More RTD graduates building futures on and off pitch
Updated: 4 days ago
The next step doesn’t look the same for every Right to Dream graduate.
Last month, we celebrated Right to Dream graduates beginning or continuing their professional football journeys at some of the biggest clubs in the world.
This month, as a new academic year begins, we’re celebrating another group of RTD graduates taking their next steps at leading schools and universities across the US and UK, while continuing to pursue their ambitions in football.
Football and education, together
This academic year, graduates from our Ghana and Egypt academies are beginning new chapters at schools including Suffield Academy, St. Paul’s School, The Dunn School, Williston Northampton, St. Andrew’s-Sewanee, Kimball Union Academy, Choate Rosemary Hall, San Domenico School, and South Kent School.
Others are continuing their education at leading universities across the US and UK, while competing at a high level in football.
For these graduates, studying and playing means managing two demanding environments at once. They are adapting to new schools and communities, taking on academic challenges and continuing to train and compete.
And they are not the first Right to Dream graduates to take this route.
Where the journey leads
We have seen many Right to Dream graduates take the student-athlete pathway, part of the Right to Dream International Pathway, and build careers that bring together their academic and sporting ambitions.
Ousseni Bouda graduated from Stanford before going on to play in MLS and represent Burkina Faso.
Shakur Mohammed balanced his studies at Duke with his football journey before continuing his professional career with Nashville SC.
Joy Okonye is continuing her own student-athlete journey at Brown University, combining her studies with football.
