Community Voice: The Importance of Accessing Higher Education for refugee youth in Kiziba
Written by Kepler Kiziba Student and Intern, Yvette Dusabe, for the Humanitarian Education Accelerator
Do you really know how important education is to the Kiziba Refugee Youth?
In Kiziba Refugee Camp in Rwanda, most young refugees who finish secondary school do not get the opportunity to attend higher education. Some drop out without even finalizing secondary school. Yet a few, like me, do get the chance of accessing higher education (university).
For sure, it is amazing to attend higher education. It helps us to be successful in our life as refugees, but getting the opportunity to attend is very difficult for the refugee youth in Kiziba.
I remember when I finished my O-Levels (Secondary School level 1–3), my parents did not have the opportunity to pay the school fees for me to study for my A-Levels (Secondary School final exam). It was very difficult for me because I’m a refugee and my parents don’t have job opportunities so that they can be able to pay my school fees. To get a job here in Rwanda without an ID card, it is very difficult. At that time, I told my parents, “I have a dream of continuing my education until I finish higher education, and I believe that I should complete my A-Levels”.
By chance, an old friend whom my father had paid for University when we were in the Democratic Republic of Congo, called my father and told him that he wants to pay for my school fees to complete my A-Levels. Wow, this was a miracle from God because we didn’t have any way that can help me to continue my studies. We felt happy and hopeful for our future life because my parents thought that when I finish my studies, I will get a good job, which will help me to pay the school fees for my siblings. Thus, I got a chance to attend A Level and finished it in 2009.
After finishing secondary school in 2009, I didn’t get a chance to access higher education straight away. It seemed very difficult to believe that I would ever access it but it was still my dream. It was difficult because the scholarship for the university was provided to Rwandan citizens only, refugees were not supposed to get that scholarship, which was why so many refugee youths weren’t able to attend higher education. I spent 7 years without any job and with no hope of accessing higher education. Can you imagine? You are first born in your family, you are the only one who should help your parents and your siblings, but you don’t have anything to do because of your refugee status? Even though it was very difficult for me, I tried to apply for many jobs and look for scholarship in order to continue my studies, but I didn’t have a chance of getting them.
In 2016, I applied to Kepler, which has a partnership with Southern New Hampshire University so that students can get a US accredited qualification (diploma or BA). I got a chance of sitting the admission test, but I failed. I didn’t give up, I tried again to apply to These Numbers Have Faces (another scholarship programme), but I failed again.
Then in 2017, Kepler started a preparatory programme for women who had finished their secondary school, to help prepare them for the Kepler entrance test. At that time, I did a test, and I got a chance of being selected to attend the women’s preparatory programme. When the Kepler applications came round that year I tried again to apply.
For sure, it was very difficult to spend 7 years without attending higher education, but in my life, I’m always an optimist, and I always learn from failures.
“Never give up on something that you can’t go a day without thinking about” (Winston Churchill). This quote is the one that always inspires me to try and try everything in order to achieve my success or achievement.
Another favourite quote by Dale Carnegie inspired me and helped me to not give up: “Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.” With this, I kept trying because I wanted to achieve something important, even if there seemed no hope I would achieve it.
After taking the written and interview tests in 2017 I passed! Kepler programme came as our solution in the Kiziba community. After 7 years without hope of attending higher education, I got a chance of being Kepler student, alongside other Kiziba youths. At that time, Kepler took 34 students, while we were 120 people who sat for the admission test. Kepler provides full scholarship, healthcare services and all material that students need in their academic journey. Also, Kepler helps the students to interact with different people and to provide the internships that help students to get future job opportunities. So, I finished my Associate of Arts (AA) in General Studies in September 2018, and I started to work on the Bachelors of Arts (BA) studies in December 2018. Now, I’m working on my BA project with a concentration in Global Perspectives, and I’m planning to finish my BA in August 2019. Through Kepler, I’m still learning many things that will lead me to achieve my success in my life, such as job opportunities and different internships.
It is not only Kepler who help Kiziba youth to access higher education, but there are also DAFI and These Numbers Have Faces scholarships. Even though there are these three organizations that help Kiziba youths like me, there is still a big number of young refugees here who didn’t get a chance of attending higher education, because of different reasons. Some dropped out of their studies because of being pregnant, and others because of lack of finances.
My friend Mia*, who is 22 years old from Kiziba, dropped out because she got pregnant while she was studying for her O-Levels. She didn’t get a chance of continuing her studies because her parents told her that they don’t have money to pay for her, and they don’t have money to pay someone who can take care of her child. She tells me that her parents don’t care about the studies, they don’t know the importance of the skills you can learn. If she gets someone who can help her to take care of her child when she is at school and she is able to get financial support for paying school fees, she hopes to one day continue her studies.
Another friend in Kiziba, Mason* who is 20 years old, said that he dropped out of his studies because of lack of school fees after his parents died. He took responsibility for his siblings and he is the one who takes care of them. He said that he didn’t get a chance of finishing even secondary school, but if he gets a chance of having someone who helps him to pay for school fees he can go back to school.
Higher education is so important for refugee youth. Through completing higher education, refugee youth may have improved career opportunities, receive higher pay, experience greater cultural awareness and have a life with more choices and possibilities. I’m really happy about achieving my success in attending higher education, and I hope I will build my future life as well as changing my family’s standard of living. I am very confident to interact with different people, and this leads me to get different opportunities that can help me to get money through different jobs.
As a refugee youth, I can learn and put into action what I learned, I can contribute to the development of the world, I can change my community from negative to positive thinking, all through attending higher education. There is only one thing that refugee youth need and that is the scholarships or financial support to access higher education and realise their potential.
*Names have been changed to protect privacy
