Ratu Whippy

Having his eyes opened to life outside of rugby has seen Ratu determined to battle all odds and succeed in his studies.

Ratu Whippy first came to New Zealand from Fiji on a sports scholarship to Kelston Boys’ High School in Auckland at 15 years old, by himself. A 180-change in his life from Fiji island living, that for many others would be mind boggling to wrap their heads around but one that he shares with a sense of warmth and humility.

“All I knew was rugby before coming to New Zealand, and then going to Kelston Boys’ just completely opened my eyes to the rest of the world really, eh. Suddenly, I became aware of all these other opportunities than just rugby.”

“That time for me was really important because I was here by myself without my family, I matured a lot at such a young age. I was making so many decisions, especially financial ones that I’d never had to consider before.”

After finishing high school, Ratu relocated to Palmerston North to attend IPU.

“I found that I wasn’t academically strong and so then I took a break to reassess where I was at. I ended up then moving to Christchurch to play rugby.”

During his time in Christchurch, Ratu’s family moved from Fiji to Palmerston North.

“I had always wanted to return to Palmy as I really liked it, and to have my family here was a good push to come back. I was also getting to the point where I knew rugby wasn’t going to be my long-term plan and needed to find a new opportunity.”

Returning to Palmerston North, he had a feeling that UCOL was where his next step was meant to take him and he wasn’t wrong. While his journey here wasn’t smooth sailing, “it was the best decision I could have made” Ratu says adamantly of his experience at UCOL.

Ratu began by enrolling in the New Zealand Certificate in Construction Trade Skills (Carpentry) Level 3 and successfully graduated from that.

When asked why he chose that programme, he laughs and says that’s a great question!

“I guess I was looking for something that wasn’t rugby. I really wanted to give something new a go, and this was really a whole new kettle of fish! When I look back now, you know, I hadn’t even owned a laptop before starting here.”

“I was using YouTube to learn how to use my laptop, how to type, how to format a document, all these things that others just knew how to do, at the same time as keeping up with my learning.”

“UCOL gave me such great support, everyone was so helpful, very informative. I didn’t feel the same academic pressure like I had previously, because there was always a helping hand. David and my lecturers were always asking about how my life was going to ensure they could help remove as many barriers as possible for me. That really made a difference.”

“The international team who help with the visa processing and supporting international students too were just awesome. Every time I needed to check with them, they were across it all, they were so helpful and just took all my stress off my shoulders.”

After I got through the first course, David (Academic Portfolio Manager, Construction at UCOL), encouraged me to come back and enrol in the Diploma (New Zealand Diploma in Construction Level 6).

“I started off good, and then I faced some hardships financially and was living from my car for a time there. Everything just kind of happened at once and things quickly spiralled so I took another break. UCOL’s staff were awesome for me during this time and continued to check in with me and ended up being a motivating pillar for me to return.

While on that break, Ratu worked and saved up to put his younger sister through her Early Childhood Education studies at UCOL, as he saved for his own fees in anticipation of returning.

“It was such a good feeling to return. It wasn’t easy, but it was doable with the support that UCOL provides. Even though it was challenging, it felt right; it was worth more completing it than leaving and walking away. I’m so grateful for the team at UCOL who supported me through it all.”

Through his sheer hard work and determination, Ratu is now graduating with his Diploma in Construction and is currently contracting building decking and fencing while he looks for long-term employment in his field.

To anyone thinking about studying at UCOL, or trying something completely new he says, “Take the jump, you couldn’t choose a better place than UCOL. You aren’t just learning new skills, but you’ll find a whole community of people who are there to support you and help you succeed.”