On the 10th anniversary of the commencement of our scholarship programme, we continue to face one disappointing statistic. We have so far helped 43 students graduate as doctors, engineers, computer scientists, and more. Many of you have gone on to get great jobs and are helping your families and communities. Some of you have found careers overseas and are making a contribution to the global economy. These are all matters of great satisfaction for us.
But there is another statistic that does not reflect well on you or us. Once you graduate, you do not contact us again. Not a single person out of the 43 has bothered to keep us updated on their progress. This is equally as true of those who graduated in 2012 as of those who graduated in 2020. We do not expect you to contribute financially to FURTHER if you don’t wish to. But there are other ways in which you can contribute to our effort and make life easier for others like yourselves. You could always put in a good word-of-mouth for us at your work places and in your professional community. Your word might inspire others in your circle to contribute to FURTHER or help us achieve our goals in other ways. You could also mention us in your CV or on your website – as a matter of pride, that you received a scholarship from FURTHER.
Instead, we find that we are conspicuously absent from your CVs and your websites. Almost as if, far from being proud of your past and the hard work that made you turn your life around, you are ashamed that you once turned to FURTHER for financial help. This is not a good state of mind for you. We are proud of what you have accomplished. You should be too. Please show us that by giving us some space on your CVs and web pages. Others like you who still have ways to go to get where you are, deserve this from you. They are still counting on us to help them, as you did once. By giving us due recognition, for coming to your aid when you needed it most, you will be aiding those who need it most now. All FURTHER Scholars, please think about that. Carefully. Know yourselves, know who you are and where you’ve come from, acknowledge it, and be proud of it. It will help you and help those who now need assistance as you once did.
