CLOSE to a thousand students celebrated their hard work and determination at Wagga's TAFE NSW graduation ceremony on Tuesday.
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Among them was Hpi Redamwang, a refugee from Myanmar, who graduated from an English language course, which he said will help him get one step closer to becoming a lawyer in the future.
Mr Redamwang fled his country nearly a decade ago when he was almost forced into labour by Burmese soldiers. And despite the time that has passed, he said it is a conflict that continues in Myanmar to this day.
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Mr Redamwang stayed in Malaysia for eight years, working as an interpreter for other refugees in his community before he was given the chance to resettle in Australia about nine months ago.
He arrived with his wife and four children, but said he only had a basic level of English and often found it difficult to understand those who were fluent in the language.
So, Mr Redamwang said he decided to take up the opportunity to studying English through TAFE NSW.
"For me it is a good opportunity to learn more about English because I never learnt English from a native speaker or teacher like TAFE is doing. I learnt a lot," he said.
But on his graduation day, Mr Redamwang has no intentions of ending his studies with his sight set on higher education in the hopes of one day becoming a lawyer for his people.
He said there was one more certificate to complete before he was eligible for university education where he wanted to study international or immigration law.
"The only reason I want to study law is to help my people. I saw the sufferings of our people, even in Malaysia ... here, I have my community people, but they need help especially to write and arrange documents concerning the government departments," he said.
"They still need someone to help them. That is why for our community, at least one needs to study a higher level, so we can help our people here."
Meanwhile, a host of awards were presented at the graduation ceremony for some of the highest performing students, who came from a diverse range of backgrounds and study areas.
Taking out one of this year's nine top honours was Lee Longmire, who was the recipient of the Outstanding Student of the Year award for Wagga.
TAFE NSW's relieving regional general manager Jonathan Davis said the graduation ceremony was a fitting recognition of the students' commitment to improving their skills and, ultimately, their lives.
"It's wonderful to see so many graduates investing in their futures by studying at TAFE NSW," he said.
"For many of them, that involves making short-term personal sacrifices in the knowledge that they will gain the practical skills and work experience that they need to help them pursue their career.
"To see those students up on stage being cheered on by their family, friends and classmates is very special."