From working odd jobs at a car wash and as a night-time security guard to fund his studies, Dr Perekeme Mutu has proven that resilience is the key to academic success.

Dr Mutu is one of hundreds of students who graduated during the autumn 2021 graduation season at the University of Pretoria (UP). What makes him stand out is that he completed not one but two degrees in 2020 – his Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree with UNISA and his Doctor of Philosophy (Law) from UP.

This achievement, he says, validates his belief in the power of education to change one’s life, and the value of a strong support system.

“My parents were not educated. However, I was inspired by my niece who also has a PhD and whose husband is a medical doctor. She supported me from the beginning when I first came into the country and began my academic journey.”

Survival of the most focused

In order to survive when he first arrived in South Africa from Nigeria, Dr Mutu had to remain focused on his goals.

“My first degree at UP in 2007, a bachelor’s degree in political sciences, was a challenging experience,” he recalls. When he started, lectures had already begun and he had missed orientation week.

“As someone who had just come into a foreign land, everything was different, from the cultural difference to the functioning of the library system,” Dr Mutu says, explaining how daunting it was to use a computer to search for books. “This was challenging for me because I had very little knowledge on how to use a computer.”

He soon realised this was only the start of his challenges as he would also need to type his own assignments. Not being sufficiently computer literate, his assignments were filled with typographical errors.

He refused to be discouraged – even when he realised he lacked the funds to pay the fees for his second year. That’s when he decided to take on odd jobs such as washing cars.

“Most often I finished my studies for the day at 16:00. After that, I would go to the car wash to wash cars until probably around 19:00 before going home.”

The pay was meagre. Customers paid R30 to R40 to have their cars washed, and he received half. “At the end of the week, whatever I can raise from the car wash is paid into my University of Pretoria student account.”

All this significantly limited his study time and affected his first-year academic performance, but Dr Mutu was quick to count his blessings. “Because my niece accommodated me, I did not have to worry about accommodation or food; my sole focus was how to raise money for my fees.”

In his second year, he found work as a security guard, which paid him a little better, R2 500 a month. To cover his university fees, he arranged for R2 000 to be deducted and paid directly into his university fee account, leaving him with R500 for the month.

Hard work pays off

After completing his undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, Dr Mutu joined the UP Centre for Human Rights and started studying towards a Master of Philosophy degree (MPhil) in Multidisciplinary Human Rights in 2014.

“The success of other Nigerians who have gone through the programme was a huge motivation and inspiration to me,” he says. “It also enabled me to go into the law profession, something that had been a childhood dream for me.”

However, he did not have a law degree. So, when the opportunity came to tackle his PhD, he decided to take on an LLB simultaneously at UNISA. Because of how busy he was, with no time to attend social events, he earned the nickname “Mr Deadline”.

Asked why he chose UP for the bulk of his academic career, Dr Mutu says the University offers endless opportunities.

“I was able to complete my PhD because of the UP bursary I was awarded, which took away the financial burden. My advice to anyone contemplating coming to further their study at UP is that the University will give you the opportunity to excel and, at the same time, it will challenge you. You just have to be mentally and physically prepared for the journey ahead. The end is always rewarding."