The Alum Sessions: Eunice Anetorufa Biyere on Career Progression, Upskilling, and the Perks of Being BGS
The UK-based product manager takes us through her time as 2018’s best-graduating student, her health+tech merging career, and the importance of confidence for APSULites. By Precious Umeasalugo.
As tricky as school may seem, it's only a bubble. An electricity-deficient, third-place-lacking one, but a bubble all the same. And for those graduating soon, this bubble is about to burst and introduce us to an even tougher scene: life after undergrad. While students from other disciplines usually have set careers and a somewhat predetermined transition from school to the workforce, like a medical student becoming a doctor or a physiotherapy student becoming a sports physiotherapist, students of the Department of Pharmacology face a collective problem: the curse of being able to work "anywhere".
We don't know about you, but we're tired of the uninformed indecision that comes with studying a basic medical course, so we're taking matters into our own hands.
For April's letters, we're bringing APSoUL back home and talking to alums who have worked and built in different fields, including startup culture, art, public health, drug discovery, and finance. Here, they share their post-undergrad journey with us and give us a much-needed hint of what to expect as we leave the smelly yet safe confines of our hostels.
APSULites, meet April’s Alum Sessions, starting with Eunice Anetorufa Biyere, product manager and best-graduating student in 2018.
Two words: wake-up call. Or maybe three, but that's not the point. It's not every day you get to sit on a 40-minute call with Torufa Biyere, and it's not every day you get a should-be-monetized pep talk from such a brilliant mind.
Torufa is many things: former podcaster, lifestyle blogger, enjoyment minister, and product manager working with a big team in the healthcare section of a tech agency in the United Kingdom. But even further, she's achieved a couple of feats in her education, earning herself a Masters in Public Health (Distinction) from the University of Aberdeen after graduating as the best-graduating student of the Department of Pharmacology in 2018. Just as she branches out career-wise, Torufa clearly holds trying, failing, and trying again as her ethos.
"I have worked in several industries, but I always had a passion for managing people and coming up with ideas", she said on our impromptu 1 pm call. "I started my career by interning with a healthcare startup in 2018 where we managed elderly people. There, I found that I wanted to work in tech, but in healthcare too".
That one experience led her to her current role, where she builds healthcare solutions for companies, especially in first aid, cancer research, virtual healthcare, and doctor matching. "My company is a not-for-profit, and we work with many charity organisations. I also manage the British and American Red Cross products," she added.
From her studentship to her success as a product manager, Torufa holds three principles dear: luck, drive, and a ton of confidence.
On her experience as an undergrad
Life as a pharmacology student is a uniquely tailored experience. For some, it is the worst coming-of-age story ever told. But for others, like Torufa, it can hold some of the best years spent finding oneself.
"I had a very good time as a pharmacology student, and I had an awesome class. My classmates were the best. We understood ourselves so well, and they made me feel comfortable," she stated.
Torufa ascribes her classmates' close-knit relationship to a scenario many pharmacology students are not strangers to: being MBBS "rejects".
"Many of us were MBBS leftovers, so we already had that bond from having a similar admission experience. Most of us were taken from different courses, and I don't think anyone in my set picked pharmacology as a course. We just found ourselves there and were like, 'We're here, and we'll make the best of it,'" she added.
For those still in undergrad, Torufa says to make your own experience. "Sometimes some lecturers will make it horrible for you, but you make your own experience."
On expectations of life after undergrad and the realities
We started the Alum Sessions to dispel the notion that there was little to nothing to do with a pharmacology degree, a notion that was already in existence even in Torufa's time.
"When we got [into CMUL], we were already branded the leftovers. We kept asking, 'What can we do with pharmacology?' People would say pharmacology is not a good course for Nigeria; study abroad; there are more opportunities there", Torufa narrated.
While they were spoonfed several presumptions about their after-grad career prospects, Torufa clung to her innate confidence to make things work out for her through sheer grit and upskilling.
"Finishing with a first class actually opened doors for me; it was easy when I started job hunting for an internship. Even during my internship, I kept upskilling, learnt skills, and got my master's. Nobody stops; everyone has to upskill. You don't just sit down and say, I'm a pharmacologist; you can not thrive or make money that way", she said, kicking off a mini-monologue on the sheer scale of opportunities available to pharmacology students if only they position themselves correctly.
"It's great that we're in a world with much more information. I came to the UK and found that the opportunities in drug research are immense. They pay you so much. Think about your environment and what you can achieve with it. The opportunities are, in truth, low in Nigeria, but they exist."
The one piece of advice she wants you to leave with? Upskill.
"Learn to think outside the box. Think of upskilling past your degree. I already had a healthcare background and I knew the kind of places I wanted to work at. I also already had a skill that opened those doors even further. Think of a path that adds value no matter where you are", she advised.
On the importance of pharmacology to real-life experiences
Like those quadratic equations you spent all month learning in secondary school, it's easy to doubt and ask if your LD and ED50s will come in handy. Take it from a pro: they will.
"A lot of courses in pharmacology helped me. People say oh, how will this help me in my everyday life? It will help you when trying to pick a path for your master's or career. That pharmacology background really helped when I was trying for admission. You just need to know what you want and get it with your degree and skills".
On defeating the inferiority complex
"The global stage? It all depends on how you present yourself. Do not ever think that you are less of anything because of what you study. Do not ever think you don't belong somewhere or can't get an opportunity because of your course. With that mentality, you're already giving yourself a minus, draining your confidence. If you believe you're world-class anywhere you are, you are world-class. Whatever you want to apply for, what do you think of yourself?
You need to see yourself as world-class and to be truly world-class, you need to stay current. Be vast in knowledge, ask questions, and answer them too. Have that determination and identify your drive. Is it money? Passion? The need to change lives? Find what it is and put in the work.
No matter your course, we're all hustling for the same positions. If you keep looking down on yourself because of your course, you will never be wherever or whoever you need or want to be. You just really need to try".
Connect with Torufa on LinkedIn.
This feature and the opinions therein do not represent or reflect the stance or opinions of APSoUL or its parent body NIPSA UNILAG/APSUL.
In The Lab
Get ready because we have more Alum sessions up our sleeve. So, if you haven’t subscribed, now would be a good time to hit that button!
Want to be featured in an APSoUL story? Our doors are open. Just send an email to WorkWithAPSoUL@gmail.com, and our publicist will help you get started.
Chronic Events
The APSUL Health and Sports Weeks committees are on the lookout for members to help plan and execute the Health and Sports Weeks respectively.
If you’re interested, just fill out this form: https://forms.gle/uT6xDnttKAfm3up68
And hurry, the form closes tonight!
Such a good read❤️
Loved reading this! 💚