MAPOLY Graduates 51,000 Students After Nine-Year Break

I want you to feel the weight of this moment: on June 24, 2025, Moshood Abiola Polytechnic (MAPOLY) in Abeokuta staged its 15th combined convocation ceremony—and not just any ceremony. For the very first time since the 2014/2015 academic session, the institution awarded diplomas to over 51,000 graduates spanning nine academic years, from 2015/16 through 2023/24. That means nearly a decade’s worth of students—National Diploma (ND) and Higher National Diploma (HND), full-time and part-time—have waited years for a formal closure and recognition.

The Rector, Dr. Babatunde Jolaosho, underscores this as more than routine—it’s a symbolic new beginning in MAPOLY’s history. He highlights that the event is “a major achievement” reflecting a renewed institutional spirit fueled by calendar normalization, infrastructural improvements, and industry and alumni engagement.

Sometimes, a ceremony isn’t just about ceremony. It’s a restorative moment—a bridge between the past’s stagnation and the promise of a future where each graduate re-enters the workforce equipped, recognized, and ready to contribute. In this article, we dive into their reintegration journey, exploring the challenges and opportunities facing these 51,000 plus graduates after a prolonged hiatus.

Context: MAPOLY’s Nine-Year Convocation Hiatus

Nine years. That’s how long Moshood Abiola Polytechnic (MAPOLY), Abeokuta, went without holding a convocation ceremony. The last one took place in 2016, recognizing students from the 2014/2015 academic session. Since then, graduates from 2015/2016 through 2023/2024—a staggering nine cohorts—have been left in limbo, their achievements uncelebrated.

The catalyst for change? Arc. Dr. Babatunde Adekoyejo Jolaosho, popularly known as “Koye” Jolaosho, the first alumnus to lead his alma mater. Taking office on December 4, 2024, Jolaosho hit the ground running. Within just six months, his administration laid out a multi-pronged revival strategy:

Normalizing the Academic Calendar

Jolaosho pledged regular convocations and academic coherence—initiatives deemed key to restoring institutional credibility.

Infrastructure Overhaul

From classrooms to auditoriums and lecture halls, physical upgrades became a priority to match MAPOLY’s mission as a center for technological education.

Institutional Rebranding and Trust-Building

He focused on rebuilding confidence within staff and student bodies, reinforcing a sense of unity and purpose.

Alumni and Industry Engagement

Dr. Jolaosho actively pursued strategic connections with corporate partners and alumni networks to support placements and institutional growth.

Describing the convocation as a “symbolic new beginning,” the Rector emphasized that this ceremony is more than a one-off celebratory gathering—it represents a rebirth of MAPOLY’s identity and mission.

For nearly a decade, MAPOLY students earned diplomas but missed a mark of achievement institutions worldwide hold dear. Now, as preparations culminate in the June 24, 2025 celebration, that gap is being bridged—positioning MAPOLY at a promising threshold. This convocation isn’t just a return to tradition; it’s a firm statement of renewed direction and sustained progress.

Scope: Who Are the 51,000 Graduates?

Let me walk you through the scale and diversity of this graduating body—it’s truly remarkable.

This convocation brings together students from nine academic sessions: from 2015/2016 through 2023/2024, all graduating in one unprecedented event. These graduates span both National Diploma (ND) and Higher National Diploma (HND) programs, across full-time and part-time tracks.

Over 51,000 graduands are set to receive their diplomas—making this one of the largest single ceremonies in MAPOLY’s history. Imagine the logistics: from official robes for each ND and HND student, to scheduling for several faculties and sessions in one single day. The feat reminds us that we’re dealing not with a few standout cases—but tens of thousands of individuals whose academic journeys were paused and restored.

These students come from all schools and departments of the polytechnic, spanning engineering, applied sciences, environmental studies, management, and more. ND levels often offer foundational technical training while HND courses deepen specialization. Both streams converge here—full-time learners immersed in campus life and part-time students who balanced education with work responsibilities.

This isn’t just a graduation—it’s a mass restoration of identity. Many students finished studying years ago but couldn’t access transcripts, certificates, or formal recognition. Diplomas unlock job applications, licensures, and eligibility for further study. In practical terms, this ceremony opens doors that have been closed far too long.

By pulling together nearly a decade’s worth of graduates—ND and HND, across part-time and full-time cohorts—MAPOLY is not just catching up. It’s resetting its trajectory and giving these individuals a fair shot at job markets and career advancement—all at once.

Reintegration Challenges for Polytechnic Graduates

Let’s sit with the core of the matter: these 51,000+ graduates are about to reemerge into a rapidly evolving workforce. This section lays bare the real challenges they’re likely to face—no sugarcoating.

