The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC)

The discussion on whether NYSC has outlived its importance remains an impassioned debate among Nigerian youths. Many youths are of the opinion that it’s high time the program took a new turn, while many believe it’s a total waste of time. Whether you are for or against the program, you have to agree that NYSC is a necessary evil.

Both government and private organizations have been mandated to request for NYSC dispatch certificates before employing graduates. Even if you don’t intend to work for anyone in the near future, you can’t tell when having an NYSC dispatch certificate would give you an edge when pursuing a political position or a contract.

The NYSC, just like everything in life, has its pros and cons. If you are a new or a prospective corp member who wants to grasp what the program is all about, and how to best put that one year into excellent and productive use, then, this article is for you.

What You Should Know Before Going in for The NYSC Program

Before embarking on a life-changing journey like NYSC, it is important to research into what awaits you and you might best leverage what lies ahead.

Here is a list of some the things you should know before going for your NYSC program:

1. The 3 Phases of NYSC

NYSC is divided into 3 phases:

1. The three weeks orientation camp: Prospective corps members are to pass through the compulsory three weeks orientation camp exercise. The only people exempted are the pregnant and the sick. Click here to learn how to survive effectively at the NYSC Orientation camp.
2. Community Development Service (CDS): Corpers are to work together to positively impact their host communities. This is usually once a week. Download the CDS survival guide here.
3. Place of Primary Assignment (PPA): After passing out of the orientation camp, the next stop is the PPA. PPA is the place that corps members are posted to, to serve for the next 11 months. It can be a school, private organization, local government, hospital, or other places. Your place of primary assignment is essential to your future. It is a place that has been a determining factor to the success or otherwise of the most corps member. You may find information on how best to leverage the Place of Primary Assignment here.

2. Understand the Purpose

The best way to get the best out of anything is to identify its purpose. Quite a number of corpers and ex-corp members are passing or have passed through the program without adequate knowledge on why the program was established. The main purpose of the program is to bridge the gap in cultural diversity among Nigerian youths.

Involve Nigerian youths in nation-building, raise the moral tone, inculcate discipline through industrial work and impact the spirit of self-reliance through skill development. A proper understanding will help to rightly position yourself to make the most of NYSC.

3. Research About Your Choice States

While registering for the program online, you are to choose four states out of four regions you’d like to be posted to. It is important you ask the right questions, carry out proper research before choosing any state, because you are likely to be posted to any of the four states if you register early. Ask recent ex-corpers that served in those four states everything about the state. Here are a few things to consider before picking the four states:

• Security
• Standard of living
• State allowance
• Growth potential
• Network coverage
• Power supply
• Distance from your base
• Business opportunities
• Social life

4. Have the Right Mindset

A large percentage of people who never got the best out of the program were mostly people who went with prejudice. They already passed judgment on the program before they started the program. Most people concluded it was a waste of time and didn’t do much to make the program worthwhile.

Don’t conclude before starting the program that it will be a wasted one year. Leave an open mind until you get there and see things for yourself. See opportunities where many people see problems, think growth where people think stagnation, and believe that everyone’s experience mustn’t be the same.

5. Be Ready to Associate

Have it on your mind that you will meet Nigerian youths from different ethnic groups. This is one of the core purposes of the program – youths to meet other youths of different cultural backgrounds. The people you’ll meet during the program goes a long way to determine how fun and worthwhile it will be for you.

Some of the people you’ll mingle with will become life-long friends and helpers when you least expect them. Don’t be a lone ranger because you’ll end up missing out on other perspectives.

Documents Required For NYSC Clearance

You are to present the following documents on your arrival in the orientation camp:

1. NYSC call-up letter: A print out of this letter serves as proof that you were called up by NYSC to attend the program. You’ll need about 5 copies of this letter. Please, note that you are not to laminate your call-up letter for any reason.

2. Green card: The green card contains your bio-data. You are required to present the signed copy during your registration.

3. Medical report: This was introduced in 2017 to prove that you are physically and mentally healthy to partake in the orientation camp. You are required to present a medical report from any government or military hospital as a clearance. If you have any illness, it is advisable to make it known in your medical report. Without this document, you will not be allowed to register in the orientation camp.

4. Statement of the result: Your statement of result from your school proves that you are a bonafide graduate of that school. Mind you, you shouldn’t laminate your statement of result because if anything happens to the seal on the document, it is declared invalid.

5. Valid school identity card: You’ll be needing this as a means of identification in the camp until the original NYSC identity card is given to you.

6. Licenses and certifications: Lab scientists, nurses, pharmacists, doctors, and other medical graduates are to present their licenses and certification.  Pharmacists are to present their certificate issued by the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN), Nurses are to present a certificate issued by the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives (NANNM), and doctors are to present their license from the National Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (NMDCN).

7. Passport photographs: You will have to provide about 15 passport photographs taken in a white background.

8. Foreign students: Foreign students are to come along with ALL the documents they uploaded when they registered online.

9. Photocopies: To save your time, money, and energy, and help you quickly settle in, it is advisable you make 5 photocopies of every document.

