When the "least likely to succeed" earns a full-ride scholarship | Sandrine Ojong

The first time I heard the word "scholarship" was in Form Five from Ursula Azocha, who is an Open Dreams Scholar currently studying in Canada. I was stunned that such an opportunity even existed. I was also really surprised that I had never even remotely heard about anything like that until now.

Her time with us was fleeting, but what I felt that day was permanent. I couldn’t access the internet in the dormitory, so I wrote down everything I remembered from her talk and waited impatiently for the day I could do my own research. After the GCE, the pathways were still unclear, but my curiosity continued to guide me. I kept researching and writing down everything I found, praying that one day it would all come together.

During the weekend school at the Knowledge Center, Cameroon, I casually mentioned scholarships to Teh Alen Kuma. To my greatest surprise, he was a mentor for students seeking such opportunities. 

With his guidance, I started applying straight out of high school. The process was brutal. I was learning on the job, and every mistake cost me. My essays were poor, and my knowledge was shallow. When the rejections poured in, I convinced myself that it was because of my grades. My confidence collapsed. I decided that I was done and settled for university here in Cameroon instead.

After starting university, I remembered why I wanted a scholarship so badly in the first place. It wasn’t primarily about me. I wanted to ensure that other underserved students didn’t have to live in the dark about opportunities like I did, and to provide the mentorship and guidance they needed to pursue those paths. But that couldn’t happen if I didn’t have the experience to guide them.

So, I took a leap of faith and applied again. This time, I went all in. 

I stopped school at the local university and threw myself into service at Knowledge Center, Cameroon , and TiC Foundation while juggling applications. My gap year became a battlefield where I was fighting for my future while building pathways for others.

It was not pretty. But after 8 months of hard work and patience, the offers came.

Today, I begin a new chapter as a Mastercard Foundation Scholar at The African Leadership College of Higher Education. To finally say this is surreal.

I wasn’t alone through all of this. I’m so grateful to Bebongchu Atemkeng Beltus, who reviewed my essays when I first started applying; Favour Amourzang Fri Fon, whose story inspired me to keep going; Jules Moukam, who became my go-to person when it was too hard to bear; Bill Agha, who gave me timely support; Blessing Bright Sih Alang, whose faith saw me through; and finally, Teh Alen Kuma, for the unshakeable belief in all my crazy endeavors.

I’m also grateful for the wealth of experience I’ve gained to create the same spark Ursula did for me all those years ago.

As always, the future is blindingly bright.

• Sandrine Ojong | Knowledge Center | TiC Foundation | Open Dreams #MastercardFoundation