By Lucy Sylvester Gabriel
The University of Jos is now breaking the stereotype of Nigerian universities being armchair tutors by incorporating hands-on instruction into its teaching model. The establishment of its Centre for Entrepreneurship Studies has transformed the University into a hub for skills development within areas such as fashion designing, photography, hair and makeup artistry, leather works production, and animal feed milling. It also boasts of active laboratories that cater to research on CES Innovative, and AI and robotic research.
Nestled quietly among the everyday hustle and bustle of the school environment is the Centre for Entrepreneurship Studies, a mere five minutes walk from the Faculty of Engineering. This metro model building stands at a road curve, daring brave individuals to turn ideas into thriving businesses to drive economic progress and shape the future.
Established in 2015 as a TetFund Intervention Project, the centre has bedrocked overachievers from small scale businesses to campus ambassadors for tech giants like Microsoft. And this is how we meet Panshak Jeremiah Koproda, a 24-year old benefactor of the entrepreneurship program who shot into tech from here during his stint at UniJos. He describes the Centre as a Place of Renaissance.
The Jos-born graduate of Computer Science says his first contact with the Centre was through an invite from a friend hosting a seminar on data analysis. The Programme was open to students, staff, and business holders, aiming to teach participants how to handle business data. While this may have easily fallen into the category of ‘just another meeting’ for other participants, for Koproda, everything changed from here as his life’s trajectory was altered forever- in a good way, of course.
Following the programme, Koproda enrolled for classes on Excel and data analysis. Subsequently, he built relationships with the Centre’s management, creating graphic designs with various themes for the University, while also hosting training for students to expose them to new technologies like artificial Intelligence, Microsoft, and building applications.
In addition to these, Koproda juggled being a Microsoft student ambassador while on campus with helping businesses attain digital transformations easily by creating brand identities for them. He tells UniJos Echo that this opened him up to numerous possibilities, with opportunities to meet people globally, get to know and understand their perspectives on how the world works.
He shares how he has made a career off of identifying problems and finding solutions using technology. Smiling, he says that some of his ideas have received support from the Centre of Entrepreneurship Studies.
Koproda is not one to forget his launchpads. He mentions his role model, Mr Best, a lecturer from the department of microbiology who he says played an important role in shaping his career choices.
“I adapted to the idea of schooling and working during the lockdown in 2020 where I combined work and TD. He then gave me the idea of balancing things and managing time despite the constant struggle with power outages,” he said.
“The good thing about being an entrepreneur is being on the edge; it’s exciting, you get to solve problems, meet clients, and practice your job. A friend of mine would always say, ‘’the work is the reward.’”
Koproda says travelling the inter-state to teach tech-automations was an eye opener for him, especially knowing that there was something good he could offer people.
“My goals for the future is to build a unicorn, and get to work at multinational companies.” Unicorns are companies valued at $1 billion and there are only 7 of them in Africa. This is quite a bold goal for the young entrepreneur but he is not one to back down easily. He believes that making futuristic plans are a sure bet to achieving them.
Panshak Jeremiah Koproda is one of the many benefactors of the Centre’s programme. Like him, there are several others who have forayed into business ventures with the skill set obtained from the Centre. The Centre is now working towards getting more machines to increase productivity. All innovations from the school management are directly aimed at the good and benefit of its students by cultivating entrepreneurship mindset and culture in the university community and nation at large. It also goes beyond traditional lectures by offering hands-on learning experiences, practical exercises, and real-world case studies to engage students in the entrepreneurial process.
One of its important aspects is emphasis on experiential learning. Students are given the opportunity to develop and start their own business journey while schooling by providing a culture of innovation and creativity, encouraging students to think outside the box and pursue their entrepreneurial dreams.
The Entrepreneurship Centre working in line with the university’s management sets every Monday aside for the production of lab coats, academic accounts papers, boiling suits (jumpsuits for the engineering student) helmet and others. An Entrepreneurial course has long since been introduced into the General Studies (GST) to initiate students into the world of entrepreneurship.
PS: CALL FOR PAPER VOL.1 ISS.I
The International Journal of Technopreneurship and Innovation (IJTI) is calling for submission of original research papers, case studies and review articles on technopreneurship and innovation.
Deadline: 1st May 2024
Notification deadline: 15th May 2024
Submission: 21st June 2024
Publication: 1st July 2024
The objective of this journal is to serve as a platform for researchers, academia and industry professionals to present cutting-edge research, insights, and case studies in this emerging field of technopreneurship with the purpose of building a powerful channel of technology incubation, transfer and commercialization which are all key aspects of economic and national development.
Interested author(s) can submit their manuscripts for review through the journal’s website here or send an email to ijtieditor@unijos.edu.ng .
