My experience with Yale Young African Scholars (YYAS) started with my application process which taught me to believe more in myself. I started filling my online application form with zeal but was discouraged when I got to the essay sections and I ignored my application for weeks. This was because even though I like to write, sharing my writings was a taboo for me. I thought my writings were not good enough to share and that my essays would kill my application. Thanks to my parents who pushed me to complete the application and prayed with me before I clicked the submission button. I was totally delighted when I learnt that my application was successful.
I was fortunate to travel with my dad to Accra, who was going there on a separate mission, during which I learnt what to do, as I was to return to Gambia on my own. I was picked up at the Kotoka International Airport by the YYAS team and driven to the Tema International School (TIS) where the program was held. The well-manicured scenery and spectacular sport facilities in the school were the first things that caught my attention and I am glad that I was later able to use the facilities and do some sports with my new friends. After registration, I discovered how blessed and honoured I was to be the first and only Gambian to attend the YYAS program. At that moment solitude crept in, but within minutes of socialising I felt at home.
During the program I met faculty members and current students of Yale University as well as secondary school students from across the African continent. The Yale team was excellent and amazing. I met awesome and exceptional students who are now my friends. I got to know friends like Nicole from Botswana, Elshaddai from Zimbabwe and Keneilwe from South Africa.
I have always had a keen interest in space and I always wonder what goes on outside our planet earth, so my expectations were high on my seminars of interest, which attracted my attention: ‘Searching for Earth’s Twin’, ‘How are Galaxies Formed’, ‘Impacts with Space Objects’ and ‘Tensegrities and our Body’, although the latter was not space-based. The seminars were very enlightening. I learnt about how galaxies are formed and about exoplanets, and how they are detected. But for me, the workshops were the highlights of because it was family time. We were each designated to a workshop family, where we felt more at home. We had open and frank discussions with each other. The workshops helped me to break out of my comfort zone and to socialise better. It gave me the confidence to stand and speak in public which I currently do during YYAS Alumni Ambassadors information sessions. We were also taught how to prepare for the SAT exams, write and send emails, online applications for university and how to write personal statements for university application. The talent night was a showcase of African’s rich diversity, heritage and culture. I also had the experience of living in Tema International boarding school on campus, a taste of university life.
YYAS 2018 was an exciting adventure for me. I had to stay in a hotel by myself for the first time a day after the YYAS program before travelling back home and I was able to enjoy Accra. Thanks to Grandma Helen, who took care of me during the day and took me to the airport the following day
I am currently preparing for my AS-Level examinations in June 2019 and my aim is to do my ‘A’ level examinations in June 2020. My medium term plan is to do my SAT and apply to university next year. My goal is to study engineering with majors in electronics and mechanics and create new devices to enhance space technology.
I really want other Gambian students to benefit from this life-transforming program. So to get other Gambian students to apply, I organised an information session and distributed YYAS 2019 flyers at my school with Professor Dagan Rossini and at Glory Baptist International High School and Apple Tree International High Schools.
There is so much more than what I wrote in this piece about the YYAS program. You can only find out and experience them for yourself if you, APPLY NOW!
