Beyond Lectures: Are OAU Students Getting Enough Rest?

The alarm may no longer be set for an 8:00 am lecture, but the day can still begin early. For some students, the holidays mean reporting to work, attending training sessions, or chasing personal goals. With lectures temporarily out of the picture, the question remains whether students have found time to rest or simply replaced one demanding routine with another.

For some students, the holiday means sleeping without worrying about an 8:00 am lecture, spending more time with family or finally catching their breath. For others, it is another season of deadlines, training, work, and the pressure to return to school better prepared than they left.

Interviews with eight students reveal that the holiday is not always the break it promises to be. For Faith, a 300-level Broadcast Journalism student undergoing her Students’ Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) at Western Spring Television in Osogbo, the holiday is an opportunity to turn classroom knowledge into practical experience. Working in the camera department, she is learning how television production operates while developing her technical skills.

She describes her holiday self as ‘curious, focused and independent,’ but admits that the pressure to remain productive sometimes creeps in. For her, the key is finding a balance between learning and resting.

Also, Favour, a 300-level Civil Engineering student participating in the Student Workshop Experience Programme (SWEP), describes herself as ‘a Student Survivor.’ Between site visits, departmental activities, projects, family issues, and emotional struggles, the workload leaves little room for rest.

Similarly, Fadairo Feranmi and Ezekiel Ogunniyi, both third-year Broadcast Journalism students, are participating in SIWES, which they describe as compulsory. While Feranmi says she does not feel pressured, Ezekiel feels there is a lot to accomplish: ‘I have to come back better than I left’. He has also spent money on data to download videos and several apps to support his personal development.

Their experiences raise a question: when holiday activities are compulsory, how much of the time off is truly a student’s choice?

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Yet, not every holiday story is about exhaustion; for some a great time of curiosity. Samuel sees his IT experience as an opportunity to develop himself more than he did during the academic session. He describes his routine as stress-free, saying he is productive while still resting well.

However, Diekolopemi, a 300-level Mass Communication student who is working and undergoing IT, offers a different perspective. She describes the holiday as ‘productive, calculative and tired,’ explaining that staying productive requires planning and can eventually become exhausting.

Similarly, Temitayo, a 400-level Information Science student, also struggles to find enough time for herself while working and undergoing IT. For her, productivity is necessary, but it comes with tiredness. Subsequently, Glory, a 300-level Accounting student who is working, says her holiday routine is almost the same as her school routine. Although she often rests, she admits to feeling very pressured.

Across these several experiences, one thing becomes crystal clear: students do not experience the holiday in the same way. While some embrace the flexibility to learn new skills and gain practical experience, others navigate demanding schedules that leave little room to unwind.

Resumption also comes with mixed feelings. Faith and Samuel look forward to returning, while Glory is less enthusiastic. Ezekiel, meanwhile, is happy about leaving some holiday responsibilities behind: ‘I won’t be washing plates again,’ but worries about catching up academically and facing overnight study sessions again.

Perhaps the holiday is neither entirely a time for rest nor solely a season for productivity. For many students, it is an attempt to balance both while preparing for another academic session.

So, when school gates close, students may leave the lecture halls behind, but the demands on their time do not always disappear. Sometimes, the classroom is replaced by a workplace, a training site, or a long list of personal goals.