-As Nimba University Prepares for its 9th Commencement
BY: SHALLON S. GONLOR |
shallonsgonlor@gmail.com
NIMBA COUNTY, Liberia — More than 300 prospective graduates will receive degrees Saturday at Nimba University’s 9th commencement, but the celebration masks a growing fear: Liberia’s tight job market offers few openings for the newly credentialed.
At Sunday’s Baccalaureate service at Harvest Intercontinental Ministries, dozens of soon-to-be graduates voiced deep frustration over persistent youth unemployment. Some graduates bluntly described degrees without job opportunities as “useless.” “It’s painful to study for years, sacrifice sleep and money, then graduate into uncertainty,” another student said. “We’re grateful for the education, but a degree feels useless when there’s no work to apply it.”
Several prospective graduates described the difficult choices many educated youth face when formal jobs remain scarce. They pointed to university graduates turning to commercial motorbike riding, housemaid work, or petty trading just to feed their families.
Students added that economic pressure is pushing some youth away from education entirely. “Today, many young people, both girls and boys, turn to the ghetto; some young people choose riding a motorcycle over education because of the challenges, suffering, and poverty that educated people experience. It hurts when you see someone educated become a beggar.”
Liberia’s youth unemployment rate remains high. Experts cite slow private sector growth, skills mismatches, and a large informal economy as key factors. For many families, motorbike riding, petty trading, and domestic work have become survival strategies — not career choices.
Graduates say they do not dismiss honest work, but they ask for more opportunities to use their degrees. Several called on the government, under Boakai-Koung’s ARREST Agenda, and the private sector to expand internships, vocational training, and support for youth-led businesses.
Meanwhile, Rev. Martin K. Yarkay, Lead Pastor of Harvest Sanniquellie and Baccalaureate speaker, urged the graduating class to place their academic achievements in God’s hands as they step into Liberia’s challenging job market.
Speaking on the theme “Give God the Glory,” Rev. Yarkay addressed the realities awaiting many Liberian university graduates. “Your education has equipped your mind, but your character will sustain you,” Rev. Yarkay told the graduates. “Let faith guide you, let integrity define you, let diligence drive your work, and let perseverance carry you through disappointment. The job market is tough, but a life built on these values will open doors that qualifications alone cannot.”
He cautioned graduates against seeing success as personal ownership. “Degrees, honors, and milestones are blessings, not just personal wins. In a time when jobs are scarce and the future feels uncertain, remember that success is stewardship, not ownership. God entrusts gifts and opportunities to us so we can use them to serve others.”
His message resonated with graduates who spent years navigating tuition costs, power outages, and economic hardship to complete their degrees.
Founded in 2010 in Sanniquellie, Nimba University is one of Liberia’s premier public higher education institutions, offering Bachelor’s and Associate degrees across six colleges: Business and Public Administration, Engineering and Geosciences, Health Sciences, Natural Sciences, Agriculture and Food Sciences, and Education.
Saturday’s commencement marks a historic milestone: the university’s first-ever Bachelor of Science degrees will be conferred alongside Associate degrees and diplomas from the Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) Department.
Graduates and faculty alike urged government, private sector, and development partners to accelerate job creation programs, expand technical and vocational training, and support youth entrepreneurship. More than 300 prospective graduates will receive degrees this Saturday, June 20, 2026. Many say celebration remains overshadowed by a harsher reality — joblessness.
