some of the world’s smallest countries.
33
Now, are there really future governors and presidents in this room
or we are just exercising lip service?
Interested in politics and governance?
START right from the University, but remember we will continue

to perpetuate the errors of the past if we do politics the way it is
currently done.
You were not told that the University is a community where you
can hone your political desires, build relationships that matter, run
for political offices, serve the people, learn from the lessons that
comes with politics and governance and build a portfolio for your
political career.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
34
THE SCAM CHAPTER 8
From the Horse’s Mouth

“Experience is the best teacher but it doesn't have to be your own experience”
In the course of writing this book, I reached out to A-list students

across Universities in Nigeria to get their experience on things they
were not told about school but discovered eventually. A few of their
thoughts are captured in this chapter.
While they say experience is the best teacher, it doesn't necessarily

have to be your own experience. It is unwise to fall into the same pit
as others before you have fallen, instead of falling into the same pit,
you can learn from the experiences of others. Learning from your
experience atimes could be costly and have aversive effect.
Read what others are saying:
“I wasn't told that your degree doesn't define your career
potential. I realized this myself when I heard of someone who
studied Veterinary Medicine and secured an Investment
Banking internship with a top global bank. It became apparent
that with hard work, resilience and the willingness to build
relevant skills outside the four walls of the classroom I could
/////////////////////////////////////////////
break into any industry of my choosing.”
_Temitope Ejide, Statistics, First Class Graduate, UNIBADAN
“Book" is not the only thing you should face in school. "Face"
self development,relationships, challenges and most of all,
face God.
It's okay to not have everything figured out. Just take actionable
steps towards your goals.
_Adeosun Oluwatobi Esther, Graduate UNILORIN
35
“In retrospect, it’s quite interesting the idea I had getting into
the University. I thought time would just sweep past and the
world would literally be at a pause while I walk the corridors of
a tertiary institution. That’s laughable! Indeed, it is. I found out
that education is not exclusively what my lecturers teach. The
world is advancing fast and as much as I have to keep in touch
with my school work, I must also be abreast of the current
changes and developments on the national and global scene.
So, friend, make sure that the life after the walls of Tertiary
Education counts you worthy to stand shoulder to shoulder
with great minds and make an impact on the world stage. Let
your post-university existence look into history and applaud
how circumspectly you walked and utilized those four or five
years.”
_Opeyemi Ajala, Medical Student, UNILORIN
Experience taught me the truth and blessed me with some

transferable lessons about school no one told me about.
Firstly, beyond the academic routine, the school is a place to
grow and find your truest self. Capacity is gained, virtues can be /////////////////////////////////////////////
developed, reflections can be done and discoveries made about

your very self! No one told me this... The school, no matter
how "choked up" it can be, gives you the opportunity to turn
the spotlight on yourself and find you. People who do not go
through this process tend to live other people's dreams or
follow friends throughout their learning years.
In school, you learn, you grow, you give back to humanity, you
serve, volunteer, connect, know God more and be your best!
_Winnie Ameh, BA, BEd English, UNILORIN

36
THE SCAM CHAPTER 9
Reality is Staring!
Reality hits different after school.
At this point, that journey that seems so far is about to come to an
end and reality is staring at you straight in the eyes. The most
beautiful thing about this book is the fact that it was written by a
University student, who was still an Undergraduate at the time the
manuscript of this book was drafted.
This chapter was written during my first week of final exams as an

Undergraduate; it means I have garnered enough personal
experience and that of others to write this chapter which focuses on
the last days of school.
It might not be the same for you, but for me, final year came so fast
after a rather rushed penultimate semester that came right after the
suspension of a 9-month ASUU strike and covid-19 lock down.
Reality was dawning for so many of us, even if we fail to admit it.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
We were beginning to realize that we would be entering into the real
world of work, a real world of expectations because we are now
graduates of different disciplines, a real world where the financial
support and opportunities you get from family and friends would
decline because it is expected that you should start earning.
Reality was indeed dawning.
I had the opportunity to listen to quite a number of students on

