Rasha remembers the day her parents decided to flee Iraq.
An envelope arrived in the mail, stained with blood.
“It was an anonymous letter, and our family was threatened to be killed,” she says. “Though we loved our life and community there, it no longer felt safe.”
Rasha’s family was targeted because of their religion. Others had been kidnapped and even murdered.
“At school, I was bullied and discriminated against,” she says. “School didn’t feel safe. My siblings stopped going, and eventually, I did as well. We had to escape.”
At nine years old, she and her six siblings packed their bags and followed their parents to Jordan, where they waited for refugee status in Australia.
“It was hard living there,” Rasha recalls. “In an instant, I had to leave my friends and neighbours behind. In Jordan, my parents couldn’t work, and we kids couldn’t receive an education. We were struggling.”
It took four years for her family to get approval to settle in Australia as refugees.
“We were over the moon,” the young refugee explains. “We were so grateful for the opportunity, but it was very challenging when we first came to Australia.
“We could gain an education, but we didn’t speak English. We had to start from scratch. It took time to transition.”
Understandably, her family experienced culture shock. Going to school for the first time in years and learning English was difficult.
“I attended an Intensive English Centre (IEC),” Rasha remembers. “I was allowed to transition to high school afterwards because I had done IEC.”
The experience was overwhelming at first.
“I used to get bullied because I didn’t know how to speak English like everyone else,” Rasha says.
But she was determined to overcome the challenges.
“If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be where I am today,” the young refugee explains.
“It’s all about self-motivation. You must keep trying, and you must make relationships and friendships.
“If you stay in your comfort zone, you won’t be able to move forward.”
Rasha wanted to make her parents proud and repay them for what they did to protect her family.
“I have always pushed myself,” she says. “And during it all, my family and I were there for each other. We had to support each other.
“I also had some great teachers – many of them had similar stories,” she adds. “They saw how hard I was working and the effort I was putting in, and they encouraged me to keep it up.”
As soon as Rasha was old enough, she started working to help her family financially. Despite the difficulties, Rasha continued to try her best at school.
“I was working and studying at the same time,” the young refugee reflects. “I used to attend school, then after school, I would go directly to work. After work, I would study more – it was hard to keep up because I was doing this daily.”
With the support of a range of scholarships, Rasha made it through high school.
Once she entered university, a friend in Youth Off The Streets’ National Scholarship Program encouraged Rasha to apply.
“I’m so grateful for it,” Rasha says. “The mentoring I’m receiving is helping me significantly to keep up.”
Rasha is now 20 years old and studying to become a primary school teacher.
“Becoming a teacher would be life-changing for me, but the course is challenging,” she explains.
“University is way more complicated than school, and I don’t get any additional support there. With this scholarship, I’m able to take tutoring classes. It also helps me with book fees and numeracy and literacy tests.
“My mentor is a teacher, and when I need to talk to someone, she’s there for me,” she continues. “She gives me great advice.”
Rasha’s dream is to be a role model for her students – especially kids who are also young refugees.
“Despite the hardships, I made it,” she says. “And I’m proud of myself.”
“I want to give them support,” she continues. “Because I went through it, I know how hard it is. I just want to be there to help them – to motivate them to reach their goals and be successful achievers.”
Learn more about the National Scholarship Program.