Wellspring University’s Best Graduating Student scores 4.98 CGPA as 46 others make First Class

BENIN CITY: Popo Atorerefa Nancy, a 2026 graduating student of Wellspring University, Benin City has emerged the institution’s best graduating student with a cumulative grade point average (CGPA) of 4.98 on a 5.0 scale.

Nancy who graduated from the Department of International Relations and Diplomacy, alongside 47 other graduands made First Class and were honoured at the University’s 14th convocation ceremony held at the weekend.

She was among the 294 first-degree recipients honoured at the ceremony, which also saw the graduation of 110 postgraduate students, bringing the total number of graduands to 404.

A breakdown of the first-degree results by the Vice-Chancellor of the institution, Professor Isaac Rotimi Ajayi, showed that 145 of the graduands obtained Second Class Upper Division, 91 earned Second Class Lower Division, while 11 graduated with Third Class Honours.

The academic performance comes amid growing calls for Nigerian universities to strengthen academic standards, promote excellence and produce graduates equipped with the knowledge and skills required to compete in an increasingly demanding global economy.

According to the Vice Chancellor, beyond undergraduate achievements, the ceremony marked a historic chapter in the university’s development with the graduation of its first doctoral degree holders, comprising 15 Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) and two Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) recipients.

Ajayi described the pioneer doctoral graduations as evidence of the university’s growing capacity for postgraduate education and research, urging the scholars to advance knowledge, mentor younger academics and contribute to national development through their respective fields.

The Vice Chancellor disclosed that the National Universities Commission (NUC) had approved new academic programmes, including Medicine and Surgery (MBBS), Human Anatomy, Human Physiology, Community Health Science and Health Information Management, as the institution expands its scope of professional manpower training.

In his remarks, the Chancellor of the University, Pastor Ituah Ighodalo, challenged the graduands to look beyond their certificates and embrace the responsibility of using their education to improve society.

He noted that the world they were entering was being reshaped by artificial intelligence, climate change, geopolitical shifts and economic uncertainties.

Ituah urged them to build their careers with diligence, serve their communities with generosity and contribute to Nigeria’s progress with patriotism, integrity and excellence, stressing that academic qualifications must be matched by character and a sense of responsibility.

Delivering the convocation lecture, titled “The University and the Future: Educated Minds in an Era of Disruption and Opportunity,” the Director-General of the Dangerous Goods Academy, Lagos, Dr Alban Igwe called for a shift in universities academic coriculum to use same to solve practical societal problem.