their plans and fears for after school. While some of us had an
almost clear picture of the next thing after school and also trusting
God for clear directions, some of us were utterly clueless, scared,
37
unprepared, unskilled, and poorly baked for the next phase after
school.
Now you should begin to make sense of all that I have shared from
the beginning of this book. How the time spent in the University
should be a period of growth, personal development and
acquisition of skills that would help you thrive in life and at work.
If you are within your first and penultimate year at school, you can
still take a chance on this one life that you have, to refuse to get
mentally subjugated by the school is a scam narrative, and laziness
laced with astute procrastination and get yourself ready for life.
What if you are already in your final year with a few months or
weeks to being a graduate? You will find your answer towards the
end of this chapter.
My final year was the shortest academic session I have had to

journey through. Despite its shortness, there were huge
responsibilities and commitments that were on my shoulders.
Commitments and responsibilities that stretched my mind, tested
my ability to multitask (I failed at some), provided me with greater
exposure, gave me opportunities and platforms to impact others,
share my experience with other students and showed them the way,
/////////////////////////////////////////////
like I am doing with you, and gave me the gift of the finest set of
people anyone would want to have in their space.
All that happened in the midst of tight lecture schedules,

impromptu tests, undergraduate research project, and preparation
for final examinations.
The truth is, reality has been glaring but you stayed oblivious of it
and did nothing!
I believe strongly that, if University students take the initiative of

developing themselves with the right set of skills that match
38
industry standards, we would have more skilled graduates who can
take on global opportunities, lead core sectors and also be self
employed. This would mean, we will have educated graduates, not
certificated illiterates.
There are sad realities about the quality of higher institutions in

Nigeria, but it will be sadder to know that, after knowing all these,
what you did was to complain, bicker about the obvious
dilapidatedness of a system. That same system that has produced
global icons, that same system people passed through and they
thrived, you know what they did differently? They made a choice to
take a chance on their life and not let the system hold them to
ransom, they extracted the very goodies that they could extract
from the system.
The system holds potential business tycoons, tech unicorns, name

it, they leveraged on it and built a formidable social capital. The
system has skilled people that could teach them the skills they
possess for little or no cost, they leveraged on it now they are in high
demand.
I have seen these people, you have seen them too, in fact you know
some of these people up front and personal, you like what you see,
/////////////////////////////////////////////
you love how they are excelling, but you don't want to go through
the process.
If you are in your final year already, it is time to play catch up. You
can seize the remaining moments you have to make the most out of
school, and continue this process till the end of your service year
and every other time you get.
Reality will stare boldly at your face, but before then, are you ready
to stand before it and face it?
39
THE SCAM CONCLUSION
Give up!
Give up on complaining and bickering around. Give up on
succumbing to the least possible version of yourself, give up on
seeing school as a scam; a system that is a fraud is not enabling, a
system that swindles represses, but school builds you.
I have packaged and presented this book to you on a golden platter

to serve as a manual that would guide you through University and
beyond. I'm not doing this as someone who is really high up there
but as someone who passed through that same system you have
passed through or you are passing through right now.
Take this book as a treasured gift from my heart to yours.
I would be glad to listen to you, and answer your deepest questions

about school and being the best version of yourself, click on the
links to connect with me:
/////////////////////////////////////////////
https://www.linkedin.com/in/thestevenloya/
https://wa.me/message/SP7LB4T3Z2TMF1
40
ABOUT THE SCAM PROJECT
One of the most exasperating yet mind-building things about

being a Nigerian Undergraduate is that it affords you the
opportunity to either accept the reality of a subpar education
system and the future of work it presents for Undergrads, or
you decide to defy the odds, live above the existing norm, and
carve your name in the sands of time with the uniqueness you
bring to the table.
The SCAM project is one that seeks to redefine the University

experience of Nigerian Undergraduates, reorient them
regarding the fallacy they have made themselves believe, and
help them step out of the rut of mediocrity to become global
giants whose impact would be felt on the global landscape.
....find out more and connect to endless opportunities:

