Zakaria joined the Accelerate program in his final year of high school with high aspirations for his education. Growing up in what he describes as ‘my little family of 13’, he was the son of immigrants who ‘never really had much’.  

Zak’s mentor, Michael from Optus, helped him better understand the path to university and supported Zak to think outside his peer group influence. Michael’s guidance also led to the opportunity to work at Optus in a casual sales role, which helped Zak ‘shift in what I wanted to do from lawyer to engineer as I realised my skills and understood what I really wanted for myself’.  

Now studying electrical engineering at Sydney University, Zak says the Accelerate program helped him overcome shyness and he now feels comfortable connecting with new people and sees himself as a leader. 

The former introvert spoke at ABCN’s end-of-year event in Sydney, where he expressed his appreciation for having a mentor who helped him ‘learn so much about a world that was once so far away. From office tours to regular chats, the door to this new world opened for me.’ 

In particular, Zak learned valuable lessons about managing stress levels and optimising his time, including sleep time. ‘This came in handy when I started university in my dream field,’ he said. ‘The skills and knowledge I learnt from Michael, which are seemingly unrelated to my course, have helped in so many ways, namely prioritising rest over excessive cramming.’ 

He also applauded the Accelerate program for the special events he attended, over Zoom and in person, which allowed him to meet many different people with diverse perspectives. ‘Overall, the Accelerate journey was literally a life-changing experience for me.’