Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program Organized a Life’s Skills training for third cohort Scholars

From the 2nd through the 3rd of November 2019, the Scholars Program at the University of Gondar organized life skills training for Scholars and as part of the Program’s agenda for institutional change, it invited non-Scholars to participate as trainees. The training, which is aimed towards new coming Scholars, allows fresh minds who are not accustomed to the University setting to gain some much-needed insight into self-awareness, goal setting, communication skills, and the likes. The training that took place in UoG’s Maraki campus had 70 participants, which included around 50 Scholars and 20 non-scholars.

The Scholars Program at the University of Gondar is in its 3rd year and is on pace to cater to the talented segment of marginalized communities. Whether it is in Ethiopia or other neighboring countries the Scholars Program looks to uplift and build Africa’s next generation of transformative leaders.

However, in order to do this these individuals would need cultivating from the moment they enter into the University of Gondar. For that very reason, the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program Office at the University of Gondar organizes Life Skills trainings that encompass a variety of today’s pressing issues with the hopes that one-day the Scholars could develop into exceptional individuals. Some of the training concepts that were introduced to the mix of Scholars and students included Life Skills, educational Skills, Social Skills and topics on reproductive health and genders.

Four trainers from the Department of Psychology were recruited to train the students. From the looks of it the trainers were active in their training methodology through the 2days, and have gained positive feedback from the participants. According to Sisay Abebaw a scholar from Bahar Dar the training taught him a lot of things that are essential to his life at UoG and beyond. “We were taught numerous topics from communicating skills to how to think logically but one of the greatest lessons I have taken away from the training is its emphasis on self-awareness” said Sisay. He expressed that his current circumstance as a freshman is sometimes daunting because of the new environment but that the lessons regarding self-esteem helped him to put things into perspective.

Beletu Keyo who is a Scholar from Addis Ababa also had some great things to say about the training. She shared that the 2-day training was all rounded and covered a wide range of topics that were pertinent to her. Beletu expressed that if she had gotten the chance to attend an extended version of the training, which spanned more days, she would have been pleased to do so.

By Samuel Malede| Scholars Program Communications Coordinator