An 18-year-old boy named Andre Fa’aoso has won a fully funded scholarship to study for his bachelor’s degree at Yale University in the United States.
Andre is a young teen from from Te Atatū, West Auckland who was offered admission by Yale University, one of the United States Ivy League universities on a fully paid scholarship.
He shared his achievement through a video on TikTok as he and his mother, Melodie Hallam opened an online acceptance letter. “I think my breathing, that big gasp? That was because I wasn’t breathing properly. I was holding my breath. I was in shock,” Andre said.
“I was just like: ‘I can’t believe this is real’. I put my phone down and just sat with mum on the bed and we were just there, coming to terms with what I’d just been confronted with,” he added.
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Andre graduated from Rutherford College, United States where he was named head boy and then dux in his final year of college. He stated that that life has not been easy, but that the dream for a big future has always been something he and his family worked towards.
“I’m not wealthy, whatsoever. I live in West Auckland. My mum’s on ACC, my dad’s a roofer. I come from a very, very humble background. There’s no real money to my name, to be honest,” Andre said.
“If I got accepted to Yale, that would be one thing. But if I didn’t receive a scholarship, then I probably wouldn’t accept the offer because I would have no means to fund the tuition,” he added.
While in high school, he participated in various activities and groups at the school, including the environmental committee, the ball committee, debate team, 40 Hour Famine initiatives, helping set up United Nations Youth assemblies and advocating for animal rights.
Andre is currently studying towards a Bachelor of Communication Studies at the Auckland University of Technology through an academic scholarship he was awarded. He said he will be moving to Yale University where he hopes to study a Bachelor of Arts majoring either in sociology or political science.
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