It has always been my dream to become an Aerospace Engineer even as a teenager. I can still remember the uncontainable joy I felt when I got an offer from Manchester University to study aerospace engineering. It seemed like the stars had aligned to support my dreams. Of course, I took the offer and started laying the foundation to build my dreams on.

Immediately after school, I moved back to Nigeria with one goal; to carve out a niche for myself and hone the skills I had learnt over the years. Boy was I in for a surprise. The aerospace industry in Nigeria was nothing like I expected. In fact it had actually existed only in my imaginations.

I was extremely disappointed but definitely not discouraged. I was still determined to create that niche for myself as this was something I was passionate about. I took a job with a popular airline because it was a position that was closely related to what I wanted to do.

It took a while for the frustration to kick in. The job I was actually doing was not what I was hired for and definitely had no relation to it. My passion became the fuel that energized me to wake up each day and go to work.

Just like every other energy source, my passion began to wane until finally I broke down. I faced the reality- coming home had killed my dreams of becoming an aerospace engineer. I slowly came to the realization that to survive and succeed in Lagos (in fact Nigeria) passion will never be enough. There has to be a certain level of support and infrastructure to keep your passion alive especially for a practicing aerospace engineer. I decided to make a career change.

I am into management consulting now. I’ve been at it for the last two years and I’m actually enjoying what I’m doing. Trust me when I say, this decision did not come easy. It is the polar opposite of what I studied and definitely not where I pictured myself ten years ago. I know for sure that teenage me will probably go into shock if he meets me now.

But certain circumstances led to this unexpected transition and I am happy I enjoy what I do.

However, I cannot help but think about those who are not as lucky as I am to make a radical career change. I am certain there are lot of people like me in the past who graduated from the university wanting to do something different or be someone different but due to the current situation in Nigeria, lack of relevant infrastructure and support end up settling for mainstream finance jobs.

I cannot help but wonder if this is the reason for the lack of a wide spectrum of specialists and professionals across varying fields