Rahma’s Story

Name: Rahma
Age: 13
Prospective Occupation: Dermatologist
Funds Needed: $2,000

Both of Rahma’s parents are alive but when she was around 7 years old, she was sent to live with her aunt so that she could attend primary school since her parents could not support her. However, when her aunt had a baby Rahma said her life became more difficult because her aunt was no longer able to help her with school fees. Her mother cleans houses when she can, her father is a farmer, and she has 1 brother and 2 sisters.

Rahma is #3 in her class. Her ambition in life is to become a dermatologist. She says this is because she wants to “help people who suffer from skin problems because when I used to pass in my village I saw many people with skin diseases.” (In Tanzania, this is a much greater health issue than in the US as many people develop infections, ringworm, and rashes, often because of a lack of clean running water and access to health care to treat infections early).  Her favorite subjects are math and science because she understands that to be a dermatologist these are important subjects and those are her best subjects in school.

Rahma admires most her teachers because “they tell us to study hard so that we perform well in exams and because they teach us very nice so that we are able to understand.” She says that she studies hard so that she can someday “help my parents because I don’t like when they suffer.” When asked what part of her personal life she would like to improve, Rahma answered: “I want to improve learning and this scholarship will help me to go on with my studies. Maybe this will be my last time to go to school again. But when I have this scholarship I will study hard and go on with my studies. When you go to sponsor me may God bless you in life.”