Man Graduates in Record Time, Side Hustle Clears R106k Student Debt
- A proud graduate has inspired Mzansi with his work ethic after completing his studies all while working part-time
- The man had been abandoned by his financial aid in his first year but continued to work hard towards his qualification
- Mzansi took to the comments section to wish the graduate well on his journey
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Unexpected challenges can sometimes get in the way of finally finishing your degree. One Pretoria graduate took to social media to share the awe-inspiring story of how he finally made it happen.
In the Facebook post by popular student forum, Varsity World, Lehlogonolo Mashishi shares his first setback in university came after his initial funding body had let the young man down and left him with a whopping R106k in student debt.
Source: Facebook
The aspiring actuarial scientist spent his second year sacrificing the rent and pocket money from his new bursary to cover the old debt, all while working part-time just to make enough money for food and other necessities.
He writes:
"Unfortunately I cannot tell my full story, but I had to sacrifice the rent and pocket money that I received from my new bursary to pay off my outstanding debt. Consequently, I then had to work part-time in order to pay my rent and buy groceries while simultaneously completing my qualification at the University of Pretoria."
Although Lehlogonolo had faced many financial hardships, he never let it get in the way of his academic performance and eventually graduated from the University of Pretoria in record time with a 74.59% average.
"Thanks to all the love and support from friends and family, I managed to do it! To me this is not just a graduation, but a real life miracle. "
The young man left Mzansi in a celebratory mood. Check out some of the well-wishes for Lehlogonolo in the comments section:
Harry Dasi:
"Congratulations my bro, it's so inspiring, let God continue to bless you in abundance."
Lebohang Koloti:
"Very inspiring, congrats brother, you've earned it."
Refilwe Mfaladi:
"Congratulations man. This thing is not easy. Best wishes for the boards."
Sonto Alvina Dalamba Hlatshwayo:
"Well done boy, you made us proud, don't stop."
Babalwa Masebeni:
"Wow, this is the true meaning of hard work."
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Meanwhile, Briefly News previously reported a beautiful American teacher with a big heart has been celebrated on social media after taking in her former student and his little brother.
After a long five years of frugal spending, the young mom's finally paid off all her student loans and the attorney debt it took to adopt her two wonderful boys. Chelsea Haley was only 22 years old when she decided to take in 11-year-old Jerome and his barely one-year-old brother.
Jerome had been a struggling student in the young teacher's classroom, not doing too well academically and constantly getting into trouble. Instead of reprimanding the troubled boy, Chelsea chose love and understanding. The educator put her heart into listening to the boy and eventually fell in love with him.
She writes:
"After exhausting all of my resources in the classroom, I realised the only way to reach Jerome was to get to know him and just build a relationship.
"I started spending a lot of time with him outside of school, going to his football games, his basketball games, just hanging out with him at home, buying school supplies and groceries, all those kinds of things."
Not long after Jerome asked Haley if she would take him in. With the blessing of their birth mother, a few short months later the boys were in her care.
But the road to becoming a family has not always been uphill. Haley already had massive student debt she still had to take care of and the cost of looking after two growing boys was definitely not cheap.
The determined mama worked odd jobs as a tutor and building manager and even moved back in with her parents to clear the $48,683 worth of debt. Now completely debt-free, the stunning mom says she plans on starting a savings plan for her two young boys and can finally begin securing their future.
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Source: Briefly News
