Finding his own path

Andy Newberry
04 March 2025

Student Life Culture and Society Science and Technology General

Nigerian student happy to find himself, excellent education at MSU Texas

Andy Newberry
04 March 2025
3 min read

When Samuel Olatunde first dreamed of coming to America to attend college, he thought basketball would be a part of it.

Duke University came to mind. But Olatunde realized after some time that he was good in basketball in his area, but it wouldn’t be his future occupation. He still wanted to come to the United States and found Midwestern State University and Wichita Falls.

“My dad’s plan was always to send me abroad to study. He wanted me to go to the UK, but I wanted to go to the U.S.,” Olatunde said. “I had heard of Texas, but not Wichita Falls.”

Starting college in 2020 as the world was experiencing COVID-19, it was the online presence of MSU Texas that gained his attention. But he was excited to come to campus to continue his educational journey, and he earned his Bachelor of Science from McCoy College of Science, Mathematics and Engineering in December 2024. And he stayed here for graduate school.

He initially didn’t want many friends and admitted he wasn’t the best at socializing. “That helped me academically. I became friends with my teachers and they were supportive,” he said.

He finished with a double major in computer science and mathematics, and embraced his chances to do research. His message to others would be to try research. “You never know until you do it, and you might enjoy it.”

After grad school at MSU Texas, he hopes to land a job that involves research.

“It’s amazing here at MSU,” Olatunde said. “It was a beautiful journey. One of the best things for me was it was a smaller school and I had access to (faculty). The support you get here is great. I had a lot of ups and downs and went through a lot of growth. I continued to grow in school and socially.”

His favorite professors included Associate Professors of Computer Science Eduard Colmenares-Diaz and

Samuel Olutunde with his parents — Samuel Olatunde was thankful to his parents (Sayo and Bukola) for their support and excited they had a chance to visit him in Wichita Falls.

Terry Griffin, who was Samuel’s adviser and got him started in research, and Associate Professor of Mathematics Marcos Lopez.

His first MSU experience was an online class from Tiffany Zeigler, and he learned much about the rules for writing papers. “I slowly picked it up. I had a very terrible relationship with writing (as a youth), but I’ve understood I can be really good at it. It takes a lot mentally, and I tend to spend a whole lot of time writing.”

Graduation in December was a milestone for him. His parents – dad Sayo and mother Bukola - came to celebrate with him.

He said they always had high goals for him. It was quite a journey, but he showed that belief in him was not misplaced. He just wasn’t destined to be an NBA star.

“They would always help and support me, and here my confidence has grown socially and academically. I’m more outspoken and not afraid. (MSU) has helped me grow holistically in every aspect of my life,” Olatunde said.