Thandolwethu Zwelakhe Shakes Dlamini (Swaziland, WK 2013-2014)

Thandolwethu Zwelakhe Shakes Dlamini

1. How did you first hear about Waterford and how did you end up attending WK?

I first heard about Waterford as a child from my grandmother. She described it as a school where the brightest students go and if I continued to do well in my academics I could end up at Waterford one day. However, attaining the Waterford scholarship became a clear goal for me when I was in form 1 after attending a farewell party for a former Waterford student who was leaving Eswatini for Brown University in the US.

My first and second attempt at acquiring the Eswatini National Committee scholarship was unsuccessful as my entrance test scores rendered me unfit at the time. After realizing that I had missed the UWC scholarship opportunity, I saw all my dreams of attending a UWC school go down the drain. I swiftly moved on to plan B which was getting in to an AS-Level/ Matric program which would enable admission to an engineering program in one of the Universities in South Africa. My parents could not afford the school fees in the schools which offered the AS-Level/Matric programs hence I could not enroll in any school.

Fortunately, I was volunteering at my former high school as a science and mathematics teaching assistant and received a stipend which I resorted to utilize to pay teachers who taught mathematicss, physics and chemistry at Salesian High School’s AS-Level program so that they could guide me while I taught myself the required material for the subjects. While pursuing AS-level part time, I was advised that I could seek sponsorship from companies that may hire me once I have received my engineering qualifications. This gave me the idea to approach the Eswatini Electricity Company seeking sponsorship and a few months later they agreed to sponsor me to do any pre-University program in the country that would enable me to be admitted into an Engineering program in South Africa.

Waterford was the first school on my mind when I received this scholarship and I quickly arranged an appointment with Mr Storer and inquired if there would be a place for me at Waterford if I came with my own external scholarship. Fortunately, there was a place for me at Waterford and the EEC scholarship program which my plea led to its initiation ended up funding the scholarship for 6 students at Waterford Kamhlaba UWCSA over the course of four years.

2.  Was there anyone in particular who was instrumental in getting you to Waterford?

The Eswatini Electricity Company as well as Mr Storer were instrumental in getting me to Waterford. Furthermore, my family especially my grandparents were very instrumental in setting me on the path that eventually landed me at Waterford and I am eternally grateful for them.

3. What were your initial thoughts when you arrived at Waterford Kamhlaba UWCSA?

Setting foot at Waterford for the first time as a student in January 2013 was like a dream come true. I had just lost my grandmother early in December 2012 and being at Waterford assured me that she was definitely proud of me. It is not easy to single out one person as the most influential person in my Waterford journey since I found immense value in most of my interactions with members of the WK community. I was highly involved in different activities from the choir to the SRC to being a peer supporter and different members of the WK community gave me courage through complements and words of encouragement. This encouragement I received has motivated me to always strive to add value to every community I am a part of which has served me well as of yet and will continue to do so. For instance, the relationships I had forged with different members of the WK community have been instrumental since I returned to Waterford as facilitator for the UWC short course, Togetherfor Development and now as a co-lead organizer of the short course atWaterford.

4. How has your Waterford education benefitted you or helped you in getting you where you are today?

I can  attribute my admission to one of the best schools in the world, Duke University and being a recipient of two prestigious African student Scholarships, the Mastercard Foundation Scholarship and Allan Gray Orbis Foundation Fellowship to my academic performance as well as my extracurricular engagements while I was at Waterford. Furthermore, UWC inspired me to take action about issues that I am passionate about and this has greatly influenced the way I live my life.

5. What have you done since Waterford and what are you doing now, both career-wise and in general? Do you have any significant hobbies or community activities that you are involved in which you would like us to mention?

I am currently a student at Duke University on the Mastercard Foundation Scholarship majoring in Mechanical Engineering with a minor in German. While at Duke I natured my interest in playing a significant role in building a more equitable world through solving problems of access to energy, proper sanitation, education opportunities and clean water in developing nations like mine. At Duke I am a Pratt Research Fellow on the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation funded project to improve sanitation in the developing world and I also delayed my graduation to work in energy access first for 7 months with an Energy Start up in Lesotho building solar mini-grids for villages without electricity and now with the Eswatini Electricity Company also on a pilot project to supply electricity to an off-grid community through a solar mini-grid. Concurrently, I have co-organized two UWC short courses at Waterford the first in December 2018 and the second in August 2019 while also contributing to the growth and impact of an NGO I co-founded as Waterford Student in 2013, The Knowledge Institute. Moreover, at Duke I have had the opportunity to study abroad in Germany and recently in Switzerland which has allowed me to achieve one of my childhood dreams of travelling and seeing the world. My longest lasting hobby has been singing which was also natured at Waterford and this inspired me to co-found Duke University’s first African Choir, Duke Amandla Chorus and take part in various musical activities on campus.

6. What advice would you share with your fellow alumni as well as with current students?

UWC inspired in me the courage to seek and maximize the growth I can achieve from every opportunity and interaction I have which has helped me become a better listener, problem solver and citizen of the world. I would encourage my fellow UWCers to strive to become individuals of value so that they can add value to the lives of others

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