Bola A. Akinterinwa
The Summer Graduation 2026 of the University of Essex provided a unique opportunity to show that there is truly Nigerian unity, not necessarily within the sovereign State of Nigeria, but outside of Nigeria itself. In many places of the world, Nigerians are portrayed among people from shithole countries, apology to President Donald Trump. They are seen as agents of fraud and as yahoo boys. Even in Africa, Nigerians are seen as those tainting the South African civilization: they are held responsible for South Africa’s economic non-performance. They are accused of taking the wives of South Africans and for doing the work earmarked for South Africans. They are accused of engagement in drug peddling and trafficking. The crescendo of the accusations against Nigerians is their declaration as personae non grata in South Africa.
However, the beauty of the Essex University’s 2026 Summer Graduation ceremonies from Monday, 13 July through Friday, 17 July, 2026, clearly suggests that Nigerians that are unwanted at home are not only wanted in more developed societies, but are also more than great in intellectual capacity and capability, determination and seriousness of purpose. They may come from shithole countries, but they also compete well with countries with Water Closet toilets. This is why Nigerians are always wrapped up in the glory of their dint of hard work and courage to the admiration of serious-minded peoples of the world.
The Summer Graduation 2026 of the University of Essex therefore greatly helped to change some of the negative perceptions of Nigerians because of their impressive graduation results. Besides, the mere fact that Nigerians could gain admission into very good tertiary institutions like the Essex University in the UK is a manifestation of the goodness of most Nigerians. I attended the Summer Graduation 2026 with much interest and witnessed the goodness. My grandson, Oluwademiladeola Ugunna Opara, read robotic engineering, came out with First Class honours, and won prizes. This cannot but be much of happiness for me.
Highlights of the Summer Graduation 2026
A first major highlight is the factor of inspiration and happiness about the university. The Summer Graduation ceremonies cannot but be always interesting because it is both an ending and a new beginning point. It ends a four-year course and opens a new door to the world. Consequently, the Summer Graduation is not simply taken with a pinch of salt. It is taken with every seriousness of purpose. Besides, not less than 89% of the graduates of the University always secure employment or continued with post graduate studies within 15 months of leaving the college.
Graduation at the University is particularly interesting because graduates are considered as integral members of the Essex Community after leaving school. Such membership confers rights to assistance, comraderies, and social relationship derivable from the University as a Feeling and as a Spirit. Graduating students have access to alumni card which enables their return to the campus. They can visit the library whenever they want. As a member of the alumni community, they have access to career support. And perhaps most interestingly, they can get funding and guidance on business start-ups for five years. Thus, the alumni card is a welcoming permit to the university after graduation.
The University cannot but be most interesting from the perspective of having produced two Nobel Laureates, as well as successful filmmakers and prominent entrepreneurs. This makes the Alumni of the University very notable in international relations. The notability of the University is further strengthened when the Social Work program of the University was ranked 1st in the UK by The Times and The Sunday Times, when the Department of Government was awarded a rare Regius Professorship by Queen Elisabeth II for research quality, and when the Politics and International Studies and Sociology programme of the university was ranked among the first 100 in the QS World University Rankings. It is against this background that the Summer Graduation 2026 should be understood and appreciated.
A second major highlight of the Essex University is the factor of robotics. The University is not only a robotics research university, but also a robotics engineering education provider. The undergraduate programme in Robotic Engineering was introduced during the 2022/2023 session under Professor. Klaus McDonald-Maier as Head of Department School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering (CSEE). He oversaw the department when the Robotics Engineering degree was established. This meant that the University had its first set of graduates in 2025, while my grandson, Oluwademiladeola Ugunna Opara, was part of the second set of Robotic Engineers produced in 2026 by the University.
A third major highlight is the organisational sophistication of the 2026 Summer Graduation Viewing Centre. It truly enabled the portrayal of the seriousness and goodness of Nigerian students at the University. There is the factor of convenience, no problem of power outage or internet disruption. One can also comfortably sit down at the coffee/tea centres, take snacks and watch the live streaming of the ceremonies.
Fourthly, every graduating ceremony was scheduled for two hours, and two hours meant two hours. When names of graduating students are called, the Nigerianess in the names was quickly recognized by Nigerians in the viewing centres. And what happens when Nigerian names are called? Spontaneous screaming and expression of joy always filled the viewing centres and this took place regardless of the ethnic origin of the graduating students. In other words, the burden of Nigerian disunity was unconsciously jettisoned. This is one beauty of opportunity provided by the 2026 Summer Graduation of the University held in Colchester, the First City in the United Kingdom.
Fifthly, as it is the common practice in many countries of Western Europe, graduation ceremonies at the University of Essex are conducted departmentally or by faculty. It was a five-working day of delivery of certificates, diploma, and degrees. Every graduation ceremony was scheduled for two hours and it did not last for more than two hours. Promptness of scheduled action was the rule and the rule was duly kept.
