30-Year-Old Lady Completes BSc, Masters and PhD, Shares Motivation
- Worluh Chizenum, a 30-year-old Public Health scholar from Rivers State, shared her inspiring academic journey
- The Ikwerre native completed her first degree at 20, a master’s degree at Uniport, and later a PhD, all while running a fashion business
- She said her father’s push and her own grit helped her through the hardest parts of juggling school and entrepreneurship
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At 30, Worluh Chizenum is a PhD holder in Public Health, a University of Port Harcourt alumna, and the founder of a growing fashion brand in Port Harcourt.
She finished her first degree at 20, completed her master’s at Uniport, and only decided to pursue a doctorate a year later.
Source: TikTok
Legit.ng reached out to her to discuss her decision to study Public Health, how her father changed her mind about a PhD, and how she managed to balance doctoral research with running a business.
From Madonna at 20 to Uniport Master’s
Worluh’s academic journey began early and moved fast. She completed her undergraduate degree at 20, which put her ahead of many of her peers.
After NYSC, she enrolled in a master’s programme at the University of Port Harcourt.
She chose Public Health and specialised in health systems and management because it focused on how healthcare is organised and delivered at scale.
In her words:
“Well my full name is Worluh Chizenum, I am 30 yrs old. An Ikwerre girl, Rivers state. I finished my first degree at the age of 20 from Madonna University, did my masters at Uniport. My course of study was Public health, specialized in health system and management.”
‘I Never Really Planned for a PhD’
After her master’s, Worluh had no intention of continuing in school. She wanted to step away from academics and focus on other areas of her life. It took a year before she reconsidered.
During that time, her father intervened and made the case for her to start a doctorate immediately.
He argued that delaying would only make it harder later for her to pursue academic advancement.
Source: TikTok
Worluh recalled:
“So it took a year after before I picked interest and then decided to do a PhD. My major driving force was my father. He made me see reasons why I should do it and pushed me to do it well and today I am really glad that I did. So yes it may sound cliche but the motivation to do this was my father, the urge to make him proud and the zeal to do that which I thought I wouldn’t by able to do at first.”
That same motivation became her anchor when the programme got difficult.
She said remembering her reason for starting helped her stay in the programme during low periods until she bagged her doctorate degree.
"When things got bad because trust me they did I just remember why I started in the first place,” she added.
Juggling a PhD and a fashion business
Worluh was not only in school during her PhD. She was also running a fashion business she had started during her master’s.
Managing both was more demanding than she expected. There came a point when she considered pausing the PhD to focus fully on the business.
She decided against it and chose to restructure how the business operated instead.
According to her:
“Juggling a PhD and a business was a different kind of work entirely, there was a time I actually wanted to pause the PhD program so I could focus on my business but my strong head would not let me do such. So instead I hired more hands for my business, delegated tasks probably and only took jobs I knew my team and I would be able to deliver perfectly and on time whenever I was really busy with school.”
She also learned how the PhD timeline works. The first year is lighter, but the intensity increases after that, and students have to adjust quickly or risk delaying graduation.
She noted:
“The good thing is that PhD wouldn’t demands much from you at first until after a year on it then you’d know that the main program has just started and you’d have to buckle up else you won’t graduate.”
Lessons as lady juggles business and PhD
Worluh’s story highlighted two things: the weight of family support and the need for systems when managing multiple goals.
Her father’s push got her into the PhD. Her decision to delegate kept her business alive while she studied.
At 30, she is a PhD holder in Public Health with a specialisation in health systems and management, and a business owner in Port Harcourt.
Her journey from Madonna at 20 to a doctorate at 30 was not straight, but it was driven by the desire to make her father proud and to prove to herself that she could do what she once thought she couldn’t.
Watch Worluh celebrate her graduation in a TikTok video below:
UNIPORT graduate fulfils her father's dream
Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that a young Nigerian lady who is a graduate of UNIPORT narrated how she bagged a first-class degree in a rare course.
She mentioned in the viral post that her dad had previously shared a dream about her achieving the academic feat.
Proofreading by Funmilayo Aremu, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
