The top achiever from Collegiate Girls’ High School, Robyn Hechter, believes a stable home environment and close involvement from her loved ones were two of the keys to her academic success.
With seven distinctions to her name, and all her marks above 90% (English 90%, Afrikaans First Additional Language 91%, mathematics 96%, life orientation 97%, accounting 95%, life sciences 92%, and physical sciences 97%) Hechter placed top of her class, and contributed to the school’s 100% pass rate.
“I am blessed to have grown up in an incredibly supportive family. They have also played a significant role in my involvement and enthusiasm when it comes to school activities, as the majority of my endeavours were supported by my grandparents or mom and dad, creating an excellent support structure.
“I can say for certain that I would not have achieved what I did had it not been for the phenomenal people who not only raised me, but who also imparted valuable life lessons.”
Hechter said her parents had created a stable home environment and she had never had to move between cities or schools. This brought a sense of routine and structure to her life from a young age.
She said she chose to surround herself with people who inspired her, and took inspiration from seeing those close to her achieve great things.
“I will see someone achieving academically or on the sports field and I will be inspired to achieve what they have because they have shown me that it can be done.
“I try to surround myself with positive sources of inspiration, such as family, friends and a driven school environment with pupils who have excelled.
“My favourite quote at the moment is ‘dreams don’t work unless you do’.”
In her grade 12 year, Hechter started the Studying Sisterhood tutoring programme, which is aimed at helping pupils from grade 8 to 12 with extra lessons in subjects they struggle with.
She said this experience hd reminded her to stay humble and keep pushing herself to achieve more.
Looking towards the future, she has already been accepted to study medicine at the Tygerberg campus in Stellenbosch, and hopes to one day specialise as an otolaryngologist, or ear doctor.
Asked what her advice was to this year’s grade 12 cohort, Hechter said good time management might sound like a cliché, but it was one of the most important skills to achieving good marks.
“And get enough sleep. A regular sleep schedule has been a lifesaver for me, to rejuvenate and refresh. This is something that most students should probably rank higher on their to-do list,” she said.
HeraldLIVE