The overall best graduating student of Lagos State University (LASU), Adebanjo Samuel Oluolamide, has been awarded a N10 million cash prize in recognition of his outstanding academic performance, as the university held its combined convocation ceremony for the 2024/2025 and 2025/2026 academic sessions.
Oluolamide, of the Department of Aerospace Engineering, received the prize from the Sunbeth Excellence Partnership Programme (SEPP) after graduating with a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 4.97 and First Class Honours. The award was presented at the university’s 29th and 30th combined convocation, held on Monday at the Olatunji Bello Auditorium, Epe Campus.
The N10 million prize is part of SEPP’s ongoing partnership with corporate organisations aimed at recognising academic excellence and encouraging innovation among LASU students.
Oluolamide’s 4.97 CGPA on a 5.00 scale was the highest graduating score recorded by the university for the 2025/2026 session, out of a field of thousands of graduates. His achievement stands out further given that only 232 students earned First Class Honours across First Degree programmes in the session.
His performance is considered especially notable because aerospace engineering is a highly technical discipline covering areas such as aerodynamics, aircraft and spacecraft systems, propulsion, structures and flight technology.
Oluolamide’s path to the top of his graduating class was built on more than classroom grades. He was also active in space-related initiatives at LASU, serving as Learning and Development Coordinator of the university’s Space Clubs, where he contributed to programmes focused on space education, research and innovation.
Just days before his big win, he had disclosed on social media that he was named Scholar of the Year at the AESA-LASU Dinner on June 25, his second time receiving that honour during his undergraduate studies. He shared the news on X, reflecting on the years of late nights, heavy research and relentless focus that went into his final stretch as a student.
Celebrating his Senate-approved result online, Oluolamide credited his success to his faith, writing that all glory belonged to God for His grace, wisdom and strength at every step of the journey.
The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello, described the combined convocation as historic, noting that it would be her final convocation as vice-chancellor of the university. The ceremonies were set to award diplomas, first degrees, postgraduate diplomas, master’s degrees and doctoral degrees to graduates across both sessions.
In total, LASU graduated 20,604 students across the two academic sessions, with 494 earning First Class Honours. Alongside Oluolamide, Ayilara Lawal Olawale of the Department of Project Management Technology was recognised as the overall best graduating student for the 2024/2025 session, with a CGPA of 4.96.
Both award-winning graduates credited their success to years of discipline, research and hard work, with Olawale describing his own recognition as a product of divine grace after a journey marked by endurance and perseverance.
