By Chris Njoku
The University of Calabar, UNICAL has awarded scholarship grants to 34 high-flying students in the institution in its maiden Vice Chancellor Scholarship Award Scheme.
This was disclosed by Prof. Florence Obi, Vice-Chancellor of UNICAL during the presentation of the award to the deserving students of the institution in the institution’s Senate Chamber.
Obi said the scholarship was a response to her investiture speech on December 1, 2020, which she noted in her manifesto to reposition the university in line with global best practices to a foremost ivory tower.
She said with the full knowledge that academic excellence could only thrive in a conducive learning environment, her administration in the last three years concentrated on providing and renovating infrastructures in the institution.
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“Having taken time to do the first things first by way of providing the enabling environment to enhance academic excellence, I welcome you to witness the award of scholarship by the university management to deserving students.
“The scholarship scheme is instituted and sponsored by the university as the Vice-Chancellor Scholarship and meant for the best students from each of our 110 departments.
“The best students with a Grade Point Average (GPA) of at least 4.00 in the 100 level of every department is a beneficiary of the scheme which attracts the payment of 50 per cent of the charges payable by the student,” she noted.
Obi said the scholarship lasts throughout the duration of the studies of the students provided they maintain the highest CGPA in the department which must not be less than 4.00.
She maintained that the implication was that whenever a beneficiary’s CGPA dropped below the 4.00 mark on the scale of 5.00 or the beneficiary failed to come top in his or her department, with a minimum of 4.0 CGPA, he or she stopped enjoying the scholarship.
She explained further that when the beneficiary’s CGPA drops, any other student who takes over with a high CGPA automatically becomes the beneficiary, so, the current beneficiaries need to sit up.
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The V-C added that the essence of the scholarship was to motivate students towards academic excellence as well as reward them for their hard work and reduce the financial burden on them and their parents given the current economic realities.
On her part, one of the recipients of the award, Miss Rebecca Igboka, a student of Human Anatomy at the College of Medical Sciences, said she was elated at the news, noting that it would motivate her to work harder.
Similarly, another beneficiary, Miss Modesta Onah, from the Department of Radiography, said she was quite appreciative to God and the institution for the award.
She promised to continue to strive harder despite the pressure to maintain the highest CGPA in the department.
Also, the President of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Mr Lucky Emonefe who graced the occasion said the initiative was really inspiring and commendable while calling on the other V-C’s to emulate the gesture.
