Journey to America IV

My journey to America IV

Unlike before when the reason for 
wanting to go for my MSC was to 
show the world that I am a first-class 
material in the set of the Einsteins, 
this time around, my motive for going 
was because I wanted to transition 
to the telecoms industry and if I 
couldn’t do it via a job, the next option 
was via a masters degree. 
I was 25 years old at the time and if 
I did not get an entry-level job in 
Telecoms that year, I would no 
longer be eligible for entry-level jobs 
which usually had an age requirement 
of 26 years old or under. 
I had also given myself the aspire 
to perspire speech that one didn’t 
necessarily need a master's degree 
to succeed citing all the examples 
I knew so if my MSc plans fell through, 
I won’t die. 
That made me pursue my telco job 
side by side with my school application 
as I’d learned not to put all my eggs 
in one basket.
My ambition had also diminished in 
magnitude and I wasn’t looking to go 
to the best schools in the US anymore - 
good schools were now okay for me. 
This time around, I was strategic with 
my choice of schools and programs 
to ensure that one way or the other 
one would click. 
The Bible said, “scatter your bread 
across many waters because you don’t 
know which would come back to you”. 
I applied for an MSc in Electrical 
Engineering at two good schools and 
one okay school, and an MSc in Telecoms 
Engineering (that’s easier to get admitted
 into than Elect Engineering) in a good 
school.
I knew that if no school admitted me 
this time around, then it was not meant 
to be 
I re-took GRE, wrote better SOPs, got 
better lecturers to write my letters of 
recommendation and was more involved 
in the content they produced and 
left the rest to God. 
While I waited for admission feedback 
from the Schools I applied to and a 
job offer from the Telco, I kept busy 
by teaching math and further-mathematics 
for free at 2 public schools close to 
my house. 
That was definitely one of the most 
fulfilling things I’ve ever done
I also taught one student during their 
long vacation until the day before 
I left for school. 
In the first quarter of the following 
year, I got a job offer with inhumane 
requirements from the Telco. 
It wasn’t bad enough they were offering
 to pay me less than my previous job 
(which wasn’t a dealbreaker for me. 
I needed the experience so I could 
make do with the pay), they expected 
me to sign a 3-year bond stating that if 
I was going to leave the company 
before the end of the 3 years, I’ll pay 
them 3 times my annual salary! 
(I was dumbfounded) when I read 
the letter.  
I can’t even bind myself to google, the 
best place to work on earth, and a 
Nigerian Telco is now offering a three
year long marriage? God forbid. 
I didn’t even think twice before refusing 
the offer. 
My dad was furious and his exact 
words to me were “it’s better to be 
employed and bonded than unemployed 
and free”. 
In my mind, I said not for me! 
I cannot live in bondage. 
I’ll rather be jobless and free. 
Jesus has already died to set me free
Shortly after or before (I can’t really 
remember), 
I got 2 admission offers - one for the 
telecoms program, and the other for 
the MSc program in a school 
I didn’t really like. 
I chose the telecoms engineering program 
because it was in a good school and in 
addition to learning about my course, 
I wanted to access resources and job 
opportunities that good schools typically 
have, and I also wanted to understand 
the principles on which good schools 
are built and run because I was and 
still am very much interested in the 
education industry.  
Now that I had gotten admission, it 
was time to get school fees and living 
expenses money. 
I was studying for one government 
scholarship at the time with the hope 
that I’d do the exam before my 
resumption date and get it but the 
exam date hadn’t been fixed before 
I left the country. 
My youngest sister had also gained 
admission to study for her undergraduate 
program at the same time. 
She applied to 9 schools and got 
partial scholarships for 8 of them if
 I’m correct. 
She did all the application herself with 
me helping out a bit during the holidays 
and while in boarding house so she 
had worked very hard. But my parents 
 my dad didn’t want her to go because 
she was only 16 years old at the time 
so my father tried to bribe me by 
offering to fund my masters if I could 
convince her not to go. But Jesus 
had touched my heart then and I 
couldn’t do that to her after she’d 
worked so hard so I turned down his offer. 
I think that’s the most selfless thing 
I’ve ever done. 
Since there was no money from 
earthly father, I decided to consult 
my Heavenly Father, Baba Firecracker. 
I attended a sound church at the time 
and there was a huge emphasis on 
getting a word from God to assure you 
that whatever plans he laid in your 
heart would be fulfilled by him. 
I had never taken it seriously but this 
time around I needed a guarantee 
that going for my masters was the 
right move for me for two reasons 
which are; 1. I would be 26 years old 
at the time school resumed having 
already lost 2 years. I would be 28 
years old and above the entry level 
age limit so I couldn’t return to 
Nigeria and join the unemployment 
pool of fresh graduates. 
This meant I needed to get a very 
good job after graduation which  
would make me an experienced hire 
whenever I chose to return to Nigeria. 
2 - I didn’t want to go to the US and 
miss my future husband if he was 
in Nigeria. 
Please don’t judge me. 
I WAS in the group of women that 
wanted to marry just because they 
were getting older not necessarily 
because they understood the 
purpose of marriage.
Anyway, I prayed and the Holy Spirit 
led me to Isaiah 66:9 LB - “shall I bring 
you to the point of birth and not 
deliver says the Lord your God? 
No! Never”. 
For me that meant God was telling me 
that if he’d brought me to the point of 
birth with admission and I-20 (the 
document you needed to apply for 
student VISA with), surely he’d ensure 
I got the VISA and the funds to go 
to school. 
That’s actually the only time I’ve 
gotten a specific word for my plans. 
I guess God knew I needed it desperately 
because they were some struggling times 
at school and it was only that word 
that kept me going. 
Now that I had Baba Firecracker’s assurance 
that I was going to school and if I
 didn’t make it to school it’d have 
been my fault, I was going to do my 
own part.

