In an English course at the College of New Caledonia (CNC), Justin Madu was required to read his work in front of the class. That made him uncomfortable, but he worked through it and now credits that experience for his ability to stand in front of a room of 200 people and tell jokes.
“I only got the confidence to do stand-up after my time at CNC,” Justin said. “One of big things I found at CNC is that ultimately everyone wants you to succeed – your fellow students, teachers, everyone.”
CNC’s small class sizes meant Justin could easily connect with instructors. Classes are designed as lectures that he said more closely resembled the high school setting than massive university seminars.
“That’s especially important for first year students and helps boost their confidence,” Justin said.
He is a huge advocate for people pursuing post-secondary education, even if they aren’t totally sure what they want to do with their life.
To get where he is today, Justin took courses solely at CNC for a year and a half before transferring his credits to UNBC to continue his bachelor's degree. He’s taken a combination of classes at both CNC and UNBC since.
“There’s an incorrect notion that you need to declare your major right away,” Justin said. “At CNC, you can take a two-year certificate then figure things out. For anyone that’s unsure, just pull the trigger. You can take evening or morning classes – work around your schedule.”
Justin is just shy of a year away from finishing his bachelor’s degree at UNBC in Prince George, with a major in English and minor in psychology.
“I’m a creative person,” he said. “I’m always writing poetry and prose. English is one of my strong suits. What I learn in my classes helps me view things in life more critically and draw bigger themes.”
Justin says stand-up is another way for him to share his thoughts and beliefs.
“My time at CNC really helped reinforced my ability to do comedy,” he said. “Stand-up gives you a soap box and people to listen to you. I’m extremely liberal and in almost every set, I tackle dark topics and bring out the humour and ridiculousness.”