Somtochukwu

First year started, and it was tough (the funds were usually too much). I hardly fed, even when I did, it was malnourished, borrowed textbooks to read, trekked distances within school, ran away from voluntary class bills and frivolities, looked haggard in dressing. Some thought I did all these things intentionally, always thought I was a “Ju Guy”. Luckily for me, I got to know about scholarships and some fund support agencies. That was how my HUNT FOR SCHOLARSHIPS began. I always wanted to be informed of scholarships that were tenable. My lack of funds was that bad, that I had no good mobile phone to check up on these scholarships, so I had to borrow phones to search, and in these times, I was embarrassed. I swallowed everything. In fact, there was this cyber cafe opposite my hostel, they knew me as a “Scholarship Customer”




The first scholarship I applied for was by ADDAX PETROLEUM. I travelled from Lagos to Port Harcourt just to write the aptitude test but I did not make the list of awardees.
2013 came. In my second year, I applied for 3 different scholarships: 1 by CHEVRON PETROLEUM, another by TOTAL PETROLEUM and the third by the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. It was very tough combining school activities with preparing for scholarship exams, considering the lack of funds that almost always discouraged me from pushing on, but I had a STUBBORN NATURE FOR SUCCESS. I wrote the test organised by the federal government via the scholarship scheme, but as it is, till today, I still don’t know the result, maybe, I didn’t make it. Phew 😨. I also went for the test by CHEVRON PETROLEUM and like ADDAX PETROLEUM, I did not make the list of winners, I only got back my transport fair. Not to mention that I traveled all the way from Awka, Anambra to Lagos just to write the test, because school was in session. At some point, my folks started calling me SCHOLARSHIP. It was funny to them, but not to me. I knew the STRUGGLE I was going through.

On 25th May, 2013, I wrote the test by TOTAL SCHOLARSHIP, (funny, I always got shortlisted, for all the scholarships I applied for) and partially, due to the ASUU Strike in 2013, it took 10 months to release the list of winners, and in March, 10, 2014, I checked the list of winners, this time, I was not given a transport fair but I was among the 3 students that made the list from my University (you can check up on the list of winners from TOTAL SCHOLARSHIP 2012/2013 WINNERS). Finally, a dream has come true. I broke down in tears, remembering how I was almost chased out of school on exam day (first course paper in my second year, first semester), though I later managed to pay from Church Support, thanks to St. Joseph the Worker Catholic Chaplaincy, Awka via the society of St. Vincent de Paul after a friend,Tonnie Ifeanyi Nwagbaraa adviced me.

I sent my details for collection of money as appropriate, and requested by TOTAL SCHOLARHIP, but as though my sufferings were not enough, I had to wait for another 7 months. It was frustrating, but I just kept on singing the songs of HOPE. While in the wait, I learnt of another scholarship, SEPLAT SCHOLARSHIP which was in its maiden edition, so I reluctantly gave it a shot, it was unusual to apply for scholarships while in one’s third year for a four-year course.




Final year came, and I had not been paid. Final year in school, was usually tough, ranging from funding B.Sc. project to send-off ceremonies. I was quite young in age. There was a renovation in my hostel, so it happened that I had to look for another place, that was another problem, added. For those 7 months, I had been disturbing these guys at TOTAL SCHOLARSHIP for my payment, and there was no response, even when the response came, it did not yield any good result. I was already living my life in fear of what FINAL YEAR would do to me, while squatting with a friend,Elnino Santuss. There was nothing I did not do. I called, sent text and email messages, I even prayed.

On December 2nd, 2014 (that day can never be forgotten), I came back from a Church activity, and there it was, in the phone, which I left, a bank alert of my first #150,000 Naira, like we say in Nigeria, “I nor fit shout”. It was real, it was mine. TOTAL SCHOLARSHIP paid me. Of course, I did the needful with the money

February 25, 2015, you needed to see me at ATM, Guaranty Trust Bank, I had gone to check my account balance as though I had anything (surprised, abi? I had finished my first payment on every debts I owed from my first year in school) and lo and behold, another, alert from same TOTAL SCHOLARSHIP as my second payment, the payment was meant to have been done every year till I graduated, but whatever happened, I never knew and i still don’t care to know. I was just shouting that day at the top of my voice. People who saw me thought I was mad and had over-read. That same February, I was shortlisted as one of the 61 winners for the SEPLAT SCHOLARSHIP 2014/2015 MAIDEN EDITION (you can check up on it, my name was the 60th on the list). It was something, I least expected.




I had come out to do photocopy of a paper, before going to write one of my final year papers in first semester, and there it was again, another #150,000 naira as a reward from SEPLAT SCHOLARSHIP SCHEME, at that point there was this fulfilling smile that came to my face. I had nailed it. I came, I saw, and of course, I did conquered NNMADI AZIKIWE UNIVERSITY. I graduated with a Second Class Upper Honors, even though I wanted something better. I am even planning on studying abroad, via a CHEVENING SCHOLARSHIPS for a MASTER in a quantitative management course ????