Jakaria grew up in a South Asian family in Tower Hamlets and has always felt “lucky to have the opportunities I have had during school like The Access Project.” On A level results day he has become the first in his family to study Medicine by securing a place at University College London (UCL) – getting an incredible five A*s. “I have been lucky to have these opportunities, especially when you consider that my family isn’t well off. My parents are really excited for me to be the first to study Medicine in the family.”
Four years on The Access Project
Jakaria joined our programme at George Green’s School at the start of Year 10. After four years of tuition and in-school mentoring he looks back at the experience fondly. “I don’t think I would have had the chance to receive tuition without The Access Project as it can be so expensive and I didn’t want to put that burden on my parents,” he explains. “The last four years have enabled me to be more ambitious and aim for the top grades that The Access Project believed I could achieve.”
“When I signed up I just thought we would receive tutoring, but it is so much more. My University Access Officer is incredibly helpful and she will always make time for me. She helped build my confidence and if I hadn’t had her, getting through the pandemic and A levels would have been a lot harder.”
An insight into the world of science
Since the beginning of Year 11 Jakaria has spent an hour a week being tutored in Biology thanks to his tutor. “She is super friendly, and really relatable and easy to speak to. The tutoring I have received from her has been amazing and I have made big progress in Biology. When I sat my final exams I was pushing to be at the top of the class and a large part of this is down to her!”
Not only did Jakaria aim for the top of the class, but he ended the year having scored the highest in Biology.
“At first the pandemic felt very overwhelming as we all lost the support directly from our teachers”
When the pandemic first began, Jakaria, like all students across the country, had to quickly adjust to learning from home. “There were moments where it was hard to find motivation,” he explains. “Not being able to see my friends, go to the gym and live a normal life made it hard to not feel overwhelmed when sometimes it felt like the work would never end.”
Growing up Jakaria was inspired by his Dad, who works in a hospital setting up equipment in surgery theatres. “I have always wanted to study surgery as the anatomy side of Medicine really interests me.”
“I am super excited for this new journey to begin!”