Extended Graduation and Skill Obsolescence

Graduates from earlier sessions (say, 2015–2017) completed their programs years ago. In that time, the world has pivoted—new technologies, software tools, and industry protocols have emerged. Without intentional updates, their technical and digital competencies may lag behind current market expectations. This lag could derail job offers from technology-driven employers.

Skills Gap and Mismatch

Numerous studies show Nigerian polytechnic graduates frequently misalign with workforce needs. Common deficits include low proficiency in digital tools, limited soft skills such as critical thinking, communication, and adaptability, as well as curriculum inadequacies and outdated industrial training. These gaps contribute to a high graduate unemployment rate—estimated at around 38% for youth, worsened by inflating numbers of underemployed polytechnic graduates.

Stigma: HND vs BSc Divide

In Nigeria’s job market, preference often leans toward university BSc holders. Polytechnic graduates—especially those with HNDs—face entrenched biases, affecting government and multinational recruitment pipelines, salary structuring, and professional licensing and promotions. Despite proven technical capability, this perception gap can lead to fewer job placements and slower career growth.

Industrial Attachment Barriers

Industrial attachments—crucial for practical exposure—are vital. MAPOLY’s Computer Science SIWES program demonstrated strong employer evaluation based on logbook quality. But for many, industrial placements come with hurdles such as limited slots, poor supervision, and geographic and infrastructural challenges. These issues erode skill acquisition and weaken graduates’ real-world readiness.

Mass Entry and Market Saturation Risk

When 51,000 individuals enter the workforce simultaneously—especially with overlapping qualifications and credentials—employers become choosier, and competition intensifies. Without strategic job support, many risk prolonged unemployment or underemployment.

Economic and Policy Constraints

Wider systemic problems compound graduate reintegration: underfunded institutions and outdated facilities, stagnant curriculum systems, and weak linkage between academic programs and industry requirements. Government graduate employment schemes, like N-Power, exist but lack coordination and tend to marginalize HND holders.

Solutions in Motion

Some promising paths to bridge the divide include industry–polytechnic partnerships. For example, MAPOLY’s collaboration with GIZ brought competence-based training and solar labs to engineering students. Curriculum overhaul efforts aim to integrate real-world case work, industry experts, and modern technologies into academic programs. Mentorship programs and soft skills workshops help build career confidence and employability.

In essence, these graduates carry immense potential—but without targeted interventions such as skills updating, industry exposure, bias removal, and policy alignment, their reintegration could fall short, undermining their talents and Nigeria’s technical workforce potential.

Spotlight: MAPOLY’s Institutional Efforts to Support Graduate Reintegration

MAPOLY isn’t resting on its laurels. Alongside graduating 51,000 holdover students, the institution has launched deliberate initiatives designed to smooth their transition into the job market.

Competence-Based Training and Upgraded Infrastructure

In late 2024, MAPOLY partnered with GIZ (German International Development Cooperation) to introduce competence-based training across multiple engineering disciplines. This included forensic assessments of technical labs, followed by tangible upgrades like solar power installations for engineering workshops—deployments commenced in January 2025. This initiative aligns with the National Board for Technical Education’s broader “Skills Beyond Degrees and Diplomas” campaign, equipping staff and students with practical, job-ready expertise.

Soft Skills and Industrial Attachment Emphasis

MAPOLY recognizes that technical know-how alone isn’t enough. With GIZ’s SKYE program (Skills Development for Youth Employment), approximately 300 students received targeted workshops in April 2023, focusing on effective communication, teamwork, and problem-solving. Equally important is industrial experience. Analysis of MAPOLY’s Computer Science SIWES—student industrial exposure scheme—reveals that comprehensive logbooks and structured placements directly correlate with higher employer ratings, proving that immersive attachments bolster job readiness.

Alumni Engagement: Mentorship, Infrastructure, and Placements

The alumni body is mobilizing in powerful ways. Under the leadership of Rector Jolaosho, the Lagos chapter donated a ₦150 million “Legacy House” to the Marketing Department, while national conventions in May 2025 laid groundwork for a ₦1.2 billion Build-Operate-Transfer alumni hostel capable of housing 1,200 students. During the May 24 convention, alumni also launched mentorship schemes and entrepreneurship hubs aimed at boosting employability and linking graduates to real-world opportunities.

Institutional and Stakeholder Reforms

MAPOLY’s leadership has reasserted the value of calendar discipline, stakeholder inclusion, and infrastructure expansion. The convocation itself stands as a testament to this regained order and renewed public confidence. Engagement extends beyond campus: the Rector led alumni delegations in strategic visits to traditional rulers like the Olota of Ota, fostering cultural goodwill and market alignment.

