Dumebi Duru is the overall best graduating student of the Pan-Atlantic University (PAU), Lagos. She graduated from the Department of Computer Science for the 2024-2025 session with a perfect Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 5.0. In this interview by KINGSLEY ALUMONA, she speaks about her academic journey, among other issues.

Your perfect university results show that you are brilliant. What were your results like in secondary school, especially in WAEC and JAMB?

In secondary school, I was typically among the top three students and got an average of above 90 per cent. I only took first position once, and that was in the only terminal results we had in SS3. I scored 286 in JAMB, which was the highest in my class. In my WAEC, I had 6 A1s and 3 B2s. In my Cambridge IGCSE, I had A*’s (90 per cent and above) in all five subjects I wrote. So, I would say it is brilliance coupled with the grace of God.

How did you come to study computer science? Out of all the universities in Nigeria, why Pan-Atlantic University (PAU)?

I came to study computer science due to a competition some of my high school classmates were going for. They mentioned they had built an application. Although I never saw the application, I wanted to learn how to make one too, as it sounded interesting. So, during the quarantine period, back in 2020, I got my mum to hire someone to teach me about building software. I started learning a bit on my own after the classes ended. That was how I got more interested and wanted to study computer science.

Pan-Atlantic University was not my first choice. I wanted to go to Nile University because some of my high school classmates wanted to go there. However, my dad suggested Pan-Atlantic University because of its Catholic values, association with Opus Dei, and its location being in Lagos, where he knew more people, unlike Nile in Abuja, where he did not know many people. I understood his thought process and decided to go to PAU, although I resumed one month later than my coursemates.

What did you do differently to graduate with a perfect CGPA of 5.0/5.0? And did it feel like having such a result?

There are a lot of things I did to graduate with a CGPA of 5.0/5.0, although I do not know if many of them are different from what others do. I often read whenever the semester started because I did not want to be overwhelmed during test periods. I participated in class and group projects, read with my close friends, and tried to understand the concept instead of cramming. I met with lecturers to understand when I did not do well on a test, and I taught some of my coursemates when I could.

I would also say that being determined to make a 5.0 CGPA and refusing to give up when a course seemed difficult helped me greatly. I would say that it is also important to enjoy the university years by trying to have fun and rest while you can, instead of being super serious and aloof 24/7.

Upon seeing my results, I felt happy and grateful to God, my family, and my friends for the journey that led me to having the results. It also felt satisfactory to know that if I really want to achieve a goal and work towards it, I would be able to.

My family members, especially my dad, were very excited to hear my results. They were super proud. They also gave me some gifts for my efforts, but I was just happy that I could make them proud. My friends were so happy for me, too. Even during school, they would call me the Best Graduating Student or 5.0, and I would always laugh. God really blessed me with them.

In the course of your programme, which area(s) or aspects) of computer science interested you more and why?

I really enjoyed the software engineering aspects of computer science because it felt good to apply my reasoning to building something and seeing my product tested.

I enjoyed the hardware and architecture aspects of computer science because it was fun putting the components together and learning how they interact with the software layer. I also enjoyed data communications and networking because it was interesting learning how the Internet operates.

What is your final-year project about, and what are its major findings and its significance to society?

My final year project was on artificial intelligence, geospatial analysis, and multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) for residential suitability. I aimed to use these components to identify land parcels in Lagos suitable for residential use based on various factors for enhanced living conditions of people.

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A major finding was the difference between the MCDA criteria and the features the AI used to classify the land parcels. An enhanced modification of the system, where the use of proper land parcels instead of buildings as a substitute, is what I would like to focus on at some point in the future.

As the overall best-graduating student and the valedictorian of your university, what was the major highlight of your valedictorian speech?

The major highlight of my valedictorian speech was being able to say the words, “Today, I am honoured and delighted to be addressing you as your valedictorian”. I felt that all my efforts over the past years were being rewarded. My advice to my fellow PAU graduates would be essentially the things I had mentioned in my speech, particularly living a life of legacy with integrity. That is, for them to achieve their goals and accompany it with being kind and respectful to others, regardless of their status.

Many innovations and solutions are springing up from computer science applications. Which tech or computer project/solution have you produced or intend to produce?

