Expert urges students to sharpen I.T skills
By Abubakar Imam
An Information Technology professional, Mr Abdulbasit Kolapo Imam, has encouraged students, particularly those of the University of Ilorin, to sharpen their skills in preparation for a greater future.
Mr Imam, who is the founder and facilitator at Prodacademy, Ilorin, made the call recently while speaking at ITALK 5.0 organised by the Information Technology Students Association (ITSA), University of Ilorin at the CIS Lecture Theatre.
He explained that skills, when nurtured perfectly, become talents that one could be known for and consequently become a source or sources of income.
Mr Imam, whose presentation was titled “From Talent To Income: Monetising Your Tech Skills Effectively”, said that proficiency in skills, particularly in Information Technology and Innovation can earn any serious minded person huge and sustainable income.
He urged the students to polish their marketable skills, document and share experiences and start applying for opportunities.
Mr Imam noted that the civil service and general white collar jobs have become saturated and that it was hightime they began to focus their minds on how they can develop and explore their skills to earn a living.
Giving his own experience as an example, Mr Imam said that it was after he obtained his first degree in Political Science from a sister University that he pursued an MBA in Information Technology.
While he said that many of those he schooled with are still pursuing the elusive white collar jobs, he is already making a living through his skills in Information Technology, which he broadened with his MBA.
He, therefore, urged the students to expose themselves to learning even beyond the classroom, ensure they possess worthwhile certificates, watch tutorials and build random projects as he concluded that income comes from solving problems and not just the possession of skills.