Your Daily Needs

• White shorts, and white t-shirts
• Plain white tennis shoes or sneakers
• Waist bag or pouch
• Treated mosquito net
• Small padlocks for locking your bags
• Toothbrush and toothpaste
• Drugs like painkillers, antibiotics, anti-cold, cramps, allergies, catarrh. Aboniki balm and shea butter for massaging your legs.
• Towels, soap, detergent, disinfectant, and antiseptic
• Face towel and handkerchiefs
• Sunglasses and anti-sunburn cream
• Bed covers, pillow, and pillowcase
• Plate, cup, flask, spoon, water bottles, and fork
• Beverage, golden morn, cornflake, oat, and custard
• Cash and ATM cards
• Extra SIMs: Get all the network services if you can. You don’t know the network service that will be active in the camp.
• 3 colored clothes for Sunday services.
• Running or football boots if you are a track or football lover
• Camera for capturing the moments

Advantages and Disadvantages of The NYSC Scheme

The NYSC like everything in life has its pros and cons. A large percentage of these debates about the NYSC hinge on the positives and negatives.

What are the Importance/Positives of the NYSC?

1. Self-discovery: NYSC has given corpers the platform for self-discovery. Through Skills Acquisition & Entrepreneurship Department (SAED), many corpers were able to discover themselves and create a path for their lives and careers. SAED classes are a bedrock on which a number of enterprises are being born. As mentioned earlier, the program will be profitable if you embark on it with the right mindset.

2. Federal immunity: As a corper, you’ll enjoy federal immunity due to the fact that you are seen as federal government property. The uniform or identity card gives you an audience in places ordinary people can’t get through to. You’d be given preferential treatment unlike every other civilian because you are seen as a person who is serving his or her nation.

3. Networking and socializing: People have met people who positively influenced their lives during their service year. Some found love, while some found friendship and connections. NYSC is a platform that brings the rich, poor, and influential youths to the same level.

4. Creation of job opportunities: This is arguable, but we can’t deny that ex-corpers who were exceptional haven’t been retained in the places of primary assignment (PPA). It is common among those corpers that served in private organizations.

5. Dispatch certificate gives you an edge: This is the most important reason most Nigerian youths partake in this program. The dispatch certificate issued by the NYSC makes them employable. Most companies in Nigeria would ask for your NYSC dispatch certificate before employing you.

6. Respect and recognition: The respect and recognition that comes with the NYSC uniform is quite enviable. People will respect you, give things to you, and even sell things to you at cheaper prices for simply being a corper. Those who serve in rural areas enjoy a little privilege from their host communities.

7. Soft loans: The NYSC in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria CBN and Bank of Industry (BOI) grant loans to interested corpers who would like to start a business. Your collateral is your dispatch certificate.

What are the Disadvantages/Negatives of the NYSC?

1. Time wastage: People who are calling for the cancellation or the restructuring of NYSC say so on the basis of time wastage. They believe that if a large percentage of corpers are forced to teach in classrooms, work in government parastatals, and places not relevant to their career growth, then, it’s a waste of time. Everyone can’t be classroom teachers.

2. No insurance scheme protects corpers:  It’s absurd that a program as big NSYC doesn’t have any insurance scheme protecting corpers from harm and risks. People have lost their lives in the process of serving Nigeria, and the federal government didn’t do anything for their families. Training a child to the level of serving Nigeria and losing that child during NYSC is something most parents are scared of.

To make the matter worse, the program keeps posting corpers to dangerous environments that endanger their lives.

3. Lack of job security: It is devastating to pass through the program only for youths to go back to joblessness. NYSC to an extent should serve as a means of employing exceptional youths into the civil/public service. When this is done, youths will take the program seriously and not only do so because of the dispatch certificate.

Survival Tips For NYSC Orientation Camp

How Corp Members Can Channel Their energy During NYSC

1. Skill acquisition: You don’t need to pass out of NYSC to know that there are very limited jobs for Nigerian youths. To avoid frustration and depression while job hunting, it is advisable to learn a skill or two to help keep body and soul together before the dream job comes. There are many skills you can learn during your NYSC. Here are some of them:

• Decoration and event management
• Cake baking
• Makeup and hairstyling
• Barbing and dreadlocking
• Driving
• Auto repairs
• Digital marketing and social media management
• Video and photo editing
• Graphic designs
• Sound engineering
• Cosmetology
• Car tracking

2. Take professional courses: Entrepreneurship isn’t for everyone, so if you fancy corporate life, you can improve and update your knowledge by taking some professional courses. Some of the certificates issued after completing the courses help boost your chances of getting a job. These courses are discounted to corpers.

Here are some of the certificates you can acquire during your NYSC:

• National Institute of Management (NIM)
• Project Management Program (PMP)
• Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON)
• Health, Safety, and Environment (HSE)
• Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)
• Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICAN)
• Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM)

3.Learn how to apply for scholarships: If you are among those that have concluded that Nigeria is no longer for them, the best time to strategize on leaving the country is during your NYSC. There are many scholarship tutors that will teach you how to successfully apply for scholarships. Make sure you take your IELTS and TOEFL exams while you are learning and applying for scholarships.

