A 24-year-old African lady named Thembelihle Maziya has bagged a medicine degree with honors at University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.
Maziya obtained her bachelor’s degree in Medicine and Surgery (MBChB) at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa with a Sum cum Laude grade. Another exceptional feat of her achievement is that she was the only black student in her class of 14 graduates.
She expressed her jubilation about her accomplishment, noting that she is particularly excited because she is the first-born of her siblings and the first person in her family to enroll in the university.
“I was very excited. Actually, I wanted to cry, in my heart I was like ‘God this is all because of you?’. I was very emotional and happy at the same time,” she said.
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Maziya mentioned that medical school was challenging as she had to survive independently because her parents were jobless.
She stated that the love of science, lifelong learning, serving her community, and breaking the poverty cycle in her family inspired her to pursue medicine as a career.
“I am a person who appreciates science and a lifelong learner. Knowing that medicine is rooted in science and is a dynamic profession, made me want to take the role of improving the health of people. I wanted to break the cycle of poverty back at home,” she said.
Maziya credits her success to the strong support system of her family and friends. She added that regular visits to church and comedy nights helped keep her mental health in check when experiencing academic pressure.
“I would often go to church because that was my place of solace. Sometimes I’d watch comedy, or take walks, and talk to my best friend and family about my stress,” Maziya said.
“There was always pressure. There were times, where I felt the degree was too much and I should just quit, but then I’d think of the situation at home that maybe I’d be a laughing stock and labelled a drop-out. I had no choice, but to persevere,” she added.
Maziya stated that regular studying and finding new study methods saw her through her degree. She said she would source external data in order to have a better understanding of her course.
“I was able to get my priorities straight, which involved organizing my study materials, finding a suitable learning style, and seeking help when needed. I would go the extra mile when trying to gather data to understand some chapters, and sometimes join study groups and watch YouTube videos,” she said.
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