EducationUSA: Providing Opportunities

Cross section of participants
during the graduate fair

It is sunrise in Abuja with the skies resplendent in white and blue. Looking at my wristwatch, it is almost nine, and my anxiety concerning the event hit me. As I paid attention to the gate and waited for students to come through the entrance, the admissions officers from different schools in the U.S. arrived, pulling out their trifold and other materials for the fair. Before I could look around, students from all types of schools, with different colors of uniforms arrived and were already signing in. The sight of them took me down memory lane as I recalled my own brown and white high school uniform.

Of Education fairs

One annual event of the Public Affairs Section (PAS) of the U.S. Embassy I find quite interesting is the College and Career fair.  Organized by the Education Advising Center of PAS, they are usually held simultaneously in Abuja and Lagos and attract many young people, their parents and guardians.  One noticeable thing about the program is it reveals the high premium Nigerians attach to good quality education.  For most parents, it doesn’t matter how far or what the sacrifices may be.  Meanwhile, American colleges remain the preferred destination for international students and it’s not surprising.  Among the most reliable university and college ranking organizations, American universities consistently top the best 100 list and dominate the top ten.