I Didn’t Quit My Dream of Studying Abroad | How I Won an International Scholarship | by Makhzumul Islam Mahdi | Story #250

I have a dream. Since childhood, I dreamed of life beyond Gazipur, Bangladesh, where the streets bustle with rickshaws, trucks and neighbourhood markets.

I dreamed of international fame in academics that would create new opportunities for a better future. But dreams are easy to have. Believing they can become reality is much harder.

Hard Work Was Never My Challenge

Hard work was never my challenge. It was a matter of money. I knew how much my parents had already sacrificed for my education, and I never wanted my dream to become a burden to them. So I resolved to make a way on my own.

I’d seen older kids win international Olympiads and receive scholarships to study abroad.  Their stories inspired me, and I imagined winning an international Olympiad and earning a fully funded opportunity.

"Can someone like me really do the same?" I wondered.

I collected my certificates and documents and began applying for every scholarship and Olympiad I could find.

Some nights I stayed up until one or two o'clock in the morning. Everything silent, nobody else awake. Just me sitting by myself at my desk, with my old HP laptop, piles of study literature, my notebooks and a pen.

That little desk was my world for months.

On some nights, I felt confident. Other nights, doubts rose up as I recalled past failures and disappointments. It was as though two voices competed for my attention.

One said, "Keep trying. You can do it. You’ll regret it if you don’t."
The other whispered, "You've worked so hard before... and still come up short."

Always Close. Never Close Enough

I remembered the Open Doors Olympiad. I passed the first stage and spent months getting ready for the second. In the Engineering and Technology track, I scored 69 out of 100. The previous year's qualifying score had been lower, so I believed I had done enough. I was happy. I was hopeful.

Then I opened the final result list. The last selected student in my track had scored 70. I'd missed by one mark. I was in the top 130, and only 124 students were selected from the Engineering and Technology track.

That night was one of the most difficult of my life. But I refused to stop trying.

I joined the Future of Siberia Olympiad and scored 87.5 out of 100. I entered another Russian University Olympiad. There were only 15 places. I finished 29th. I applied for a tuition waiver at HSE. That didn't work out either.

Always close. Never close enough.
Disappointment after disappointment.

Friends asked me, "How many more Olympiads are you going to do? Isn't it time to quit the quest?"

I thought to myself, "Is this just something I'm after, that isn't meant for me?"

Never Giving Up

Still, deep inside, the dream remained. I told myself,  “Mahdi, keep going.  Keep educating yourself.  One day you will be given a chance.”

By the time I entered the Financial University International Olympiad for Youth, I was no longer the same HSC student who had started this journey. I brought all the lessons I had learnt from my past failures. They had made me tougher, more patient and more committed.

Even when I felt exhausted and thought I couldn't keep my eyes open for another second, I picked up my pen again. I solved another problem, read another chapter and continued studying. I was competing against talented students from many different backgrounds, and I often wondered whether I had done enough.

Then came the waiting…

Waiting. Waiting. The results took longer than expected. Every day I checked the official website and Telegram.

What if my name wasn't on the results list?

Then it happened. One evening, at about 7:10pm I picked up my phone and opened Telegram, just as I had done every other night.

This wasn't a day I expected anything different.
Then, all of a sudden, the results were posted...

Persistence Opened the Door

I stood there, gazing at my phone. My heart pounded. My hands shook as I opened the PDF and looked for my name.

The first track I looked at was Social Sciences.

Then I saw it.
Rank 12. Winner.

I glanced at the screen again. Was I reading correctly?

It didn't feel real.
"Alhamdulillah."

My mum watched my face. She could tell something had happened, but she didn't say anything.

I stood up, hugged my mother, hugged my sister and announced,
"I finally did it."

Winning Four Olympiads in Four Different Subjects

Next, I opened the other sets of results. It was as if my name was wandering around, finding me one track at a time.

International Economics.
Economics and IT.
History and Humanities.

I won four Olympiads in four different subjects.

I couldn't wait to tell my father and my two closest friends, Dip and Mahim. They had seen every failure, encouraged me through every disappointment, and always told me never to give up.

Dream of Studying Abroad Comes True

In a flash I recalled every difficulty, every late night, and every time I thought, "I can't do this." I didn't have extra privileges or expensive coaching. I had only my dream, and I worked hard.

Winning that scholarship was a dream come true. It reminded me that success doesn't belong to the person who never struggles. It belongs to the person who keeps going despite the struggle. It also reminded me that where we begin doesn't have to determine where we can go.

There will be times when you feel discouraged and your dreams might take longer than you hoped. But I want to leave you with this one message from my story:  

Never let your dreams die. No matter how many setbacks or failures you face, keep working hard, keep learning, and never stop trying. I hope my journey encourages others not to let anyone discourage them from pursuing their dreams.

Dreams may take time, but with perseverance, determination, and faith, they can become reality.