Two months after I graduated from the University of Toronto (UofT), I wanted to enroll in the French program for Alumnus. I was very excited about the possibility of learning how to speak French as I headed to the School of Continuing Studies to enroll for the course. To my surprise, the woman who attended to me was very condescending. I was shocked at the way she spoke to me. It was appalling! I was wondering why she spoke to me in such a dismissive tone. “Was it because of the way I was dressed?”, I asked myself. Truth be told, I was dressed very shabbily on that day. She asked for my name and entered my information into her computer. 

I could not believe the next thing that happened; the lady who was rude to me barely five seconds ago started smiling at me. Her face suddenly lit up and her demeanour changed towards me.

Rude lady: “Wow, I had no idea you have a master’s degree in law, and you are also very young! That’s very impressive. How were you able to finish law school and get your master’s at such a young age? Are you a lawyer?”

 Did this woman just switch up on me because she saw my qualifications? Did she just put some respect on my name because I have a master’s degree? Wow! I answered her questions, then she went further to ask if she could link me with her cousin who wanted to go to law school. I told her I had a meeting I was running late for, and that ended the conversation. I did not have any meetings, but I was not willing to help her after the way she had just treated me. 

The “rude lady” had no intention of being nice to me until she saw my qualifications. She only acknowledged me because she realized I had an advanced degree. Some of us also look down on people who do not have a certificate from a prestigious school. So much value is being given to a piece of paper, and unfortunately, we define ourselves and others based on this. I have been guilty of this, but now I know better. Notwithstanding, having a degree from an Ivy League University does open doors. Although UofT is not an Ivy League school, it is one of the top law schools in the world and obtaining a master’s degree from UofT has certainly afforded me some opportunities. 

It is also important to note that you are not your certificates, you are more than your certificates. 

Not everyone can afford to get an education from an Ivy League school, and even when you have one, your certificate should not define you; what you put your mind to do and what you make of yourself defines you. There are many people today who do not have certificates and have still gone on to do great things. An example is Richard Branson who is the founder and CEO of Virgin Group, and Mark Zuckerberg who dropped out of Harvard to start Facebook. If you have a certificate or not, it is important that you decide today to be the best you can be and do your best at whatever you do.