It was the fall of 2015 when Sedra's world fell apart at the seams: together with her family, the then 13-year-old had to leave her home country of Syria - her future prospects were open. Seven years later, Sedra reached a milestone: she passed the German Abitur with an A before the decimal point. The impressively strong and determined young woman wants to build something for herself and her family in Germany. And at the same time give something back to the country that opened the door in an existential emergency.
Childhood is the phase of life that should be characterized by light-heartedness and naturalness. Sedra never knew such a thing: religious and cultural constraints and internal social conflict have made life difficult for her family ever since she can remember. When the devastating civil war flared up, the everyday restrictions became so great that the family left their home and embarked on an initially internal Syrian odyssey: "My mother could no longer work as a teacher and we children could no longer go to school. My two little siblings and I didn't really understand what was going on in Syria," Sedra recalls a period of her life characterized by fear and uncertainty.
"Our only option was to go to Europe. Until then, I had never thought it possible to live on another continent."
Sedra's family of five shares the fate of millions of other Syrians who said goodbye to their country of origin in the largest refugee movement of the 21st century to date. "Our only option was to go to Europe. Until then, I had never thought it possible to live on another continent." Another continent also means: a foreign culture, foreign languages, foreign people.
A miracle to have arrived in Germany
Some refugees are broken by this experience, if they make it across the Mediterranean at all. Not so Sedra, who experienced the moment of arriving in Germany as a "miracle"; after years of danger and hardship, Germany was something of a safe haven for her and her family. Thanks in part to her parents' attitude, Sedra has preserved this feeling to this day and turned it into an ambition to build something up step by step in this safe haven: "My father always said to us: Germany opened its door for us when we were in need. And we have to give something back to this country. That has become a motto of mine," says the now 20-year-old, building a bridge from the deeply stressful experience of fleeing to an opportunity-oriented future with social benefits.
Family manager for all aspects of everyday life
The path from a mental plan to actually creating lasting opportunities was and is not an easy one. On the one hand, it is characterized by an extraordinary willingness to take responsibility: from day one in Germany, she slipped into the role of a kind of manager for her family in all aspects of everyday life. She, the eldest daughter, who learned German in no time at all simply by listening, corresponded with the authorities, looked out for school and daycare places for herself and her two siblings and always kept an eye on her parents' career prospects. In the summer of 2020, Sedra took the lead in coordinating her family's move from Altena to Dortmund within a month. "The idea was to create better conditions for me and my siblings' school education and my parents' job prospects in the larger city," she says, explaining the clever ideas that are also a reflection of her personality: Sedra accepts every challenge for her future opportunities, however great it may be, and always has the well-being of her entire family in mind. "For me, giving the best for my family is a matter of course. My parents gave up everything for the future for us children; they both worked as teachers in Syria. In Germany, I have to take responsibility, as the German language was much easier for me to learn."
"For me, giving the best for my family is a matter of course. My parents gave up everything for the future for us children; they both worked as teachers in Syria. In Germany, I have to take responsibility."
A second building block on her path is her constant willingness to interact openly and actively with her social environment. Sedra quickly learned that, as an immigrant, she has to make an effort, but is rewarded with help and friendships: "I'm a social person who likes to talk to others. Maybe that's why I was always well integrated and made friends quickly. In addition, the more I tried to get my school-leaving certificate, for example, the more help I received."
Wanting to study medicine: a luxury in a war-torn homeland
Sedra would like to study a medical subject, preferably human medicine or dentistry. She associates medicine with the kind of humanity that has become a luxury in her civil war-torn homeland. "In my home country, many people have no opportunity to get help for a health problem - because they are afraid to go to a hospital, because they don't have the money, because clinics are poorly equipped. I myself want to help other people and, from my point of view, it's the best you can do as a human being." At the same time, the complex medical disciplines correspond to Sedra's basic attitude of conquering the unknown with a mixture of respect and curiosity and constantly learning new things. "Medicine is like a sea of secrets that never ends," she says, creating a remarkable image.
"I myself want to help other people and, from my point of view, it's the best thing you can do as a human being."
Sedra has been taking part in TalentScouting for a year and a half to get as accurate an idea as possible of the equally tricky entry requirements for studying medicine and to realistically weigh up her chances. She got the idea from Maria Volbers, a math teacher and study and career choice coordinator at Gustav-Heinemann-Gesamtschule Dortmund: "The discussions with my TalentScout Frederik are an opportunity for me to look at my decisions from all angles and to better understand certain detailed questions about studying. The consultations are always worthwhile and we have kept in touch even after graduation. I really appreciate the friendliness and respect with which my TalentScout treats me and every other one of my former classmates."
Exam preparation with mom until late at night
She is currently completing her voluntary social year (FSJ) at the Dortmund-North Clinic in order to train her previous medical experience and at the same time prepare for the so-called TMS test. The so-called "test for medical degree courses" is the most important criterion for the allocation of the highly competitive university places in medical subjects alongside the A-level grades. The better the result in the five-hour marathon test, the more points are awarded when applying for the centrally allocated study places at state universities across Germany. In challenging phases like this, it is her family that thanks her for her tireless commitment to the community with maximum support: "Sometimes my mother has to remind me that setbacks are not the end of the world. But my father and siblings are also always there for me."
Sedra's story is also the story of a family that has lost its home in the turmoil of war in Syria and has not been broken by it. Cohesion, courage and a positive attitude carry them through a life that, despite all the challenges, always holds out hope for new, worthwhile horizons.