Dr. Mosunmola Kudirat Ariwoola, a 61-year-old woman, has achieved an incredible milestone by obtaining a PhD degree.
The sexagenarian recently received her PhD in Educational Technology from the University of Ilorin, Nigeria (UNILORIN), and she shared her motivations and experiences in an exclusive interview with Legit online.
Expressing her gratitude to Allah for making her academic achievement a reality, Dr. Ariwoola revealed that she never imagined herself reaching such a high intellectual level.
She recounted that she grew up in a time when female education was not highly valued. Despite these challenges, she returned to her hometown at the age of 20 to enroll in school, a decision she made independently.
In her own words:
“It was by myself that I traveled back to my hometown to ask to be enrolled in a school at the age of 20. I had no one to motivate or encourage me but I knew what I wanted, so I stuck to it.”
Frankly, my determination got me this far. A Ph.D. program is very tasking and demanding, more so if you are an older person like myself. But my strong will, determination, and the support I got from my children helped me to this level. I have to give adorations to Almighty Allah because, without God, it would not have been possible,” she replied with excitement.
“My advice for women is that there’s no limit to what you can achieve. But you have to be diligent, focused and prayerful. I grew up at a time when female education wasn’t prioritized but I never let that hold me back. “Also, there’s no deadline for any aspiration. Whatever you dream of, you can start working towards it at any age, especially for women. We should let the world know that we need more equal rights and empowerment for women, especially in educating and upskilling them.”