Victory for the bold

Ida-Wenona ­Hendricks



I studied marine science at the University of the South Pacific (USP).

During my upbringing, my family and I always went camping or into the bush on a Saturday or Sunday.

If we couldn't go out, we would always be watching the Nat Geo or Discovery channel religiously. It was then that I became a huge fan of Sir David Attenborough and Steve Irwin.

I remember I was grade 8 and my mom and I were watching Steve Irwin on TV and I asked her: “Mummy, what is Steve Irwin's job, what is his career?”

Neither of us knew, so we researched it and found out he was a marine biologist. Ever since then I knew I was going to be a marine biologist, no matter what.

There were so many challenges I faced to become a marine biologist. First, Namibia's marine campus closed down the year that I finished high school at Delta, so I knew I would have to study outside Namibia. I then applied to all the schools that offered marine biology in South Africa, but to no avail, which was also a blessing in disguise because shortly after that was when the xenophobic attacks started happening. I started sitting at my computer every day, sending applications to every school that didn't need a registration fee (because I was a very broke student), and in the meantime I had started studying environmental studies at Unam. I did work experience in Cambodia and the Philippines.

I tried everything, and I will never forget the day in December 2014, when my mom and I were visiting family in Cape Town. I woke her up at around 01:00 to show her an email from USP that said I was accepted to study at their marine campus in Fiji.

But the challenges didn't end there; it was now time to find funding, and thanks to FNB we were able to work out a loan scheme. I was going to a place where I didn't know anybody, so we had to find trustworthy accommodation.

Visas, plane tickets, police clearances and what seemed like an endless amount of paperwork created a hectic time, but it was worth it.

I took the TOEFL (test of English as a foreign language) in 2013 just after high school, because at the time my dream was to study in Australia. I got accepted but then lost my place because my visa was denied. What they don't tell you is that even though a university might accept you, in Australia and many other first-world countries, visas are required and you to have a proficiency test. We read that schools that practice the Cambridge curriculum are exempted from this, but this only applies to South Africa and Botswana. So as a Namibian, I would advise you to do it regardless of what your travel agent tells you or what you may have read. It was not a difficult test and there are so many online sources that can help you prepare for it.

The three things I liked most about USP is the fact that practical field work made up 40% of our grade. During practical work we were actually setting up our own projects or learning how to work in a real-life settings. The marine campus was also right next to the ocean; it was absolutely beautiful and I thought Namibians were friendly, but Fijians are extremely friendly people. The biggest surprise for me was how many people I met. I went there not knowing anything about Fiji other than the touristy pictures I'd seen online. I've had the privilege to see Fiji the way many people never will.



Did you know?

The University of the South Pacific is owned by the governments of 12 Pacific Island countries.



Facts about Hendricks

• She is a huge fan of hip-hop. The poetic aspect of it resonates with her on a level that no other genre of music does.

• She loves cooking and being a chef is her plan B if marine biology doesn't work out for her one day.

• Until she found her job in the Maldives, she made and sold homemade products such as coconut oil, yoghurt, ice cream, jam and granola bars, in order to survive.

• While doing her internship with the Namibian Dolphin Project they helped take two bottlenose dolphins that got stuck in shallow water out into deeper waters.

• She wrote an article for Pako Kids Magazine about jackals and she is now working on a project to help rural communities live in harmony with elephants.

• She has visited 13 countries and worked in three of the world's five oceans.