From the outside, Success Ngozi Okediachi’s story looks like a detour. Look closer, and it’s a deliberate climb. Armed with a BSc in Pharmacology and now back in lecture theatres as a 200-level nursing student at Shanahan University, Onitsha, Success represents a growing class of young Nigerians who refuse to be boxed into one lane.
From Umuiyibu-Umuezei Quarters in Asaba to the demanding classrooms of nursing school, her journey is fuelled by family conviction, personal clarity and an unromantic commitment to care.
In this interview with Rita Oyiboka, she opens up about studying one medical course only to return for another, and how she plans to build both a career and a life on her own terms.
Can we meet you properly? Tell us who you are and what you do.
My name is Okediachi, Success Ngozi. I am from Umuiyibu-Umuezei Quarters, Asaba. I am currently a 200L nursing student at Shanahan University, Onitsha, Anambra State.
I also run a perfume business.
What first caught my attention about your story was that you studied a pharmacy-related course and are now studying nursing. Can you walk us through that journey, how pharmacology happened and how nursing eventually became your path?
Okay, no problem.
When I graduated from secondary school, a boarding school, my dad always had this dream of me becoming a nurse. He really wanted me to be a nurse.
While I was in church, I once acted in a play, and after that, my pastor kept calling me “nurse.” At the time, I didn’t really understand it. I felt he was just prophesying into my life.
After secondary school, it was difficult to get admission into nursing school. So I gained admission into pharmacology at Delta State University (DELSU), Abraka. Even while studying pharmacology, I was still trying to pursue nursing, but it wasn’t working out. So I decided to finish pharmacology first.
I got my BSc degree in Pharmacology, graduating with a Second Class Upper. When I finished, my parents were very happy. I thought I was finally going to be free, at least I had become a degree holder.
But my dad said no, that I still had to go and study nursing. He didn’t want to let it go. I told him I had other things to do, but he insisted it was good to go further and that having two degrees in the medical field was not a bad thing.
Since I already had a degree in pharmacology with a Second Class Upper, I decided to use it to apply to nursing school. I went for a BSc in Nursing.
By God’s grace, I got admission.
Both pharmacology and nursing are demanding courses. How has the journey been so far, and what challenges have you faced?
I would like to thank God for the kind of family he gave me, my father, Ogbueshi Obodo Andrew Okediachi and my Mrs Promise Onyinye Okediachi and also for my wonderful fiancé.
It has not been easy, I won’t lie. But each time I feel like giving up, they always call me, encourage me, and try to know if I’m okay. They always assist me and try to make life easier for me.
During my school days in pharmacology, I didn’t need to work to afford anything. All I needed to do was read, because everything I needed, financially and otherwise, my dad provided. My mum also supported me spiritually and financially.
I didn’t have to worry about school fees, food, or anything like that. Almost every month, they brought foodstuffs and even cooked food to my school, so I wouldn’t stress myself cooking.
Even now at Shanahan University, they do the same. My fiancé also supports me; he sends me money and checks on me regularly.
So it hasn’t been extremely difficult. I just had to focus more on school. I didn’t live a stressful life of working to survive. I focused mainly on reading and getting good grades.
When you eventually qualify as a nurse, which area would you like to practise in?
I haven’t thought about it deeply, but I think I would like to go into caregiving, especially caring for the elderly. We don’t really have enough people who are patient enough to take proper care of them, so I would like to focus on that.
Beyond your father’s influence, what did you personally want for yourself from the start?
I’ve always wanted to be a nurse.
Now that you have experienced both fields, which would you honestly say is more difficult, pharmacology or nursing?
To be honest, nursing is harder.
In pharmacology, I worked mostly with known drugs and how they affect the human body. But in nursing, I have to understand every detail about the human body, how someone is feeling, how to care, how to predict outcomes, and how to nurture. It has many categories, and you have to be more intentional. So nursing is more difficult.
There is a popular narrative that many people study nursing as a way to leave the country. Is that part of your plan?
No, not at all.
First of all, I don’t think I can leave my family behind. My parents will get older, and I want to be around them. I also want to contribute to my own country.
I don’t feel we should abandon our country. The older generation is ageing, so we, the younger ones, should grow and take over from where they stop.
I’m not really the “abroad” type.
You’ve spent about four years studying pharmacology and will spend about five years in nursing. That’s almost a decade in school. Have you ever felt like time is slipping by, especially seeing your peers already working?
Not really. I always say everyone has their own time.
I take life gradually, and I don’t allow anyone to tie me down. While I’m studying nursing, I’m still living my normal life. I’m still trying to get a job, even if it’s online. I have a fiancé. I’m planning marriage and children.
So I’m still moving. Education doesn’t tie you down. It only gives you an upper edge in your career path.
As a woman, I can multitask. We can do many things at once. God has given us that nature.
Looking ahead, what are your key goals for the next five years?
My most important goal is to finish my nursing programme. I want to go into the world and apply what I’ve learnt.
I also want to build my family. I’ve always wanted to be a mother and a very good wife.
I also want to explore more in life, grow, and achieve whatever I set my mind to.
Do you have any role models who inspire you?
They are not celebrities.
When I came to university, I worked with someone who was a nurse. She inspired me and motivated me to go fully into nursing.
Outside school and work, what do you enjoy doing?
I love watching movies. I also love cooking. Sometimes I love to spoil people and enjoy my food.
What would you say to people who studied courses different from what they originally wanted and now feel it’s too late to change direction?
Don’t give up.
It might take time, and you might feel it’s too late, but it’s never too late. As long as you’re alive, you can start again.
You can go back to the career you want. You can do whatever you want to do.
The sky is not the limit.
Do you believe having both a pharmacology degree and a nursing degree gives you an advantage?
Yes, for sure.
Being a double degree holder is not easy. It gives me an added advantage because I have knowledge from pharmacology and nursing combined. That knowledge can be applied in many areas.
With strikes and ongoing challenges in Nigeria, many medical students and workers feel discouraged and demotivated. What message would you give them?
We should remember that we didn’t go into the medical field because of money, but because of care, love, and humanity.
Whenever you feel down, remember the reason you chose this path.
