Authorities of Nigeria’s first specialized medical and health sciences tertiary institution, the University of Medical Sciences (UNIMED), Ondo City, Ondo State have offered automatic employment to three of its 585 graduating students of the 2022/2023 academic session.

The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Adesegun Fatusi, while speaking at the 5th convocation ceremony, said that 528 students finished from the undergraduate programmes and 57 from the postgraduate.

Fatusi said that 19 students had first class (5.5%), 217 students with second class upper division (62.9%), 94 students with second class lower division (27.2%), and 15 students with third class honours (4.3%).

“The 57 graduands from the postgraduate programmes consist of 20 students with Postgraduate Diploma in Public Health, 7 students with MSc degree in Health Law and Policy, 12 students with MSc degree in Public Health, and 15 students with Master of Public Health (MPH) degree, and 3 with MSc degree in Medicinal and Organic Chemistry.

On the three students offered automatic employment, the Vice-Chancellor, said that the students include Miss Francisca Ademulegun who got First Class in Physiology, Miss Mercy Saba who was the best female graduating student and Micheal Aremu who was the best male graduating student.

The Vice-Chancellor pointed out that the University has achieved more success during the last accreditation process.

According to him “I am pleased to report that our university secured the full accreditation of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) in 2023 for both our Medical and Dental programmes, without which our Medical and Dental students would not be graduating.

“In addition, our student admission quota for Medicine has been doubled from 50 to 100 initially and recently increased to 125.

“Also, the quota for Dentistry has been increased from 10 to 15. At the last Convocation, I reported an increase in our admission quota for Nursing Science from 75 to 150; our quota has now been increased to 200.

“We are pressing further with both MDCN and the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria for another increase in our admission quota in the face of the ever-increasing and huge number of applicants to our University for these programmes.

On herbal medicine, Prof Fatusi said that the institution would not relent in its effort to push for the advancement of African Herbal Medicine.

He said the institution believed it was time to put an end to the inexcusable neglect of the huge and untapped potential of Africa’s God-given heritage.

The Vice-Chancellor noted that African medicine held the key to unlocking the door for Nigeria and Africa to make great contributions to drug development and health advancement on the global stage.

Prof. Fatusi appealed to the state government to give special attention and intervention funds to accelerate development in the institution.

According to him, “The government needs to help ensure that UNIMED continues to be a TETFUND beneficiary institution. So far, TETFUND has been the main source of funding UNIMED’s infrastructural deficits.

“As a specialised University, UNIMED has the highest need for developmental projects and resources.”

The state governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, said ₦1bn has been earmarked for the construction of a Senate building at the main campus of the institution.

 Aiyedatiwa said his administration was committed to taking the developmental agenda of the state to the next level.

Delivering the convocation lecture, Chief Executive Officer, Background Check International, Kola Olugbodi, advised the graduands to seek opportunities in the untapped potentials in the country.

Olugbodi urged them to view economic difficulties as a canvas for creativity as well as finding novel solutions to enhance healthcare delivery.

According to him, ”there are lots of good things happening in Nigeria. Anytime you see a society where things are not working, that is a society with lots of opportunities. 

“There are opportunities here. Let’s stay here. We have entered into the age of entrepreneurship. Begin to think entrepreneurship.”