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Meet – Dr. Pamela Phumzile Sithole, she worked part-time as a domestic worker while studying Medicine full-time at the University of Kwazulu-Natal. She started working as a domestic helper at the age of 14, despite all the challenges and hardships, her perseverance and determination helped turn her life around, and at age 24, she graduated with a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery degree from the University of KwaZulu-Natal.

“Growing up there were a lot of challenges, including our financial circumstances and my parent’s divorce. My mother was left to provide for us and she was unemployed for the longest time. As a result, we had no choice but to rely on my siblings to put me through school from an early age up until high school which put a lot of financial strain on them.”

“Despite these challenges, I was determined to live up to my potential and applied myself diligently to my studies.” “Against all odds, I was able to juggle my studies with part-time work over the years having the ability to rise above my circumstances.”

“Even though I was a domestic worker, I didn’t shelve my dreams and think that it was over for me. I continued to work hard and I’m glad that I did, for me, it was just a lesson in humility and it has enabled me to better understand people from different walks of life and be able to relate to each person.

I always knew that good things lay ahead for me and it was truly just a matter of time.” “My hard work and commitment to my studies paid off when I received funding from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme. This helping hand was to prove life-changing.” “Never despise humble beginnings but equally, don’t let them define where you will be in five or 10 years, with God, everything is possible,” said Dr. Pamela Phumzile Sithole.

Credit: Women Power Africa