"The Spark Came from That Experience": Career Aspirations and Internet Information Access in Two Nigerian Universities

Abstract

In this exploratory project I investigate the relationship between access and usage of Internet information resources and career aspirations among students at two universities in Abuja, Nigeria. This investigation includes both online and offline resources, including the eGranary, an extensive intranet-based collection of resources taken from the Internet. I develop a working theory of how Internet information access influences aspirations both through informational and parainformational channels. Based on empirical data collected through interviews, a focus group, and observation in January, 2017 in Abuja, key findings emerge: Interpersonal connections were immensely important to understanding the relationship between Internet information access and participants' career aspirations; participants' perceptions of Nigerian society and culture shaped how they perceived the career exploration process; and the eGranary was not in widespread use for career-related exploration, in part because of the limitations of an offline resource but also because student awareness of the resource was quite low at one site. This project is exploratory in nature, so I emphasize discussion of ways future research can draw on this work.