At the moment, the project I intend to produce is my final-year project on residential suitability that I mentioned earlier. The reason I decided on the project in the first place was to solve a problem in Nigeria. Although the project needs significant improvement and better datasets, it is something I would like to continue to work on.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are changing the way everything is done in virtually all areas of life and business. However, they also have their drawbacks. What advice do you have for people and businesses on the best ways to leverage AI and ML to effectively solve their problems?

Artificial intelligence and Machine Learning are technologies that have been around for quite a long while, but they made a breakthrough with Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT.

I see many businesses trying to incorporate LLMs in ways that do not solve any problems for their users, just because they want to be labelled as an AI-first company and attract investors.

My advice would be to always keep the users in mind and to find a way to make AI centred around the business model and not the business model centred around AI. Also, they should incorporate the subset of AI that the business actually needs instead of focusing only on having an AI chatbot that no one actually needs.

If you were to solve three national problems facing Nigeria with your computer science expertise, which problems would they be, and how would you go about solving them?

If I were to solve three national problems facing Nigeria, they would be related to the electronic transmission of election results, proper urban planning, and improving the education sector. I think a key aspect of solving any of those problems is understanding the problem thoroughly, typically through research, interactions with experts, and knowing what is required to solve said problems. Aside from that, selecting the right people to be on the team and managing the team successfully would be crucial in solving these problems.

Regarding the election results, my friends and I once worked on a Blockchain-based election system, which I believe is a good step in the right direction for maintaining results as immutable. The urban planning solution would involve Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and data analysis to adapt to various regions. Finally, for the education sector, a learning platform with free and downloadable detailed materials is a solution I would work towards.

What was your social life like as a student? Tell us about your relationship with Clement Obieke and Miracle Nnadiukwu, who you said on Linkedin make up the Three Musketeers with you.

I have a social personality. So, I made quite a lot of friends with students and staff. I enjoyed talking for hours with my friends and playing games with them.

Regarding my leadership activities, I led the Tech Innovation Club’s web development stream for about a year, the Pan-Atlantic University’s chaplaincy bulletin editing and distribution team, and the software development team for the university’s upcoming internship portal. Most of my other leadership activities were for the various group projects I did in school because I liked the work to be completed as efficiently as possible.

Clement Obieke and Miracle Nnadiukwu are my two closest friends from Pan-Atlantic University. I first talked to Clement when we were to take an English test the day after I resumed school. As I said before, I resumed one month after my classmates. I was told that he had correctly answered a question that the English lecturer had asked, so I wanted him to explain the answer. Another time, I asked him for the notes on what my Physics lecturer had said on how to write a good Physics report.

We just became friends from then on. Miracle later joined the two of us because he said he wanted to be my rival after I got the highest score on a Math test we did.

Since then, we all started sitting together in class, reading together for tests and exams, eating together, learning from one another, and hanging out a lot. This was noticed by some lecturers, and so we earned the ‘Three Musketeers’ name, alongside other names.

What was your best moment as an undergraduate, and also your worst moment? How did you manage the worst moment?

I don’t think there was a single best moment. But I would say every time I made a new friend was a good moment. Aside from that, around the time I was facing my worst moment, it was my birthday, and my family did a lot of things for me to enjoy that day. Some of my friends threw a surprise party for me and gave me gifts. It made me happy, and I love them for that.

I do not want to go into details about my worst moment, but I was able to manage it due to the support from my family, friends, and some lecturers. Also, praying and standing strong during that moment helped me to overcome it. That worst moment was just more motivation for me to get a 5.0 CGPA.

If you were given a fully funded postgraduate scholarship to study in any university in the world, which course would you study, at which university, and why?

It would be Computer Engineering or Network Engineering because, as I mentioned earlier, I enjoyed those aspects during my undergraduate studies.

However, for the university I would like to study at, I have not decided. I was actually more interested in gaining some relevant work experience after I had finished my undergraduate studies.

But occasionally, I take a look at some universities in the United Kingdom and Canada because those are the countries where I want to do my postgraduate study. When I am fully ready to pursue my postgraduate study, I would do more research on universities in these countries because I would want to enjoy my study period and gain meaningful knowledge. (TRIBUNE)