@thescamproject
About the Book
The SCAM is a book that seeks to redefine the societal construct

about formal Education, especially here in our dear country,
Nigeria. This book is written with the sole aim of reorienting
Nigerian Undergraduates on how education is an advantageous
tool they can leverage on in getting access to the better life and
fulfilling their wildest ambition. It also aims to solidify their internal
drive, that in spite of the 1001 limiting factors the society presents,
they can still attain the peak, legitimately.
Ultimately, this eBook serves to establish once again, this time to its
young, savvy, audience, and every other person who has lost faith in
the education system, that school is not a scam, it depends on how
you look at it, and with this book? we hope to help you have the
right mindset needed to squeeze out the most out of school.
About the Author
Steven Loya is an award-winning Educator,

with a proven track record of excellence as
an educational innovator with a knack for
identifying anomalies in the education sector
and proffering innovative solutions to them.
In a bid to contribute his quota in improving

Nigeria’s educational landscape, he hosted “The Undergraduate
Conference” in 2021 and “Raising Africa’s Education
Distruptors” Conference for teachers, students and education
stakeholders.
Steven Loya has been a key-note speaker at Educational and related
conferences in Tertiary Institutions across Nigeria.
What inspires Steven is helping young adults build capacity, using

education as tool for enlightenment and action, as he is keen on
causing transformation in Africa's Educational landscape.
Steven Loya

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This book “The SCAM: Things you were not told about school

This book is a product of research and personal experiences by

Front Cover Design: ALAGA Kreations

All Rights Reserved.

Guide: For interactivity, click on any of the chapters to take you

Special thanks to Mr Johnson Abbaly, a man who has become my

I wish to thank the following people for their contributions to my

And to the entire University of Ilorin Students community, I am

Most importantly, I am grateful to God Almighty for being a source

This Book is dedicated to every Nigerian Student giving their

I have sat as chairperson for youth development sub committee at

I'm recommending this as a must read for all undergraduates and

Is school really a scam?

At 7am, Dara sent me a message on the green app, she seemed

This was the experience of one of my mentees who just got

Why did I start by sharing with you this experience?

“University” as used in this book, is used to refer to all forms of

I spent three years and four months in the trenches of the

If you don’t want to make a transformative shift, it is not too late to

You have my word!

Before I go further to share my thoughts on these two

Getting a full understanding of what school is and what education

While there are thousands of literary, societal and scholarly

A school is a system, a physical or virtual structure that is put in

A school provides you with instructions from lecturers in form of

By understanding this, your utmost goal in school is to get educated.

Is school really a scam?

Students believe the notion “school na scam” because of their view

Coping with Harsh Realities

One fateful evening in September 2018, just like most of you

I had waited about 10 days to get that message after seeing

Prior to that time, I had applied to study Pharmacy at the University

Below the message was an option to accept or decline.

One of the most powerful abilities given to every individual is the

Clicking on the accept tab is a ﬁrst step to agreeing to take on every

The picture most teenagers and young people have of what

It is believed that you were offered admission because you have a

LOL, while this is so beautiful and would be termed as a perfect

Getting prepared ahead of time for these realities ahead of time

One biggest mistake you will be making is allowing the realities to

University, just like the world, is an utterly unpredictable place; it’s a

Putting yourself in the mindset that absolutely anything might be

In the course of this book project, I carried out a survey on students

What you were not told about School #2

Earning and Learning

As a ﬁrst child, I have seen how hardworking my parents are while

It is no longer news that many young people go into the University

Here is a short list of 20 things you could do to earn money legally

• Get paid by • Sewing

Earning in the University exposes you to certain experiences you

One thing is clear, as you grow older, your commitments and

What you were not told about School #3

Building Social Capital

Recall that in my deﬁnition of what a school is in the earlier chapter

A school with an average population of forty-four thousand

Building and sustaining many solid, strong relationships would be

value-yielding social capital as a University student, it is important

Human Capital: This is what you have inside of you, your

Financial Capital: This is your economic worth in terms of