4. Intensify your job hunt: If you’re already well-equipped for the labor market, there’s no need to wait until you pass out of NYSC to start applying for jobs. You can decide to dedicate your service to applying for jobs and going for interviews. People have done this and they landed jobs even before they were done with service. Your monthly allowance can help you scale this phase.

5. Start a business: You can make money while serving by starting a business. Look around and see what people lack that you can easily sell to them. There are business opportunities everywhere, so it’s up to you to locate them. With the loan from the Bank of Industry (BOI) and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), you can kick start that amazing business idea you have.

Possible Changes To the NYSC

We’ve heard a lot of suggestions from people regarding how the program should be restructured to make it more efficient for everyone. But, there’s a problem with all the suggestions we’ve received about the program.

Here are some of the popular suggestions:

1. NYSC should be optional: You must have heard the “NYSC shouldn’t be compulsory” statement a couple of times. People are of the opinion that youths should decide if they want to participate in the program or not. We all know that if this is made possible, the program will die a natural death because youths won’t participate, especially when the certificate is no longer a compulsory employment requirement.

2. Financial empowerment for corpers after orientation camp: People with this opinion believe that after the three weeks orientation camp, that the government should pay the corpers the sum of the total allowance at once. They believe that teaching and working in other government parastatals are a total waste of time and resources. And, that the full allowance should be given to corpers to help finance their dreams.

If this is to happen, we’ll have to agree that a lot of people who are employed by the NYSC and vendors with losing their jobs/businesses. Aside from that, the main purpose of uniting Nigerian youths will not be accomplished.

3. NYSC should be scrapped: As shocking as it may sound, this is the most popular opinion regarding the NYSC. People have come out to talk about how disadvantageous and dangerous the program has become. Their pain is based on the killings, kidnapping, and raping of corpers. These people also believe the program has outlived its relevance, and that the country isn’t worth the sacrifice.

4. Corp members should serve in their regions: These are from people who still have a little faith in the program. They support everything about the program, but they are of the opinion that corpers from each region should serve their region, and not travel to other regions due to the killings and accidents. If this opinion is adopted, it means the main purpose of the program has been defeated.

How do they bridge the gap in cultural and tribal differences if corpers are to serve regions?

Has NYSC Been a success?

For something to be a success, it must have impacted up to 80% of the population. Sadly, only a very few can say that NYSC has been a success.  NYSC has left many voids to be filled and many unanswered questions. Take away the N33,000 monthly allowance and dispatch certificate, and there might be nothing left to pick on the positive sides of the NYSC scheme.

The Experience of A Corp Member

Grounds For NYSC Redeployment

Redeployment is a process that should be initiated by the corp member. Redeployment can only be started in the camp after the swearing-in ceremony which can only be implemented only after the camp. There are however laid down conditions/factors that make the redeployment possible – Awajis

Here are some plausible factors why your redeployment might be granted:

Marital reason: Female corpers who are married are to apply for redeployment after the swearing-in ceremony. They are to write a letter to the Director-General addressing it through the State Coordinator. Attached to the letter are their marriage certificate, change of name in any national newspaper, and a letter from the husband’s place of work which shows that he lives in the state the wife wants to redeploy to.

Medical reason: If you are redeploying on medical ground, you’ll need a medical report from any government or military hospital stating that you have such an illness. Mind you, the medical report isn’t the only clearance you’ll need. They are likely to further investigate your claim.

Security reason: Security is a good reason to seek redeployment if the corper feels he/she isn’t safe in a state of deployment. Corpers posted to Gombe, Borno, and other northern states are plagued with security issues tend to redeploy to other states.

The issue of Boko haram in these northern states has made it possible for corpers posted there to seek redeployment. Besides, families aren’t at peace whenever their loved ones are posted to any of those states.

How to Redeploy While in NYSC Orientation Camp

There’s no need to get worked up if you don’t like your state of deployment. While in camp, you would have the opportunity to apply for redeployment. You won’t be the only one redeploying, you’d find other corpers seeking redeployment.

You’re to write an application letter, fill a redeployment form, and attach your documents/evidence that back up your reasons for redeployment.

How to Apply for NYSC Redeployment/Relocation Online 

• Log into the NYSC Portal with your email and password
• Click on the “Relocation” option to register.
• Fill and answer each question
• Wait for your approval or rejection of SMS/email.
• You’ll be notified via SMS/email if your redeployment was approved or rejected.

Application Requirements for Relocation/Redeployment in the NYSC Orientation Camp

• Letter of application
• Redeployment form
• Documents/evidence backing up your reasons for redeployment.

How to Print Out Your Online NYSC Redeployment/Relocation Letter

• Log on to NYSC Portal with your email and password.
• Click on “Manage Relocation.”
• Make a payment of N1000 through Remita.
• Print out your payment receipt.
• After payment, you’ll see “Print out relocation/redeployment letter” on your dashboard.
• Print your relocation letter and photocopy.
• Take the letter to your new state of deployment.