‘It wasn’t straightforward’ — Architecture BGS Shares Her UNILAG Undergraduate Journey

By Success Essien, Jacinta Ijeoma, Akinpelumi Esther, Mohammed Musa, Thomas Peace, and Akpobi Oluwatosin

For architecture students, long hours in the studio are normal. Designs are revised repeatedly, deadlines overlap, and feedback can often mean starting all over again.

It was within this demanding environment that Deborah Isiuwa Oloton studied architecture at the University of Lagos, eventually emerging as the Best Graduating Student of the Faculty of Architecture.

Coming into the university, Deborah already knew her academic strengths. “I was always very good in secondary school, especially in mathematics and physics,” she says. Architecture, however, challenged her differently. “It wasn’t straightforward. It’s not like calculations where you have a fixed answer or a fixed route.”

Designing required long hours of research and constant revisions. “You spend so much time trying to come up with a concept to satisfy a brief, and then you meet a lecturer who makes one small change that topples everything,” she explains. 

Initially, this uncertainty discouraged her. With time, she began to appreciate it. “That’s one thing I genuinely began to enjoy about the course. You can be creative and still tap into so many different fields of knowledge.”

Each project demanded careful attention to context. “Designing a hospital is different from designing a school. Designing in Lagos is different from designing in Abuja,” she said. “You have to research so many things, but eventually it becomes rewarding because you learn how to bridge knowledge from different aspects.”

The workload itself was intense. “Deadlines were back-to-back,” Deborah recalled. Practical courses in her early years added to the pressure. “At some point, I basically became a carpenter,” she says, remembering long hours of woodwork, drilling, and model making. “Architecture gives you so much exposure, but adjusting to it was difficult at first.”

Despite these challenges, her struggles were not always visible. “Because I was doing well, people assumed everything was easy for me,” she said. “They didn’t see the overnight work or the pressure of coming from home.”

Throughout her journey, Deborah leaned heavily on her faith. “I’m a very strong believer in God,” she said. “I work hard and study hard, but beyond that, I believe it takes the God factor to thrive.” When she felt unable to explain her struggles to people, she turned to God. “The peace and grace of God were what pulled me through.”

She also credits her upbringing for shaping her mindset. Raised in a home that emphasised diligence and excellence, Deborah said her parents taught her to focus on improvement rather than comparison. “They always told us to aim for the bull’s eye,” she said. “The focus was never on beating someone else, but on how I could do better.”

One defining moment came during her 200-level year, after she spent an entire holiday working on a design project. “I worked every single day when I was supposed to be resting,” she said. The project received harsh criticism during an interim jury. “It was really painful, especially because expectations were high.”

Rather than discarding the idea, Deborah kept the same concept and focused on improving her presentation. “The problem wasn’t my thinking or research. It was how I presented it,” she explained. That experience became a turning point in her growth.

Over time, she became more confident and connected with her classmates, eventually serving as class representative in her 300 and 400-level classes. “I don’t even know how it happened,” she said. “I just know God used that process to shape me.”

Her final-year thesis reflected her values. Focusing on a vocationally integrated secondary school, Deborah explains, “Education is where value is added to people.” She hopes to design spaces that combine skill acquisition with formal learning, especially in underserved communities.

Looking ahead, she sees graduation as a transition rather than a conclusion. Her advice to younger students is clear: “Take God seriously, aim for self-improvement, say no to mediocrity, and spend your time wisely.”