Wednesday, 16th June 2021: The believe that there is no age limit for one to pursue and achieve his or her educational aspiration came to the fore at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, (UNN) as a 70-year old woman bagged her PhD in Mass Communication at the weekend.

She is Dr Justina Obi.  

Her commitment and seriousness to study was applauded by the Vice Chancellor of UNN, Prof. Charles Igwe, who expressed his amazement on the level of the tenacity of a 70-yr-old Doctorate degree graduand of the University, Justina Obi.

The Vice Chancellor, who noted that Dr. Obi was the oldest person to have earned a Doctorate degree from UNN, noted that her resolve to scale through the rigours of the academic programme and her intellectual ability and perseverance was extra ordinary.

He made the remarks as part of his opening address during the 49th convocation ceremony of the University at the Ekpo Ref Convocation Arena in Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State.

While lauding the resilience of the septuagenarian, he said “Postgraduate studies require a degree of rigour and ability for original and independent investigation. Thus, it takes a lot of intellectual ability, discipline and perseverance to earn a postgraduate degree or diploma, especially at the University of Nigeria. This implies that all our graduands are worthy of celebration.

However, I am particularly proud of a 70-year-old graduand, Justina Obi, who would earn a Doctorate degree in Mass Communication in today’s graduation ceremony. This makes her the oldest person to ever get a degree from the University of Nigeria.

“I am aware that Postgraduate degrees or diplomas have the ability to open more doors for employment, and can also lead to faster career progression for those who are already employed. As holders of research-based degrees, the country would continue to look up to you to help find solutions to various challenges we face, especially, those that have continued to prevent us from achieving our true potentials as a blessed country of about 200 million people.”

While congratulating the septuagenarian, the Head, Department of Mass Communication, UNN, Dr. Edith Ohaja, described her as an intellectual workaholic, adding that “her mix of intelligence, diligence and determination is a huge inspiration to the academia.”

UNN awarded first degrees and diplomas to 11,010 graduands, with 186 of them making first class honours.

The institution also awarded postgraduate degrees and diplomas to 3,497 graduands, comprising 859 Doctorate degrees, 2,385 Masters Degrees, and 253 postgraduate diplomas.