Anurag Tiwari, a peripheral farmer’s son, from the remote village of Sarasan of Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur district, has made it to the headlines for his outstanding achievements. He scored 98.2% in class 12 and got an admission offer from one of the prestigious Ivy League Universities, New York’s Cornell University, on a full scholarship.
As the CBSE class 12 results were declared on July 13, a student of humanities, Anurag has earned perfect scores in History and Economics and the close to perfect ones in Political Science, English, and Mathematics with 99, 97, and 95 marks respectively.
Not only has his excellent board results paved the way for him to secure the Cornell admission on a full scholarship but also his brilliant score of 1,370 out of 1600 at the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) had played a major role. In December 2019, he took SAT which is known to be taken for admission into the US colleges.
Though his SAT score almost secured him a seat at Cornell University where he applied as an ‘Early Decision Applicant’ last year, it was not until the overwhelming board results that he bagged a full scholarship from the University.
“Congratulations! The admission selection committee in the College of Arts and Sciences has approved your early decision application to Cornell University for the fall of 2020. I am honored to share this wonderful news with you and to welcome you to the Cornell community,” the letter received by Anurag from Jonathan R Burdick, Vice Provost for Enrollment at Cornell University shared the good news with him in December.
“I’m hoping to study Economics as a major subject and Mathematics as minor and also pursue post-graduation abroad only and eventually decide if I can get into Data Analysis”, Anurag revealed his career plans.
For 18-year-old Anurag, son of Kamalpati Tiwari who is a farmer by profession, the journey has not been smooth-sailing. For Kamalpati Tiwari running a family of five including his wife Sangeeta Tiwari, Anurag, and his three elder sisters, one of whom is married now, has been a daunting task.
“People who didn’t know me earlier came to my house just to talk to me. It gives me happiness. I thought of making my son successful, but today he has made me a successful father. He taught me so much in all these years,” said his proud father Kamalpati Tiwari.
Owing to the dearth of educational infrastructure in his village and lack of financial aid, Anurag had to move to the residential school in Sitapur district after the completion of his primary education.
He eventually pursued his high school education at the Shiv Nadar Foundation run VidyaGyan Leadership Academy that has been handpicking and nurturing academically excellent needy students from rural areas of Uttar Pradesh.
“My parents were initially reluctant to send me to Sitapur. My father is a farmer and mother a home-maker. They thought if I go away for studies, I may not return to farming. But my sisters convinced them to allow me to study. Now they are all happy and proud of me,“ said Anurag.
Besides being academically sound, Anurag has also worked on his English fluency over the years and understood the need to groom himself towards the path of success in today’s world.
“For the first two years here, I could barely speak English. However, I had tried hard and could understand if someone spoke. It is only now that I have gotten fluent but I’m still trying to improve it,” he humbly explained how until the 6th standard he faced difficulties in speaking at the school.
In fact, after passing class 10, Anurag also faced criticisms owing to his choice of the unconventional humanities stream but was determined to steer ahead his educational journey in that direction.
“Eventually my teachers and counselors in Delhi advised I could try for Ivy League colleges if I wished to pursue Liberal Arts. There are various good colleges in our country but even those abroad can be good based on my preference for studies. Thus, I applied to Cornell University and took the SAT,” Anurag mentioned.
“Throughout the process, my school teachers helped me write the draft essays, preparing the projects. My essays were edited by senior counselors in Delhi who even helped me choose the colleges,” he articulated his gratitude towards his teachers.
Though he was about to join Cornell University by August this year, the pandemic situation has deferred his joining to February 2021. In the meanwhile, Anurag is eagerly waiting for the online classes to start from the 1st of September.
“After completing my education and gaining some work experience, I would certainly want to return to India to work here and also contribute in the education sector,” Anurag expressed his wishes to work for the betterment of the country.
The road to success may be bumpy but may not be impossible! Anurag turns the wheels of impossibility through sheer hard work and perseverance and creates an example for many higher education aspirants to follow.
At the same time, it reveals to us the dire state of education in many parts of rural India where many such talents go into oblivion due to the dearth of proper educational fostering. As we celebrate Anurag’s accomplishments, let us not forget that beyond perfect scores and an Ivy-League admission, it is his path to struggle that is awe-inspiring.
Our best wishes for Anurag’s upcoming journey in life!