The Diary Game : My Dissertation Defense and other Activities (16/12/2025)

Hi dear friends from steem Cameroon Community. Please come and rejoice with me . Wow, my years of burning candle have come to an end with joy. Yesterday, at Postgraduate School, I was among those that defended their projects. I came out successfully. To God be the glory. Stay with me, let me tell you of how it went.

I started my Masters program about 6 years ago. A two year program turned six. 2019 till now is more than enough to get discourage. Of course many opted out along the way, but few of us persisted. Do you know why it took so long? Many factors could be accountable. One, there was Covid-19 at the beginning. Then came a strike by the ASUU (lecturers) and then naira swap scenario in my country. All these culminated in prolonging the study. My supervisor, Prof Dominic Akpan kept encouraging me not to give up.

When the information came up that we are defending in a week, I didn't believe it. I quickly rushed to my supervisor to tidy up my work. He told me to send him a soft copy of my work. I did that quickly. Most, who started could not continue. We were 16 that started but only 4 at my level defended in yesterday.

On the D-Day, I woke up early by 3 am to revise my work and prepare for the defense. A candidate would face a panel of 13 professors from the Faculty of Arts. My department is History and International Studies. I was sure, I was going to perform outstandingly because I did a thorough work. The defense was billed for 10 am. I went to the Postgraduate School, the venue of the defense early by 8.30 so I could relax and get ready for the climax.

When I arrived, I met my friends who were also defending. We waited for an hour revising. By 11 am, the defense commenced. I was scheduled as the fourth candidate to present but to my surprise, I was called as the second person. My heart beat faster when I got to the panel. But gradually, I began to calm down. My external supervisor, Prof Dave Imbua from the University of Calabar was in charge of asking questions to find out if you were actually the one who carried out the research. I was sweating when each question came, but I was surprised that I could answer all of them to the amazement of the examiners. I wasn't permitted to snap while there until when came outside.

By 4 pm, we were through. Our department entertained us with food. I really ate the food because I didn't eat when I left home. At least my mind could rest that the long awaited program came to an end. My exceptional performance gave me an 'A'. I was happy when my supervisor congratulated me that I got an A. Wow, I didn't believe I could perform so exceptionally.

I came home and relax. I refreshed and rested for an hour. By 9pm, I went to watch Carling Cup match between Chelsea vs Cardiff City. Although Cardiff led in the first half of the match, Chelsea won on the second half. I came back very late by 11 pm in the night. I went to bed and slept.

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That was how my yesterday was. It was filled with happiness. The joy of finishing my program rented the air throughout yesterday. Thank you so very much for reading my post. Have a fruitful moment over there