 Shout out to the people of that Nairaland 
thread about going for post-graduate 
studies in the US. 
The thread was 385 pages long and 
I consumed everything. 
People were gracious enough to post 
the transcripts of their visa interviews 
there and the result of the interview- 
whether they were granted the VISAs 
or not. 
It was by that thread that I truly 
understood brain drain was real and 
people were doing everything in their 
power to relocate to America. 
Some people would go to another 
state say Abuja to re-apply for VISAs 
if they were denied at the Lagos office. 
Proof of funds are part of the documents 
one is required to show the consulate 
officer during the VISA interview and 
some people didn’t have sponsors.  
Their plan was to get to America and 
hustle so they would find people who 
could deposit the required funds 
temporarily into their account and 
when they were through with their 
interview, they’d return the money. 
Anyway, I read every single page 
diligently and practiced rehearsing 
my answer to my youngest sister who 
was annoyed that I made her listen 
to my responses to visa interview 
questions over and over again until 
I answered confidently. 
Because I had gotten the assurance 
from Baba firecracker that America 
sure fun mi, I didn’t bother asking my 
parents for their bank statements to 
serve as proof of funds. 
I decided I’ll boldly say my father 
(but it was my Heavenly Father I meant) 
if I was asked for who would sponsor 
my education. 
I still can’t believe I went for USA 
visa interview without financial documents. 
I didn’t tell anybody I was going for visa 
interview and just went. 
Mehn my experience at the visa office 
deserves a post of its own but let 
not derail. 
I wore a very nice formal dress for 
my visa interview cuz the Nairaland 
folks said to dress nice. 
When my name was called, I walked 
up to the consulate officer and answered 
all his boys 9/10 questions confidently. 
The guy was thorough I have to give 
him that. 
Then came the moment of reckoning. 
He asked who would sponsor my 
education and I confidently said my father. 
Then he asked for my proof of funds 
and I told him I didn’t have it. 
I couldn’t believe that my over-confidence 
was going to cost me an MSc degree in 
the US after everything I had been through.
To be continued...
Just kidding. 
He gave me a tag and asked me to 
return a few days later with my 
financial documents. 
Of course it meant I had to ask my 
dad for his bank statements which 
thankfully,  he gave me and I took 
to back to the visa office. 
This time around I had to wait until 
like 3pm for my name to be called. 
I sat at the very front row close to 
the consulate officers and I was 
able to hear everyone’s visa interview. 
From the ridiculous to the funny, 
people wanted to go to the US for 
reasons I’d never heard before. 
I owe y’all a post on that experience. 
Finally it was my turn and the same 
consulate officer asked if I came with 
the proof of funds and I said yes and 
gave it to him. 
He already had my passport and he said 
congratulations ma’am pickup your 
passport at the pickup office you 
indicated in your application. 
People of God, I almost burst into 
Galala dance but I said lemme respect 
myself before they changed their mind. 
I only told my parents and didn’t start 
telling anyone until I picked up my 
passport, saw it was stamped with 
the student visa and was safely back 
home.  I was so so happy that 2 years 
after my initial application, I was finally 
on my way to America!
America! The land of opportunity!
America! The land of the free!
THE END