Students of Skyline University Nigeria (SUN) have participated and won 1st and 2nd Runner-Up positions in the pitching competition organized by TiE University MENA Regional Pitch Competition 2023 running in its fifth year in the Middle East. All the regional finalists of the competition made their way through over 150 applications and over 30 jury members for the regional face-off. The competition was open to both graduate and undergraduate university students of the respective regions. Representing 16 different universities, 26 teams have ideas spread across 13 industries and competed in three different categories to have three regional winners -Emirati, MEA and GCC/UAE. After a rigorous selection of the best ideas from over 150 applications from across the regions, 8 teams made it to the shortlist categories for the regional-level competition final round. Out of the 8 shortlisted teams, 4 teams were from Skyline University Nigeria, 2 from Lagos State University, 1 from the University of Ibadan and 1from the Federal University of Technology. The pitch – UniversityX from Lagos State University emerged victorious and won first prize and is eligible to participate in the TiE Global finals. The Plastic Company – Recymade team emerged as the first runner-up while Care-Home Plus emerged as the second runner-up, both teams are from Skyline University Nigeria. All three finalists will fly to pitch for the global finals in May 2023 at Silicon Valley, in the USA. This year’s Programme for the first time ran an emerging entrepreneur category with a regional championship for the region of Middle East and African student entrepreneurs. Thus, SUN students were opportune to participate. The Tie Programme offers rare opportunities for future-generation entrepreneurs as students to bring forth their entrepreneurship ideas to global discourse. It is an exciting platform that allows students to present feasible ideas for business ventures. It actively supports youth development and innovation through this initiative. The President Emeritus of TiE Dubai Mr P K Gulati and Pro-Chancellor of Skyline University Nigeria, Mr Nitin Anand said the idea of including universities in other countries apart from UAE to participate in the competition was a huge success. They are thrilled about the engagement of teams from Nigeria, Kenya and a few other African countries. The winner and all other participants were encouraged to continue exuding the courage and confidence they showed throughout the Programme for their future endeavours.  

To acquaint academic staff with information on how to easily publish their research and papers in globally acknowledged journals around the world, Skyline University Nigeria organized a one-day workshop titled “Getting Published; From Start to Finish”. The session was facilitated by Dr Surajo Kamilu Sulaiman, a senior lecturer from the Department of Physiotherapy, Bayero University Kano. In his opening remark, Dr Isa Usman Lawal the Dean of the School of Basic Medical Science (SBMS) and an Associate Professor in the Department of Physiotherapy at Skyline University Nigeria said, he was pleased that the resource person was able to accept the invitation to facilitate the workshop within the short period of notice. He also noted that the session is quite imperative for staff to excel in their respective careers and contribute effectively to global discussions. In his words, Dr Surajo thanked the management of Skyline University Nigeria for providing him with the opportunity to deliver a lecture in the prestigious institution. He reiterated the importance of publications in today’s rapidly changing world and how academics have a big role to play in global development. Dr Surajo highlighted that Africa as a whole contributes less than 1% to global publications with Sub-Saharan Africa being the lowest. Although Nigeria is among the countries that contribute the most from West Africa, the level of publication from the continent is relatively low, especially because of the immense growth rates that have been recorded by active journals and newly created journals in the world. The session took the participants through the rigorous nine processes of getting an article published especially for global visibility and impact. The facilitator also enumerated the cycle of publication which is significant in supporting innovations and ideas to be continuously disseminated. Finally, Dr A. Senthil Kumar, the Dean of the School of Science and Information Technology (SSIT) presented the facilitator with a certificate and award of recognition on behalf of the management of SUN, for ably facilitating the workshop that would be beneficial for the institution and Nigeria as a whole. In attendance, were Deans, HODs and academic staff from different departments of SUN.

Starting university or resuming school after a holiday is always tricky. Both statuses require calculated efforts to adapt to the higher education learning environment. For new students, the new concepts and ideas that the university teaches need a lot of time to understand and a lot of preparation while for returning students, going back to school requires a lot of psychological revamping. Anxiety, stress and fear overwhelm new students such that they simply resort to reading when necessary -for informed tests and general examinations. This usually takes a toll on them as they tend to face low grades in their first academic year. It equally affects their overall grades that’ll as they dictate the outcome.  These experiences faced by newbies are slightly different from that of returning students except for exceptional cases where students are battling with low grades. But, these sets are also confronted with problems of trying to remember most of the things they were previously taught. This is a relearning process.  Because of the demands of the higher education system to foster knowledge production, reading has to be done not exclusively for passing tests and examinations but to inculcate and nurture productivity in the creation of new ideas. Hence, this is why students are always encouraged to read and understand the basics of their discipline or career path. Essentially, practicing productive reading requires engaging yourself in the world of information about your subject area. As a student, you’d find it very interesting to have a deeper understanding of the ideas communicated such that the qualification you receive at the end of your stay, is earned and worth your effort. For students and all reading enthusiasts, wander in the world of writers and researchers. Reading is beyond a short-term goal, it’s a lifetime investment. It aids your creativity and unlocks the doors of limitless opportunities – getting a dream job or a life-changing opportunity. 