Sixthly, at the Achievers University, Owo, Nigeria, mention is always made of the graduating First Class students during convocations. Several universities in Nigeria adopt the same tradition. At the Colchester Campus of the University of Essex, there was no mentioning of first class performing students at the second graduation ceremony for the robotic engineers. Mentions were made of different recipients of awards or prizes given during their course programmes, but there was silence on the First Class graduates at the time of passing out.
When I raised this observation with one Ghanaian lecturer and parent, Dr Ama Amfo-Brobbey, on whose son, Nana Yaw Amfo-Brobbey, the Bachelor of Science with Honours Class I in Computer Science was conferred on the 10th day of July, 2026, she similarly wondered and asked why the First Class graduates were not specifically mentioned because her son was also a recipient of First Class with honours.
Seventhly, I made some enquiries on whether there had been other cultural activities organized by parents of graduates to celebrate their children before July 14 and on July 16 and 17 when all the ceremonies were finally concluded. My findings showed that July 14, also French National Day, was the liveliest day during the graduation week because of the Nigerian cultural dimension introduced by the parents of Oluwademiladeola Opara, Mr. Chris Uju and Mrs. Gbemisola Olatokunbo Opara. Special traditional choruses and Christian songs were rendered by Engineer Temitope Olaghibeye Akinterinwa, Olufunto Akinterinwa-Dodo Williams and Ayopos Fawole. In fact, the singing and dancing of the parents and their invitees right from the frontage of the Wivenhoe Hotel down to the University’s Campus Square, which is the point of first reception before movement of the graduands to the venue of the ceremonies, Ivore Crewe Lecture Hall, made them the cynosure of all eyes. Several guests and relations came from Canada, United States, United Kingdom, and Nigeria to witness and congratulate Oluwademiladeola’s graduation. Their photographs and videoing were freely done. And true enough, several graduates came to join the dancing and singing. The frequently asked question was ‘where do you come from?’ The already-made answer was always Nigeria. This was how the whole world was united with Nigerians simply with the show of home culture.
Eighthly, invitation to graduation ceremonies at the Essex University is not pro bono. Two invitation cards are normally given to every graduating student to invite whoever he or she wants, but at a cost of £56 per invitation card. At the Achievers University in Nigeria, comparatively, invitations are free of charge. Canopy extension are specially created as viewing centres and they are also for free. The viewing centres at the Essex University are similarly free of charge, but it is not free for those who wanted to be at the Ivor Lecture Hall. I observed that there was not, stricto sensu, much difference between being at the Lecture Hall used for the ceremonies and the hall or theatre used as viewing centre, which is even more interesting than the main Lecture Hall because murmurings, supporting laughter, screaming, etc. were condoned in the viewing centres.
Personae Non Grata as Great Achievers
There can be no disputing the fact that Nigerians and Africans are personae grata in the University of Essex. Nigeria and many African countries are among the 176 nationalities that the university has on record. In the words of Dr. Sarah Perry, the Chancellor of the University, ‘Essex is not just a place, it’s a feeling and spirit.’ And true, without any whiff of doubt, the Essex environment is serene like the Achievers University in Owo, Ondo State, Nigeria. The environment of Achievers University is not only serene, it is also quite oxygenated. The serenity of Essex University is enough a reason to justify that it is really a feeling and a spirit. Trees providing shade during summer were planted equidistantly. The music centre of the University, located before entering the Faculty of Law, plays several Gen-Z music and people freely listened and danced.
Can you imagine having the University’s music without also having the Nigerian music to complement it? Unimaginable. Several Nigerian parents did organize different commemorating activities in honour of their graduating children. One that was particularly noteworthy, specially organized, and well-coordinated at the event was the Yoruba-talking drum musical group, comprising Fèrèh Jesu (trumpeter), Dayo Fawole (alias Àlùjó California, talking drummer), and Ade Akuba (conga drums). The group attracted greater attention than the award of degrees, diplomas, and certificates. The Farrati Event Planners, Mrs. Folasayo Bolanle Akinterinwa-Akinwotu, a Nurse Practitioner in California and Dr. Tolulope Abby Akinterinwa-Olowu, Doctor of Nursing Practice and Mental Health Provider, entertained the on-lookers.
One on-looker remarked that I was too happy. Yes, I quickly responded and noted that there was no reason why I should not be very, very happy. I told him that I had a grandson graduating. I knew, in his mind, he must be wondering whether there was really any big deal with taking a first degree. I simply told him if he really wanted to understand what celebrating academic success is all about, he should ask any French graduate in France, where the notion of convocation in the Anglo-Saxon sense is quite different.
