Zhaniya

1. Where it began

Zhaniya, 21, from Almaty. A fourth-year student at the Kazakh National Pedagogical University, training to teach Computer Science in English.

She was doing several things at once: finishing her bachelor's, writing her thesis, teaching English and preparing students for IELTS, studying for her own IELTS exam, and assembling her application documents for universities abroad.

Her main question was what to do after graduation. Zhaniya wanted an international master's degree, a change of environment, life in another country and a career in education.

2. English / IELTS

IELTS preparation was one of the key stages of her application.

Working with a Mentor Me teacher, Zhaniya raised her level of English and scored IELTS 7.0, valid until 2027.

3. Preparing the documents

The paperwork ran in parallel with her studies, her job and her thesis. The workload and constant worry about the future made her deeply anxious.

With the Mentor Me team she built a step-by-step process: preparing the documents, reviewing every piece, writing the motivation materials and supporting her at each stage of submission.

4. Submitting applications

Once preparation was complete, applications went out to several universities at once. Zhaniya received offers from the University of Nottingham (UK), the University of Manchester (UK) and Purdue University (USA).

Despite offers from both the US and the UK, she chose the University of Nottingham. She had already been to the US twice on Work & Travel and studied in Europe on Erasmus, so a British education was the one she had been dreaming of.

5. Receiving the offer

Zhaniya received an offer for the Education programme.

Although her bachelor's was in Computer Science, she deliberately chose to build her career in education. Her long-term goal is to use what she learns to develop Kazakhstan's education system and run projects that benefit the country.

6. Preparing for the competition

The hardest stage was preparing for the Bolashak scholarship competition.

The most difficult part, she says, was believing that any of it could actually happen. The testing and the interview made her especially nervous.

Support from her family, her friends and the Mentor Me team made the difference. Her mentor Sabina was with her at every stage, helping her navigate the process and staying close during the most anxious moments. Her coordinators Zhansaya and Balnur were always reachable, answering questions and keeping her going. Her IELTS teacher Raushan took her English to the level she needed.

Constant feedback mattered most to Zhaniya. Knowing that a team was always there, ready to help, is what let her manage the anxiety and keep moving forward.

7. Winning the scholarship

At the Bolashak interview Zhaniya was told that candidates without substantial work experience find funding extremely hard to secure. The remark made her doubt herself.

That was the moment she realised she had no right to give up on her dream out of fear alone. She prepared even harder, passed every stage of the competition and won the Bolashak scholarship.