Gauteng Law Graduate Wants to Obtain Master’s in United Kingdom: “You Must See Yourself as a Winner”

• A female law graduate in Soshanguve, Gauteng, has accomplished a great personal victory
• The 27-year-old obtained her Honours degree in Law from the University of South Africa
• Despite not being able to attend her graduation, Shamine Mahlaela tells Briefly News that she is thrilled about the win and wants to pursue a master’s degree abroad

A young woman in Soshanguve, Gauteng is excited about having obtained her Honours degree in Law from the University of South Africa.

While Shamine Mahlaela was sadly unable to attend her graduation due to financial reasons, fetching her degree was still a proud moment for her, and she posted about on LinkedIn.

Talking to Briefly News, the legal eagle shares her plans and notes how overjoyed she is about the win.

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The law graduate faced challenges

Shamine explains that her journey was fraught with difficulty, especially because of financial reasons, with second-hand books and eBooks the main academic material she relied on during her studies:

“I was a NSFAS beneficiary. However, I struggled with purchasing textbooks, since law books are very expensive. I resorted to buying second-hand textbooks to try and minimise costs, but I could not afford to buy all and resorted to eBooks, which I had downloaded through telegram.

“It was a struggle because I preferred traditional ways of studying, hence I had hard copy materials instead of electronic books, but I had to adjust to eBooks in some instances due to financial shortages."

Furthermore, Shamine also had to borrow a laptop and tablet from a friend during her studies:

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“My laptop crashed and I lost my phone, which I used for telegram. I had to find a replacement. Thank God, a good friend of mine loaned me her tablet for a year so I could do my schoolwork. Eventually, I was able to purchase a new phone. I was using my mom's laptop from work to do my work. I never bought a new one. I am still working on [buying a new one]”

The Gauteng graduate wants to study more

The 27-year-old notes that she feels a sense of pride because of her accomplishment, and dreams of furthering her education overseas:

“Mindset is everything. You have to see yourself as a winner before you win otherwise you plan to lose.

“I feel a sense of pride. I was a distance-learning student at Unisa, and the journey required self-discipline, focus, and a willingness to form acquaintances. With that being said, it's good to know that I managed to come out victorious without attending a single lecture in my years of studying.”

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The inspiring woman also works as a makeup artist to make money as she tries to obtain a legal clerkship:

“I want to pursue a Master of Laws in the United Kingdom and live there, either permanently, or for a few years.

“But for now, I want exposure to different fields of law, just to gain working experience. Having to serve articles of clerkship at a law firm would be a good start, but that's not the dream.

“My biggest desire is not to open a law firm but to be a parliamentary legal advisor. I want to draft and certify bills in the legislature of private members.”

Johannesburg law graduate excited about becoming high court attorney

Briefly News wrote a related story about a young woman from Johannesburg who graduated as a lawyer from the University of the Witwatersrand and was excited about eventually becoming a high court attorney.

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The sis shared the momentous occasion on LinkedIn and explained that although the journey was tough, it was certainly worthwhile.

Source: Briefly News