Mary writes: "I am the second born in my family. I have three younger sisters. My elder brother reached standard seven education level. My mother is a peasant so we depend only in farming and this is a seasonal agriculture."

Rubiela's story is both heartbreaking and inspirational. Her father left when she was young, leaving her mother to support a large family by herself. Rather than let her father's absence stand in her way, Rubiela uses it as her motivation. "I want to study to show him that I can go on with the help of my mother and my God," she wrote in her essay. Her humility, honesty and determination shone through strongly in her application, especially when she wrote, "I am a brave student even though I am not the most intelligent." Rubiela dreams of becoming an educated professional so that she can help her family and her community.

Tawanda is the first born in a family of 3. His father passed away in 2010, leaving him in the care of his mother, who is unemployed and subsists on communal crop production. At one point, Tawanda missed classes for two terms because his mother could not raise the money required for his school fees. Tawanda's two siblings are also in school, presenting a major burden for the single mother to provide for their education.

My name is Isata Foday. I am girl. I am about fourteen (14) years old. I am in grade six (6). I am studying with my mother, father and my step sisters and brothers. My best subject in school is social Studies because I want to know about my country and other countries at large. After lunch in school I play Akra which is played by girls only, sometimes I played basketball. My favorite music is Lek u Culture which is played by one of our local artist. I like watching Nigerian movies. In my fun time I tell stories. I want to be a doctor in future.