Ibrahim Abdullah is a young Ghanaian man with an inspiring story to tell. From his secondary school days to his current occupation, his experience has been one for the books.
Ibrahim attended Mfantsipim Boy’s Secondary School and from there, went to Ashesi University. While in Mfantsipim School, his parents struggled to pay his schools fees. At a certain point, he reportedly considered dropping out. Eventually, he was awarded the Mathematics, Science and Technology Scholarship by the Government of Ghana during his second year.
Before the scholarship, Ibrahim used to stay on campus a little longer after everyone else had gone home on vacation to scavenge discarded books to study because he couldn’t afford to purchase new ones. According to him, all of this was indicative of the fact that his parents would be incapable of funding his university education. Determined to go to the University anyway, Ibrahim decided to do his best in order to secure a scholarship for his tertiary education.
After high school, he took a gap year to work and explore scholarship opportunities. He discovered Ashesi University and the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program and applied. He received an offer from Ashesi University to study Computer Science as a Mastercard Foundation Scholar in 2014.
After graduating, Ibrahim spent a year working with the Computer Science Department at Ashesi as a Teaching Assistant before joining Microsoft as a software engineer. At Microsoft, he works with a team in Vancouver, Canada on test platforms/tools (test framework and systems) for Office developers.
“To current Scholars and recent graduates, resilience and grit is needed now more than ever. The world is now a global village, so do not limit yourself when it comes to choosing a career path. We must adopt lifelong learning to develop the needed skills for whatever paths we are interested in, to compete globally. Learning does not end with your first degree, and you must remember that lucky are those who are prepared for opportunities!” he shared.
