AFRICA | A determined Nigerian man named Hameed Kayode Alabi, who suffered several rejections in an attempt to further his education in the United Kingdom, has finally won the prestigious Chevening scholarship to study for his master’s in the country.
In 2015, Hammed obtained his bachelor’s degree in Human Kinetics Education at the University of Ilorin, Nigeria. After graduation, he began applying for scholarships to further his studies however, he was met with persistent rejection during the process.
He took to Liknkedin to narrate his experience with the aim of inspiring those who are in similar situation to remain determined and resilent in their pursuit.
Hammed started applying for scholarships in August 2018, and every scholarship he applied to until August 2019 was rejected. In February 2019, he was longlisted for the Chevening Scholarship and asked to submit two references, but he was rejected.
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He had bragged to his cousin that he could not possibly be rejected. However, the cousin warned him to be prepared for the worst, which he ignored. With nervousness, he submitted four applications for different Commonwealth-shared programs the same night.
Hameed also received another rejection from the MasterCard Foundation at the University of Edinburgh to study Africa and International Development in February 2019 and another from the Commonwealth Scholarship in April of the same year.
Simultaneously in 2019, Hammed got five Commonwealth Shared Rejection emails after he had been accepted into five schools without funding.
”In between, I had gotten admission to all 5 schools. You could imagine the work I had put into applying to those schools. I use free midnight data to work on my application every night. One school per midnight,” he said.
Also, the University of Bristol, United Kingdom, convinced him to apply for their Think Big Scholarship, which covers just tuition in July but he was still rejected in two cycles, totalling all of the rejections to ten.
Luck began to shine on him in August 2019 after he received a congratulatory email from the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex, United Kingdom, with his tuition covered and 11,000 pounds for living expenses, but he turned it down.
Hammed turned the opportunity down because he had just been accepted for the Peace First Fellowship-in-Residence program, which he saw as a great choice, as he had the opportunity to work with the best minds and support youth social change projects in more than 30+ Sub-Saharan countries.
That year, he reapplied for the MasterCard Foundation Scholarship at Edinburgh and the Chevening Scholarship in 2019 and 2020, and he got into their interviews.
Fortunately, he was awarded both scholarships but opted for the MasterCard Foundation at the University of Edinburgh to study Africa and International Development and to complement his work at Peace First and KLCI.
With the Mastercard Foundation Scholarship, Hammed earned a master’s degree in Africa and International Development at the University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom.
Sharing his achievement of graduating, Hameed said the success is a testament to dreams coming true. it is proof that every child deserves a chance to have access to opportunities that would change their lives forever, and deserves a chance to get a scholarship.
He described it as the evidence that no matter where one was raised or the circumstances they have inherited, one can still make things happen, a testament that even in a country like Nigeria, where the odds are against you and your dreams seem impossible that I can dream.
He owes his achievement to those who have supported him along the journey, who have invested in him to be better, and trusted him to pass the baton down. As he continues to learn in the space, he hopes to help other people cross and change the circumstances they have inherited.
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