Life
Lawyer Quits Job To Become Teacher, Helps 95% Of Students Make It To University
This man is making the world a better place, one student at a time.
Kristi Shinfuku
08.27.17
Evening Standard
Source:
Evening Standard

For most people who manage to become a lawyer, that’s a massive achievement, and the hefty paycheck that can come with a career in law is a pretty good motivator to keep continuing in that line of work. For Mouhssin Ismail though, his biggest achievement in life is not his fancy former career with a six figure salary- it’s what he did when he decided to quit that will forever define his career.

Ismail left his position at his law firm Norton Rose Fulbright and decided to become a teacher in his old inner-city neighborhood instead. From there, he worked his way up, and is now currently the headmaster at Newham Collegiate Sixth Form, a school that caters to some of the poorest neighborhoods in the country. While inner-city schools are always known for providing success for its students in post- high school education, he’s managed to get 190 of 200 graduating students into Russell group universities in his first year (top research-intensive universities in the UK).

Of those, 9 have been offered spots in Oxford or Cambridge, and one student named Tafsia Shikdar has been offered an unconditional acceptance from MIT with a scholarship worth £200,000 to pay for her education. Absolutely incredible!

“I am immensely proud of what they have achieved. For many of these students the idea of going to Oxford or Cambridge or Bath, Manchester or Bristol would have been inconceivable two years ago. Now it is within touching distance,” he told the Evening Standard.

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SWNS/Nick Edwards
Source:
SWNS/Nick Edwards

So what exactly has been the secret to these students success?

His connections from his previous career and his ability to push students give these kids rare opportunities not always available to kids in public education. According to the Evening Standard, “these include work-experience placements in Abu Dhabi with top law firm White & Case LLP, weekly Oxbridge tutorials with graduates and contacts across many professions.”
Ismail continued to explain that “We prepare our students the way they would be prepared at top private schools. If pupils have on their CV a week-long work experience placement at White & Case, it is inevitably going to make them stand out when applying for jobs.”
His incredible devotion and passion for teaching are truly remarkable. These students will be the leaders of tomorrow, and it proves that with the right attitude, drive, and help with connections, people from all backgrounds, races, and more can make it in today’s world.
SWNS/Nick Edwards
Source:
SWNS/Nick Edwards

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