Skip to main content

YYAS, the experience of a lifetime

YYAS, THE EXPERIENCE OF A LIFETIME. 

 “Everything happens for a reason”. My name is Bobgala Harrison from Cameroon. I’m 17 and in my final year in high school. You could say I heard about YYAS by “mistake” but nothing happens without a plan by the Almighty. Little did I know that I can apply for an international program and actually get selected. Firstly, what is YYAS? It stands for Yale Young African Scholars and it is a cost free academic enrichment program for African secondary school students. 

Back in 2019 I heard about YYAS from a friend, who heard from a friend, who’s friend had attended the program in 2018 in Zimbabwe. It’s quite a long chain of “hearing from” but that’s how the message about YYAS came to me. Initially, I was skeptical about applying for it because I had never applied for anything of this sort and I didn’t want to “waste” my time. But with some encouragement I finally decided to apply for it and told myself “what better way to gain experience?” After completing my application in February, I kept my fingers crossed waiting for an email from YYAS. Lo and behold, some time in April, I received an email that I’ve been accepted into the program. My excitement was so immense that I will attend such a program, even though I would’ve been more excited if I was to travel. Nevertheless, I didn’t allow the pandemic deprive me of the rich knowledge in YYAS. 



With the days for the program drawing near, I began preparing my materials for the online program; iPad, internet connection, good background, without forgetting my notebook and pen. On the first day we had a talk on career guidance and tips on taking the SAT test. This helped me be more confident in taking the SAT test when applying for universities. Furthermore, with the career orientation, we were guided on how to choose our profession depending on our skills and passion. 

On the second day of the program, we had a seminar on Translational justice in the world. Thereafter we had a chat with an entrepreneur from Ghana. Mr Isaac Sessi, an entrepreneur, shared his story with us and his experience on his journey to entrepreneurship. He helped inspire me to start with what I have and fueled my ambition to be a great entrepreneur in Africa and the world. 

The next day, we were thrilled with an SDG seminar about climate change and its effect on African farms. In addition, we had university talks with students and instructors from Yale University and African Leadership University. 

On the last day but certainly not the least, I was exposed to admission officers from many different schools who helped us know the opportunities universities and colleges offer. Some of these institutions were the New York University in Abu Dhabi, Ashesi university in Ghana, ALU in Rwanda & Mauritius island, University of Pennsylvania, Johns Hopkins University and many more. Thanks to them, I now know what process to follow when applying for financial aid from the university I wish to apply to. 

Perhaps this program is the best thing that happened to me in the year 2020 and while it has inspired me, it is my wish that through this article, someone has been encouraged to apply for the program and to benefit from all the knowledge you can gain from YYAS, totally FREE. As the adage goes “Knowledge is power”. Exploit every opportunity!!!


APPLY NOW!!! (Dateline for application is February 16th at 11:59PM)


By

Bobgala Harrison



Comments

  1. Thandeka Mamba2 February 2021 at 21:16

    YYAS has truly been a blessing to lots and lots of African scholars. Let's continue to spread the word. I like how you acknowledge that everything happens for a reason, I will add that all things work together for our own good.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Lenjval Technologies5 February 2021 at 00:34

    courage champ. you are nailing it the right way at the rightspot.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Racism versus Growth

  T he problem of racism today is not the fact that a certain group of people are being discriminated against on the basis of their race but rather, it is the fact that people tend to inject racism into everything that there is. It has become the reinterpretation of everything that exists. As long as something does not promote a certain narrative, it is automatically tagged as being racist. It has gotten to a point where the very people who claim to be discriminated against are the ones propagating the worst form of racism. They have forgotten their roots and have lost focus. They have little to no idea why they are fighting. In other words, they are fighting against something which is contrary to what they think it is. In fact, they are now fighting a different fight, one which is not theirs and which is rather counter productive. Whether or not they have noticed the adverse effects of their actions is questionable but one thing remains clear and that is the fact that they love th...
7 comments
Read more

Gender Equity VS Gender Equality

GENDER EQUITY VS GENDER EQUALITY As written in the  first book of the  Bible ,   God  first  made man and later made woman for fear of loneliness. But come to think he took time to make the woman from the man’ s rib means to an extent , a woman possess   so me capabilities  of the man  with the exception  of  fertilization . Women were  initially  created to assist men.  Assisting in a good sense does not solely mean working under someone. An employer can still assist an employee  wit h some needs he/she can not possess. This is to say that women can still assist men from any position  be it at professional level or at home . The first characteristic of a woman is management. W omen are born good plan n ers and managers. Think of a mother who plans her daily activities a week before,  a day before or in the early mornings  before undertaking an  activity. She is capable of taking care of the entire...
1 comment
Read more

A Game Changer: The YYAS Program

            I'm Mbun Tangwe Ryan. An 18-year old final year high school student in and from Cameroon. If you're like me then you know that Education is a human right that too few people (especially us Africans) enjoy. I believe we as Africans have the power to change that narrative. Education is classified into Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary (university and beyond) education.     Many African students have what it takes to access the tertiary education they desire and deserve, but still, many of us still find ourselves stranded in that area because we lack the necessary information we need to get us where we dream to be. We lack knowledge on the world of work, education options, and we need career guidance.   The Yale Young African Scholars (YYAS) program was born to solve such issues and many more.  It is a cost-free intensive academic enrichment and leadership program designed for African secondary school students...
4 comments
Read more