Olivia Shino - WIS Graduate 2022

What now?

“What now?” was the question that circulated among my friends and I as we completed our IB Diploma in 2022. The immediate answer was obvious: sleep, go out, party, do everything school was keeping us from doing. University was the long term option for those continuing their studies after graduating. But I was truly lost as to what I was going to do because every plan I had, slipped through my fingers.

I knew that I wanted to study law, it was just a matter of where and when. Quite frankly, South Africa was on the bottom of my list of universities, so when it was the last option left I felt hopeless and discouraged. As a Russian citizen, the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war meant all opportunities to study in Europe and the West were no longer available to me. I had to accept that if I didn't want to waste any more time, studying in South Africa would have to suffice. It was also safer to study in South Africa and would eliminate possible hate crimes, discrimination and other Russophobic actions. So I packed my things, bandaged my wounded spirit and travelled to Johannesburg to start my tertiary education.

I am currently studying law (LLB) at the University of Johannesburg and the experience is greatly exceeding my expectations. The three day orientation at the beginning of the year opened my eyes to just how prestigious and opportunity rich my course was. There are various internships, exchange programmes, competitions and additional courses I have access to and can participate in. For example, I am applying to the Kovsies First Year Moot Court competition held in the Supreme Court of Appeal before a panel of judges.

I am enjoying all my modules, including the type of assignments we get. Part of that is due to the familiarity of the workload and expectations of self-study from the IBDP. The process of research and academic writing I did for my IAs is similar to that of the case law research assignments I am doing now. There is an overlap of academic resources like JSTOR and Turnitin. Having such a strong academic foundation from WIS going into the course is making my experience significantly easier and gives me extra time to focus on other aspects of my life.

To maintain a work-life balance and keep myself from spending all my days studying in my dorm room, I continued to follow the principles of the CAS programme by having multiple hobbies. I play for two netball teams at the moment: the u/22 UJ netball team and my residence’ team, and am a part of the community engagement programme on campus. I also participate in the various activities my residence organises and takes part in like the All Res Concert (ARC) where we won second place.

The multicultural environment of WIS taught me to appreciate other cultures and actively learn more about the world around me. I’m enjoying learning South African vernacular and comparing Johannesburg to Windhoek, which are two vastly different cities with different cultural and historical backgrounds.

I intend on fulfilling all my ambitious plans of working for the United Nations, travelling the world, and studying abroad. The journey may be long, but I am excited to see where my dedication, ambition and newfound knowledge will take me.