When one thinks of nine days, they automatically assume its insignificance in a broad manner. Nine days can simply be seen as a week and two days, or be seen as 216 hours, which sounds much better, or 12,960 minutes? 777,600 seconds? Or rather, instead of looking at it that way, why don’t we measure it according to the moments I shared within nine days in Tema, Ghana on the Yale Young African Scholars (YYAS) Program, which I gained so many memories in only nine days?
The beginning had already made me aware I was at a different place. I walked out of the plane covered in multiple layers of clothing, as I had left my home country, South Africa in the midst of its cold winter days. My choice of clothing automatically felt like a mistake. The thick warm air of Ghana welcomed me and I was excited to experience what I had anticipated for many months- The YYAS Program.
Throughout the flight I had begun creating friendships with other students from South Africa that I had not met before, and upon arrival began connecting with students from other countries within our continent. It was exciting as, having not travelled within the continent before, I met people who I could learn about their cultures, perspectives, and share the common motivation of wanting to reach for our dreams, and also use our abilities to aid in making positive shifts within the lives of others.
The program’s content definitely gave me more than I had expected. I had thought it would be merely a course that would give me information about the steps needed to aid in my university applications, but it was more than that. The YYAS team members had put a lot of effort in making it an experience in which we learned more than just about university applications. A significant thing about the program is how we as students got the ability to interact freely, and be as curious as we desired. The YYAS team was open to any questions we asked, within and out of the sessions, we got to sit with the lecturers who taught us about interesting topics such as the importance of language and Robotics during lunch and dinner, and had the rare privilege of having Admission officers of some of the top universities continentally and internationally join our program, to give us a view of what it’s like being in their position of accepting students into their universities. Our instructors, consisting of students currently studying at Yale University, formed a system of us students connecting to our peers and being able to gain a real perspective of what it’s like to apply and live in university.
A definite important aspect of the program, are the students I got to meet within my experience. I got to connect with people who come from different backgrounds and cultures, and understood what the core of us being able to bond so quickly was. We all were proud to share each other’s culture, from gestures as simple as tasting food from other places, such as Doro Doro small, spherical biscuits from Ethiopia, and my favorite-Teaching a student from Burkina Faso Zulu while he taught me French. We were all open to being each other’s friends, getting to know one another, unafraid to share our perspectives about things during settings such as dinner conversations and our discussion groups after our lectures. Within the nine days, I built very significant friendships, ones with individuals who were completely different from me but we shared similar values, such as of being ambitious, humble, and enthusiastic about life, go-getters, and aiming to join together and help one another as we journey through life and make our visions a reality.
What I learnt from this program, was how important it is for us in this world, to have important conversations about the issues that affect the wellbeing of many of us, and in that case, all of us. When we had discussion groups after every lecture, hearing opinions from people who come from a range of backgrounds broadened my perspective of the possible solutions to these issues, and the importance of individuals from different backgrounds uniting in working out in solving these issues. I also gained a lot of inspiration from the students themselves as they had acquired great achievements during the course of their high school careers. It has given me a drive to not limit myself, to keep working hard and improving in all I do.
If a student is interested in applying for YYAS, they should definitely apply. The program lets you connect with so many people, and grow in knowledge and grow as an individual as you learn from those you meet about things you might have not been aware of before. And also, be brave. The only way you’ll know if an opportunity is yours, is to try!
