An information session, conducted by the TCF Ambassadors at IBA, was held at Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS), Ishrat-ul-Ebad Campus of Oral Sciences on 20th January, 2016. The session primarily intended to convey the message of the TCF Alumni Development Program (ADP) to one of the top tier universities of the country, thereby expanding the volunteer base of the ADP through the formation of the “TCF Ambassadors at DUHS” Chapter.
The session was organized by the Ebadian Renaissance of the Alumni (ERA) where representatives from various medical institutions and student-run welfare organizations of Karachi were present, such as SMC, KMDC, SOCH, PHH, PDC and HOPES. The response was heartwarming in terms of the audience turnout, which showed the sheer interest the project had garnered in a short span of time. The audience was briefed on the need for a volunteer-run initiative for the less privileged students by Farheen Ghaffar, co-founder of the program, while Ayesha Ahmed, a TCF Ambassador at IBA, explained the structure of the ADP and the various ways in which DUHS, as an institution for higher studies, could get involved with the TCF Alumni. The “TCF Ambassadors at IBA” was presented as a model, managed by the undergrad university students with the assistance of the IBA admin, which has the potential to be replicated in all top tier universities of Pakistan.
The audience was particularly awed by the success stories of the TCF ADP, presented by Asad Sajid, TCF Alumnus 2013 and an undergrad student of Accounting & Finance student at IBA, and Imran Shoukat, TCF Alumnus 2012 and an undergrad student of Computer Science at IBA. Asad and Imran narrated their own story of struggles, from the time they graduated from TCF to the moment when they were contacted by the TCF Ambassadors at IBA, who made a commitment to help them prepare for the IBA test and delivered it successfully. Both of them feel life would have been very different, had it not been for ADP, as they wouldn’t have even realized their own potential. Asad remarked that ADP acts as a “bridge” between Matric and higher education, and it has the potential to be the deciding factor for the future of TCF Alumni. He believes that ADP has given him hope to reach even greater heights in the future. Imran, a product of ADP, is now helping more Imrans like him to secure admission in his university and is leading the TCF Ambassador Chapter at IBA.
The occasion was graced by the presence of the Director-General of Rotary, Karachi, and the Vice-Chancellor of DUHS Ishrat-ul-Ebad College of Oral Sciences. After hearing of the remarkable success of the “TCF Ambassadors at IBA” Chapter and the determined efforts of the IBA undergrad students to help the TCF Alumni in preparing for IBA’s entrance tests, the Vice-Chancellor agreed to provide all possible support to help establish the “TCF Ambassadors at DUHS” Chapter.
The TCF Alumni Development Program (ADP) hopes to expand its volunteer base in the various top tier universities of Pakistan, so that these universities could encourage their undergrad students to come forward and help the less privileged students secure admission in their university. Currently, the TCF ADP has two university chapters functioning, namely “TCF Ambassadors at IBA” and “TCF Ambassadors at Habib University”, both of which aim to help TCF Alumni secure admission in these elite educational institutions. Moving forward, the TCF ADP aims to establish university chapter in the top medical and engineering universities of Pakistan.