Academic convocations in France are typically cérémonies de remise des diplômes (diploma-awarding ceremonies), which are quite different from the traditional academic convocations. Grosso modo, convocation is normally used for official, non-academic reasons like convocation of the police, administrative summons, etc. Formal convocation in France still takes place in the Grandes Ecoles and Business Schools, such as Ecole Polytechnique or HEC Paris. International and American Universities, like the American University of Paris, still operate on the basis of the Anglo-Saxon model, underscoring the use of the traditional caps, gowns, and hoods. In spite of the French tradition, celebration of graduation or Convocation by graduating students in European and other advanced countries of the world is festival-like and sometimes culturally driven.
The essence of the foregoing is to suggest that the Essex University does not see the Nigerian students as human beings from shithole countries or as fraudulent people. The Community sees Nigerians as very promising people. In Nigeria, convocation ceremony is generally a one-day ceremony even though different activities might have been organized in support before the D-Day. At the University of Essex, convocation cannot but be a source of sweet inspirations. The motto of the University is “thought the harder, Heart the Keener.” Put differently, the motto is taken from the Old English heroic poem, ‘The Battle of Maldon’ which was an account of the 991 AD fight between Anglo-Saxons and Vikings in Essex. It was told and explained by Byrhtwold as follows: ‘Thought must be the harder, heart be the keener, mind must be the greater, while our strength lessens.’
The poem raises the critical issues of thought and mind which are also the operational words used by Albert Einstein in defining education. As explicated by Albert Einstein, a theoretical physicist, education is not ‘the learning of facts, but about the training of minds to think.’ Thus, the Essex University is suggesting that the more a hard thinking, the keener the heart becomes. It is clear that the feeling and spirit, as well as the hard thinking and keen heart of the University largely explain the increasing greatness, feats, and spectacular successes recorded since 1964.
In the words of Professor Frances Bowen, Essex University is ‘one Essex family’ that ‘gives our students the space to explore ideas, ask questions and seek solutions.’ Consequently, she invited all the graduating students, not only ‘to take full advantage of the knowledge, skills and confidence with which they have been equipped by the University, but also ‘to take full advantage of all opportunities which lie ahead,’ because all the new graduates ‘have a place in it for life.’
And true enough, the University of Essex is a notable British University with good national and international standing. It is not therefore a surprise that several Nigerians are there.
It is on record that, since 1964, when the University was established, 143,886 alumni have been produced. The University has 73,374 undergraduates and 49,110 post-graduate students, as well as 21, 402 other qualifications. The international character of the university is not only explained by its multidisciplinary courses, but particularly by the fact of playing host to students from 176 out of the 193 countries that exist in the world. As such, and without any iota of braggadocio, University of Essex is truly international in various ramifications.
For instance, in 2022, the Times Higher Education 2022 ranked the University of Essex the 34th for overall research power. It was noted for Research Excellence Framework. In the Student Survey 2025, the University was acknowledged as the ‘Top University in the East of England for “overall positivity.” In The Guardian University Guide 2026, the University of Essex is ranked 12th, its highest, in the UK. The Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2026 ranked the University the 15th for international outlook.
More significantly, the Wivenhoe Park in the Colchester Campus of the University ‘has won the Green Flag Award nine years in a row.’ And perhaps most significantly, the Essex University has also been recognized as the ‘Number One University in the U.K. for Knowledge Transfer Partnerships’ which is the flagship Innovate UK programme for linking universities to businesses.’ It is this same University that several Nigerians have had the opportunity of pursuing their higher education. And very proudly too, I have a grandson, Oluwademiladeola Ugunna Opara there. He was conferred with the Bachelor of Engineering with Honours Class I in Robotic Engineering on the 2nd day of July, 2026. He went through the University and the University went through him.
Thus, it is from a black pot that white palp comes out. It is from Africa, Nigeria and Ghana of shitholes that promising young graduates with great capacity for intellection are also coming out. Therefore, the Donald Trump mentality that has come to characterize the personality of South Africans or their foreign policy of Afrophobia and Nigerianophobia should be completely jettisoned. Nigerians unwanted in South Africa are internationally courted and wanted elsewhere. True enough, every given stratum of society has its good and bad people. No given stratum of society is completely free from criminals. Most Nigerians are builders wherever they find themselves like in the University of Essex, a terra cognita for excellence in the social sciences and the top-tier UK institution for politics, sociology, law, and economics. Nigerians at the University are respectable and decent. Consequently, all those seeking to fight Nigerians should simply remember one Latin idiom: ‘poma mala maculant bona, certe mali amici etiam bonos pueros maculant,’ meaning ‘bad apples spoil the good ones, certainly bad friends also spoil the good boys.’ So, the few bad friends or apples cannot be an alibi for Nigerianophobia. Achievers University, Owo, which is quietly working to be the best or the University of Universities in Africa, can negotiate a partnership agreement on the development of Social and Management Sciences and culture with the Essex University which has been acknowledged as the Social Sciences powerhouse and one of the most prestigious drama schools in the UK. The Faculty of Social and Management Sciences that was rated in 2025 the best at the Achievers University and the newly established Institute of Diplomatic Practice, Culture, and Language Development cannot but be common areas of interest for possible collaboration.
