TESTIMONY FEATURE -AARON MAHARAJ

Hi readers, my name is Aaron Maharaj. At the age of 24, I decided to return to University to get my Bachelors Degree. At that time, I had other qualifications but not a Bachelors Degree. I decided to pursue the Bachelors of Leadership & Management from the University of the West Indies.

Allow me provide some background info; I previously studied Sciences in secondary school however I didn't pursue CAPE and didn't acquire any business related qualifications prior applying for this degree. I doubted if I even had the necessary entry requirements.

By God's grace and favour, I got accepted and my UWI journey began. For those who know me personally, knows I don't like to do anything halfway. When I got into UWI, I promised myself I would graduate with First Class Honours.

Many people perceive me to be a straight A student and someone who was just "naturally smart" and didn't have trouble with academics but the truth is that I struggled that first semester of UWI. I had been out of school so long that I lost the ability to focus on reading and studying for long periods of time. I quickly realized having absolutely no foundation in Business meant I was going to have to work twice as hard because most of the year one content was previously covered for CAPE.

When I entered UWI, I couldn't reference or cite a source, I didn't understand a thing about Economics and I was pretty weak in Math. I failed the Maths Proficiency Test on my second day and had enroll in remedial math classes my first semester. I also struggled with Statistics (which is pretty common for year one students of my degree). At the end of the semester I managed to barely pass the course with 55%.

I continued to work as hard as I could, supported by my family and friends. I kept my academics and grades in constant prayer. I also tried my best not to let my school commitments keep me from my church ministry where possible.

In year 2 and year 3 my grades improved significantly. I thanked God for his favour and continued pressing higher. At the start of year 3 I knew my GPA was high enough to graduate with First Class Honours, so I set my sights on attaining a 4.0 GPA.

I’ve just graduated with a GPA of 3.90, in addition to three recognition awards for my academic performance in year 2 and 3. I was also awarded the prize for the “Most Outstanding Student in Leadership & Management”.

From almost failing first semester, to being the most outstanding student reflects "A bad beginning doesn't mean a bad ending". Failing one course doesn't mean the end of your University career either. If God can do this for me, he can do the same for you. I leave you with these scriptures that helped me through my UWI journey:

Proverbs 3:5-6

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

Deuteronomy 28:13

The Lord will make you the head, not the tail. I

f you pay attention to the commands of the Lord your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom.