Graduate Student Spotlight: Gideon Ajibola
Gideon Ajibola is a Ph.D. student in the Purdue Animal Sciences Department, and he also received his master’s degree from the department. His advisor is Marisa Erasmus, Ph.D.
Ajibola, a native of Nigeria, received his bachelor’s degree in animal science at Osun State University.
According to Ajibola, his passion for animal sciences came from his experiences with animals at a young age.
“My love for animal agriculture stems from my role as an ‘unofficial’ associate farm manager on our family farm while in elementary school,” Ajibola said. “I was fascinated by the reproductive biology of laying hens, particularly their ability to produce eggs almost every day. Simply, I wanted to understand the science behind our income.”
Ajibola also said he chose to pursue graduate degrees at Purdue for three reasons: Purdue’s reputation, the quality of professors in the animal sciences program and the community of international students the university has.
Ajibola's research focuses on using environmental strategies and technological tools, particularly computer vision, to enhance poultry welfare by tracking cage-free hen behavior. He is also interested in the intersection of animal welfare and AI, exploring how it can improve both livestock productivity and well-being.
“My experience as a graduate research assistant has been beautiful,” Ajibola said. “I have had the opportunity to collaborate with fellow graduate students and work with different types of poultry. Furthermore, I have had the opportunity to train and mentor undergraduate assistants, improve my research and problem-solving skills and communicate our research findings to the scientific community.”
Ajibola has been involved in various clubs and organizations during his time as a graduate student at Purdue: MANRRS Purdue University, Animal Welfare Judging Team, Graduate Student Association in Animal Sciences, Nigerian Students Association at Purdue (NSAP) and African Christian Fellowship.
Ajibola received the 2024 AAAP Foundation Poultry Scholarship, but he said his greatest accomplishment as a graduate student has been completing challenging behavioral tracking and annotation for his master’s degree.
Ajibola shared what he thought are the strengths of the Purdue Animal Sciences graduate program.
“I particularly love the science communication component of the program,” Ajibola said. “I learn from the weekly seminars, where grad students get to present science with unique approaches. Secondly, the program is structured to encourage multi-disciplinary training, positioning the grad students for the ever-evolving and dynamic world out there.”
Ajibola also shared some advice for incoming graduate students.
“Seek mentors, be excited and take advantage of both academic and professional resources available on campus,” Ajibola said.
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