There was a time when the future was described as a straight road. It was predictable, linear and very assured.

Ebuka always heard it every morning when he complained about not going to school.

Go to school oo, come top in class, graduate, get a life and you will be set and rich.

That was what his mother always said.

It was not presented as advice and unshaken truth. A universal formula passed down like inheritance, spoken in living rooms, repeated and reinforced in classrooms and meetings.

Education was the key. But nobody told us the door had conditions.

The Pattern That Built Their World.

The older generation had security and order, this was their reality and it worked for them.

People grew through strata of career and governmental institutions, to be successful was to be educated and excel academically back then.

This was not an imagination, it was a lived experience.

A university degree meant something tangible. It meant entry and access. It meant belonging to the class of people who would build institutions, manage systems, and shape economies.

Back then if you finished school, the system just absorbed you.

And so the older generation imbibed this in their children, it was the right thing to do right?

They were not misleading anyone, they were just sharing what worked.

“Mummy, Daddy I’ll buy you a car when I grow up.” It was a sentence filled with innocence, ambition, and certainty by the young ones.

And the response from their parents would be that read your book and you’ll be successful.

Because to them, reading your book was not symbolic. It was practical and had delivered results before. Education was not just intellectual growth, it was economic security.

Back then getting out of school was straightforward and you had more chances of getting a job.

There were fewer graduates, expanding public sectors, and growing private institutions. Opportunity and education moved together. One led to the other almost naturally.

Education was the key, and the door opened for anyone who wanted it.

When the Lock Changed Without Notice

But somewhere along the line, that pattern stopped working, or maybe the conditions changed.

Education was the key, but a stranger seems to have changed the lock. The promise remained, but the outcome shifted.

Today, the reality is different in ways that many families are still trying to understand. The structure that once absorbed graduates now releases them into uncertainty.

But now with over 600,000 graduates being thrown into the labour market, with no matching Job market to cater for them, we have seen the influx of unemployment spike over the years.

This is not a reflection of individual failure. It is a reflection of systemic imbalance.

The labour market has evolved into something far more selective, far more complex. Employers are no longer just asking what you studied.

They are asking what you can do. They are asking for skills, experience, adaptability, and initiative. They are asking questions that certificates alone cannot answer.

The reality has changed, and even many mothers and fathers are still not aware.

Because from their perspective, the formula still exists. School leads to success and education leads to stability.

But the environment surrounding education has transformed.

Technology has reshaped industries. Automation has replaced routine roles. Globalization has expanded competition beyond physical borders.

A graduate is no longer competing with people in the same city, but sometimes with people across continents.

The lock did not disappear, it was replaced and nobody was preinformed and many graduates are still holding the original key.

Learning Beyond the Certificate: Adapting to a Different Career Reality

The education system should evolve and adapt to the reality of modern times, you can’t still be teaching something that was applicable a decade ago, times have changed.

This is not a criticism of education itself. Education remains foundational and has built thinking, perspective, and intellectual discipline.

But education alone, in its traditional form, is no longer enough.

Many individuals spend years in the University without financial literacy, applicable skills in real time and all.

They graduate knowing theories but not systems, concepts but not execution and definitions but not application.

This gap is not always visible immediately. It reveals itself during job searches, interviews, and real-world tasks. Employers are not just looking for what you know. They are looking for what you can translate into value.

Financial literacy, digital skills, communication, adaptability, and problem-solving have become essential components of career survival. Yet many graduates encounter these realities only after leaving university.

This creates a transition shock, the realization that education was necessary, but incomplete.

Universities cannot operate as isolated academic environments disconnected from economic reality.

The modern career landscape requires integration between learning and application. Between theory and practice.

Students must now learn beyond their curriculum. They must understand how industries function, how money works, how systems operate. They must develop competence that exists outside exam halls.

This is not about abandoning education. It is about expanding it because the world graduates people differently now.

Education Is Still the Key. But the Door Is No Longer the Same

Education was never a lie. It still matters. It still shapes minds and opens possibilities.

But the door has changed. Or maybe they have changed the padlock.

The key alone is no longer enough. It must be accompanied by awareness, adaptability, and relevant skills.

The mistake is not in believing in education. The mistake is in believing education alone guarantees access.

The older generation followed a pattern that worked within their economic reality. They passed it down with sincerity and hope. They wanted stability for their children because education gave them stability.

Today’s graduates must carry more than certificates. They must carry understanding of a world that rewards application as much as qualification.

Education is still the foundation but opening the door now requires more than just holding the key.

It requires knowing that the lock is different and learning how to open it.