Stellar Grads | Engineering student tops faculty after first-year probation

Students of local tertiary institutions will this weekend be celebrating the completion of their studies and the start of the rest of their lives during annual graduation ceremonies. As many families look on with pride, The Sunday Gleaner and Gleaner this week highlight the stories of just some of the young adults who will determine the future success of the nation.

 

One thing Kadeem Campbell is certain of is his love for volunteering. The 22-year-old has volunteered in the areas of education and environment by participating in beach clean-ups, children’s treats, and the restoration of basic schools.

“I enjoy volunteering because at the end of it, there is that warm fuzzy feeling that I get from doing it,” the fraternal twin said.

Campbell applied to The University of the West Indies (UWI) to pursue an undergraduate degree in electronics engineering after leaving Kingston College, because it seemed “cool”.

“I didn’t know what I wanted to study but that [reason] sounded too empty to tell people, especially if you wanted to apply for a scholarship. I thought it was relevant, based on the direction society is going. Even if at the end of the day, it wasn’t what I thought it would be, there would still be some relevance,” he explained.

Campbell, who will be graduating with his colleagues this upcoming weekend, described his three years at UWI as “great”, noting that the first year was the worst.

“I started out well in the first semester, but then I did so poorly in the second semester. I think it was complacency because of how well I did in the first semester, and also because of what was required of me,” Campbell said, adding that in his high-school years, his strength was in theory and engineering required him to be more practical.

Semester two was punctuated by struggles and he lost any desire he had gained to do engineering and ended with a grade point average below 2, down from 3.98.

Funding the degree

Campbell entered UWI on a scholarship from the GraceKennedy Foundation that would renew each year if his grades remained on par, but, by the end of year one, he was on probation.

“I realised that I had to put in the work because, if I didn’t, university would be over for me ... . I regained a desire, not for engineering, but for excellence. A strong motivation for me was the motto of KC, ‘The Brave May Fall But Never Yield’, and that was my encouragement to keep on pushing.”

He bounced back in second year and emerged as the highest achiever in the faculty.

The tuition was $1.3 million per year and $500,000 was covered by GraceKennedy. Even after his dismal performance, the scholarship was increased by $100,000 and, for him, that was a sign that he was meant to be in university.

Campbell was never able to fully clear a year’s tuition and so the scholarship funds for his final lap at UWI had to be used for that purpose. That meant he would be able to register, but his entire tuition would be outstanding.

“I had faith, did what I could do, which was the schoolwork, and everything worked out. The money came from different sources – GraceKennedy paid all that they should have paid, but they came to my aid again, I got a bursary from the faculty, family, and JAMVAT (Jamaica Values and Attitude Programme for Tertiary Students). I completed 200 hours of community service, so the Government paid a third of my tuition.”

He received the maximum payout from JAMVAT, $350,000, seeing that a third of his tuition would amount to much more.

The student representative for the then department – now Faculty of Engineering, is thankful that he was able to complete such a difficult course of study in one go.

“There were times in the three years that it seemed like it could have been an extra semester.”

The First Class Honours graduate has not decided on his next step, but is using the time to explore new interests, in particular, finance.

His advice to students is: “Success is personal. It’s whatever you set out to achieve, not what another person has done.”

judana.murphy@gleanerjm.com