Summary: A Coordinated Reintegration Strategy

MAPOLY’s efforts aren’t scattershot—they form an ecosystem designed to launch graduates into employability with confidence. By combining competence-based and soft-skill training, industrial attachments, alumni-driven projects, and structural reforms, MAPOLY isn’t only graduating 51,000 students—it’s preparing them—on multiple fronts—to step into the workforce equipped, supported, and seen.

Reintegration Strategies: Actionable Steps

Here, we dive into practical and evidence-based strategies that MAPOLY, policymakers, employers, and graduates themselves can adopt to ease and amplify reintegration into the workforce.

Refresh and Upskill Through Modular Training

National frameworks—including NBTE’s “Skills Beyond Degrees,” GIZ-supported programs, and ITF-sponsored modules—focus on digital literacy, emerging technologies, and hands-on competencies. Nigeria’s Federal Ministry and vocational educators emphasize these as vital for aligning education with industry needs.

Beyond campus, opportunities from the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) and state-level platforms like EdoJobs, which integrate traineeships and internships, should be leveraged. They provide practical on-the-job training and exposure essential for employability.

Embed Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) and SIWES

Academic partnerships with industry—through placements, student-led projects, and industrial mentorship—are proven to accelerate employability. A study spanning African polytechnics showed that curriculum designs integrating internships, career guidance, and industry liaison have strong positive impacts on job readiness.

MAPOLY’s SIWES blueprint showed that meticulous logbooks and structured attachments correlate with stronger employer ratings, reinforcing SIWES as a reliable performance indicator.

Engage Employers in Curriculum and Training

Research shows that involving industry experts in designing and teaching parts of the curriculum ensures program relevance and boosts trainee quality. In peer institutions like YabaTech, partnerships with banks and corporates for sponsored internships result in job placements even before convocation. MAPOLY could model similar initiatives.

Soft Skills, Strategic Mentorship and Career Development

Technical mastery alone won’t stand out. Employers consistently seek problem-solving ability, communication, critical thinking, and adaptability—often termed “soft currencies.”

Alumni mentoring—offering journaling, resume guidance, and interview simulation—improves confidence and readiness. MAPOLY’s alumni initiatives, while ongoing, should scale structured, cohort-based mentorship programs.

Establishing dedicated career centers offering mock interviews, networking events, and employer link-ups can significantly bolster placement rates.

Encourage Self-Employment and Startup Ecosystems

Embedding bootcamps, startup challenges, and seed-funding opportunities into convocation follow-up programs helps graduates envision non-traditional career paths.

MAPOLY’s alumni pledge for entrepreneurship hubs and hostel facilities can evolve into incubators—supporting student-led startups, prototyping, and mentorship.

Mobilize Policy and Government Support

Advocate for HND holders to be included in schemes like N-Power, which currently prioritizes NYSC-participated BSc graduates. The policy should extend stipends, tech entrepreneurship skills, and digital upskilling.

The Industrial Training Fund’s substantial annual budget for industrial training should prioritize polytechnics like MAPOLY to support lab modernization, staff training, and student placement schemes.

Summary Table of Strategies at a Glance

This unified framework—from technical refreshers and work placements to soft skills, mentoring, and policy advocacy—offers MAPOLY graduates the strongest possible foundation for reintegration. These steps don’t merely mitigate the effects of a nine-year delay—they create a resilient, forward-looking career path for over 51,000 students ready to serve industries, innovate in startups, and strengthen Nigeria’s economic future.

Final Thoughts

This June 24th ceremony marked a pivotal moment not just for MAPOLY, but for over 51,000 polytechnic graduates who’ve found themselves in a nine-year limbo. With National Diplomas and Higher National Diplomas finally conferred across nine academic sessions, this convocation restores what was missing—identity, recognition, and the right to pursue professional and educational opportunities.

But the real work begins after graduation. Our detailed roadmap—from modular upskilling and work-integrated learning, to soft skills, mentorship, and policy advocacy—offers actionable clarity. Each step aims to fortify graduates’ readiness, self-assurance, and prospects in competitive job markets.

Understanding MAPOLY’s resolve makes this moment more than reflective—it’s purposeful. The institution has invested in trainings, vital partnerships (notably GIZ-supported competence-based training and solar-equipped labs), and a reinvigorated alumni infrastructure. These support platforms aren’t just window dressing—they form a sustainable backstop to ensure graduates don’t just walk the stage—they walk into viable careers.

Graduates, the message is clear: this convocation may have been delayed, but the opportunity it presents is immediate. Tap into the training programs available; lean into alumni networks; seek mentorship; and push forward with skill refreshment and confidence. Institutional reforms, career centers, and mentorship schemes are your tools—use them.

MAPOLY has reset its compass. Now, it’s up to each of these graduates—as individuals and as a collective force—to seize the moment. Properly supported, this group can become Nigeria’s next wave of skilled professionals, innovators, and economic contributors. This isn’t just a ceremony—it’s a starting gun. The future is now.