TCC’s tagline is Success Within Reach. Our latest graduates have reached that milestone in their educational journey at TCC. In this series, we want to introduce you to some of them.
“What made me come to TCC was the fact that they offered very rigorous courses and had amazing professors with so much knowledge and experience,” said Khalid Alazawi, a dual credit student who immigrated to the U.S. from the Sultanate of Oman in 2013. “The diversity and inclusion always made me feel like I mattered there (at TCC).”
Khalid says he experienced educational challenges when he first started (elementary) school here. “I didn’t understand the language, and the majority of the time I would be in class unable to speak, read or understand the English language, which played a huge role in my education.”
Having enough with the struggle to learn, Khalid said he started translating everything he read, noting the differences and similarities between words until he was finally able to sit in class and excel in subjects where he struggled.
“The advice I have for students that are struggling due to a language barrier or simply being new to the language in college, is to take advantage of available resources such as writing centers or language labs, practice regularly such as writing and reading in English to the best of their ability, and lastly finding a language exchange partner who will be willing to help with translating,” Khalid said. “At the end of the day learning a completely new language in a completely different environment requires a lot of time and effort, I believe anyone can do it and that nothing is impossible if you put your mind to it.”
Not only did he face learning a new language, Khalid faced challenging courses with the Dual Credit program. “Fast forward a couple of years entering TCC, I was unaware of how much effort and persistence it would take to truly get a grasp on the workload of college courses,” he said. “Due to TCC, I now know how to face rigorous courses head on using the information that I have learned from TCC professors.”
Khalid considers “defying all odds” and graduating with his associate degree while in high school his greatest accomplishment so far. “I am truly grateful that I was able to be part of TCC’s Dual Credit program, which ensured that I had the opportunity to learn how to become successful.”
He plans to attend the University of North Texas and major in Biology with a Pre-Med track, utilizing everything he learned from TCC. Khalid wants to become a pediatrician because he wants to help those in need of treatment and inspire others with his own story.