The management of Skyline University Nigeria organized a one-day orientation exercise for new students that have been admitted during the spring intake, 2022-2023AY. The process is to acquaint students with the necessary guidelines and policies that would support their fruitful stay at the university. Welcoming the students, the Vice-Chancellor of Skyline University Nigeria alongside the Registrar, Deans of Departments, HODs and other heads of Student Support Services charged the new students on how they can harness the richly endowed institution to become successful. In his remarks, Prof. Ajith Kumar V.V. explained the orientation exercise as an important tool to guide the students as they step into another phase of learning in their lives. His presentation navigated around the history of Skyline University Sharjah which led to the birth of Skyline University Nigeria. He congratulated the students for choosing Skyline University Nigeria to study their respective career choices. In his kind words to the students, “Your parents have invested so much in you. Make it worthy”. He then encouraged the new students to maximize the enormous opportunities made available by the university so that they can able to give back to their communities after gaining knowledge and developing their characters. Prof. Ajith also indulged students in time management as it is essentially significant for their careers and beyond. He said, “College life is the best life you can have with thousands of opportunities to network, participate in competitions and cull leadership skills needed in this century”. Speaking during the exercise, the Registrar of SUN Mr Haruna Aliyu presented the several academic and administrative services available in the university. He encouraged students to attend lectures to ensure their eligibility for exams as only 75% of attendance qualifies students and the importance of the institution’s Learning Management System |(LMS). Mr Aliyu charged students to abide by the school policies on acts such as drug abuse and the use of mobile phones during lectures. In their various remarks, the Deans and HODs encouraged students to make themselves a part of the institution’s process. Skills, values and knowledge are the core principles that dominated their presentations. They advised students to be good ambassadors of SUN and be part of extra-curricular learning processes. As part of the orientation process, representatives of the management of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), the Library, the School of Continuing Learning (CCL), and Corporate Affairs, the Chief Security Officers (CSO) made engaging conversations on policies that can guide can students’ stay on SUN campus. The students were captivated by the experiences shared by the current Student’s Representative Council’s president, Haruna Baffa. Then, they proceeded to collect books and campus tour around the vibrant environment of SUN campus.

University life ushers youths into a new world of endless opportunities, thoughts and a myriad of ideas. University education and learning are advanced and an upgrade from secondary education. Unlike secondary or high schools that are preparing grounds for future challenges, the tertiary system focuses on knowledge production through research and creative learning. Exposure to these new ideas and thoughts or scholarship demands careful crafts of effective studying and learning. This is one of the biggest challenges faced by newbies in the system. Keeping pace with new styles of learning makes it intensely for a large number of students to get good grades in their first year of study. Apart from consistent attendance in class, styles of studying play the most role in enabling students to have positive results. There is always a depth attached to new knowledge imparted to the students in the university and the same depth, is required from them during tests, class presentations and examinations. Some important basic skills that come in handy for starters include research, communication and thinking skills. The reason why these are essential is to allow newbies to have a solid foundation in whatever discipline or career path they have chosen. With a firm footing, it will be easy for students to navigate around the academic system with minimum difficulty. For research skills, students are preferably expected to search for additional information by finding the information, reading books, taking and making notes and sorting information. Thinking skills creatively complement research as it tests understanding, memory skills and how fast you can process information to come up with your own similar thoughts – processing information is also known as critical thinking skills. Communication skills are very vital. After rigorous research, readings and understanding aided by critical thinking, next is to communicate the new knowledge in either written or oral form. Students who master the art of connecting ideas and communicating them in written formats are likely to excel in their examinations. When coupled with the ability to make excellent presentations in class, their results are awesome. All these if harnessed can collectively and effectively guide learning for students in higher education institutes, with exciting and memorable experiences.

The academic environment is a whole new level of life experience for youths. It is largely driven by the production of new knowledge and information. Thus, students are regularly provided with new ideas and are always expected to consolidate them concisely. So, journaling serves as a key to harmonizing those bountiful ideas into something stunning and advantageous.   Journaling not only serves as a way by which students explore their potential but is also very therapeutic. As a student, it is an excellent way of testing your understanding of new concepts, ability to recall and effectiveness in managing ideas. Then, it allows you to manage stress somewhat similar to an emotional repair.  With journaling, students can personally test their skills in sorting tons of information that was said during lectures, group discussions and class presentations. They are also able to experiment with their critical thinking skills based on academic engagements. This process is highly essential for improving understanding and educational success in higher education.  Universities, Colleges, Polytechnics and other higher institutions, usually adopt formal ways of testing to assess the aptitudes of students using tests, presentations, assignments, and exams. The importance of different kinds of assessments is that it allows students’ performance to be analyzed. For students, journaling can aid in the individual assessment of performance.  Journaling has proven to be an effective strategy for organizing a study schedule. As students plan ways to achieve a higher grade, writing out goals and a studying timetable are very important. Carefully get a notepad and scribble down your reading pattern and reading timetable. It also helps you to remain focus and avoid mistakes during class assessment and examinations.  Anticipations in higher education institutions are very demanding. Apart from class lectures, students are expected to continuously search for additional information from other sources such as books and especially, the internet – both online and offline.  To sort the multitude of information, journaling assists students in lessening the stress of doing that. Students can also use trends in journaling using smartphones and tablets which have jotting provisions embedded in them.