Homeless 20-year-old gets into Oxford University with hard work and resilience

Life is all about taking chances and leaps to achieve your dreams. Many people often give up believing that they are not up for the challenge and do not pursue it further. However, sometimes simply taking that one step marks the beginning of achieving a memorable milestone. Chloe Pomfret decided to take this step when she submitted her application to the prestigious Oxford University in the United Kingdom. Pomfret was left homeless at the age of 16, but she persisted through to grab the opportunities that would lay the foundation for her goals, per Daily Mail.

The 20-year-old grew up in foster care and spent nights on sofas, streets and out in the open, trying to make it through every day. Her history wasn’t quite enchanting either. She was separated from her original family when she was young and moved to a foster home where she was “spoiled rich.” While those were the best years of her life, she soon moved back with her father. His parenting led her to feel that the relationship was stagnant and “artificial.” After the girl moved to her grandfather’s, she found much hope and love there. However, Pomfret’s grandpa passed away in a battle with cancer and she had to return to live with her father.

Things only seemed downtrodden and disappointing from there. She found an “escape” by going to school, but soon her grief got the better of her. She began skipping classes and eventually, at the age of 16, she was left stranded and homeless to figure out life on her own. “When you're sitting alone or walking about the streets of Manchester at two o'clock in the morning, crying, that's when it hits you,” she recalled. “That contributed to how suicidal, how low I was feeling and I just thought I'm never going to find anywhere (to live),” Pomfret added. However, her school came to the rescue. They went “above and beyond” and provided more than education.

She was provided with accommodation and began to build her dream of becoming a biology teacher. As a girl who faced the hardship of being homeless, she sure knew how hard life can get. Nevertheless, she focused on her studies until she stumbled upon Oxford University’s Human Sciences program. Enrolling in the university, which is a dream of a majority of teenagers, was not on her list. However, the course offered “everything she wanted” and so Pomfret took her leap of faith and sent in an application. While the process took its course, she was offered a place to stay at the University and soon enough, her determination was recognized and she bagged a seat at Oxford.

Sharing her experience, Pomfret said, “It's still surreal when I walk out into Oxford. You see all these big, fancy buildings, and it's just a whole other world. You go to formals, where they're serving you food. I have a cleaner that comes and cleans my room, and I just think, ‘What on Earth?’” Pomfret now helps fellow students who suffer the harsh realities and vulnerabilities as she did. She is beyond grateful for having experienced so much and got an opportunity to take life to a new and hopeful path via Oxford. “Being estranged now comes with its difficulties, but it's taught me so much. I'm so resilient, I'm so independent, and I can use my journey to help people,” Pomfret said.