Meet couples who went to college after getting married, graduated with baby
We all had a full auditorium to see the graduates walk out with their caps and gowns on, cameras rolling as proud parents filmed the moment. And in the midst of the hilarity were man and wife, Xin and Fan Yang, shoulder to shoulder, baby in arms. It wasn’t graduation, it was a celebration of the life they had together.
"This didn’t happen to us," Xin said. ‘When I started the University of Wollongong in Dubai (UOWD) for my MBA program in January 2021, my husband Fan had started his year earlier. So we thought that our graduations would be at different times".
Fan remembered when it all started. "I am from 2020 I am studying Financial management MBA in the university. The day had been when Xin was an accountant for an airline company and the planes had been put on hold because of the pandemic. She was at home and I said that she should apply too. And I said: ‘Here is your opportunity to get your degree.’"
Xin attended an MBA program but it wasn’t smooth sailing. I was thrown in the English mud," she said. "My English was so bad at the start and I couldn’t follow the lectures. Fan made me keep pushing. He’d say: ‘Watch YouTube videos, practise, don’t quit.’ He was my best friend ever.
The couple had dreams of going to university together. Their hours together in the library studying their classes together were endless. "We’d stand there for hours and be there for each other. Those were the best times, us two, just working towards our goals together."
Graduating with baby
But then life hit them with a surprise in 2022, when Xin got pregnant. "At first it was a shock," Fan admitted. "We were both working and studying and we had a baby on the way. It was overwhelming, but we took it one day at a time".
Xin took a short break in the winter semester for pregnancy. Then their baby came in June 2023, and they had an extra joy – and obligation – in their lives. "Those were not easy months," Xin said. ‘But when I think back, they were also the most memorable. We were not only constructing careers; we were constructing families".
At first, they were supposed to graduate months apart. Fan got his certificate in January 2024, Xin got hers in May. "We said we would have separate rituals," Xin said. "But then, early this year, the university email me and announced that every class from this year was going to be at the ceremony in October," says Sullivan.
News was a dream. "We were super happy," Fan said. We never would have thought we would go to college together but there we were, preparing to cross the stage together."
The day of the ceremony was emotional. Their infant and Xin’s mother also came to take photos, a picture of the fruit of years of labour, death and struggle. ‘When we put our baby in our photo of graduation, it was extra special,’ Xin said. "No more just us, now it was our family. "Nothing always goes according to plan," Fan told me. "Studying together, having kids, graduating together now... it’s been hard, beautiful, and an experience that will stay with you." Luca Pescanero
Fiancées on campus
Shruti Ganesh and Vineet Garmella’s love story, in the same vein, was also born on the campus of their college at UOWD where they both were pursuing their Master’s in Marketing. "We shared a few classes during semesters and I met him that way," Shruti says. At first, they were in teams of two, but because they loved marketing, they both were the top students in their teams. ‘We had an excellent game of games and it was fun. We would forward our projects to one another after submission and we would receive suggestions.’ Shruti says that they became friends from mutual appreciation of one another’s work.
The next semester, they became more intimate. "Towards the end of the semester, we found we were also compatible in other ways. We found out who did the work and we were in love with each other", Shruti said. They began to connect intimately, as they had in common values, family styles and even Telugu.
Shruti remembers a pivotal moment. "We both loved consumer behaviour so much, and it was an assignment on an island in the UAE. I was just really blown away by how he began the talk and how he sees things." That impressed her enough to want to know more about Vineet.
Recalling an event that lingers in Vineet’s mind, the 30-year-old: "She had said what kind of wife she wanted me to be and in that time she said these are the traits she has. I also knew I needed to get moving".
They blossomed outside of the classroom, too. Vineet’s aversion to frivolity went well with his sanity-ridden attitude in relationships: Shruti likes to call him "jovial and cheeky" but with an iron hand in the trenches. ‘I didn’t just want a partner in life, I wanted a best friend,’ says Shruti.
A couple was soon engaged thanks to Vineet’s creative decision of placing the rings in Pokémon balls — another element of his playful side. "It was something small that made it a little more special," Shruti added.
Neither of them forgot the reunion from their graduation. ‘It was really special because we finished at different times but we did the same ceremony. We were even called after one another," Shruti continued and added that they are going to make the know in February this year.
From classmates to couple
For Azam Chirag, he heard of Ayesha Azam’s name while he and his wife were in the same school, but didn’t correspond.
"I’d heard of a woman called Ayesha Azam, and it was just that we share the same name so I was intrigued. Even when she got married, her name was the same. She was in a separate classroom for boys and girls in an Islamic school so I didn’t really meet her then. I studied hospitality management in an institute after school, in Dubai Knowledge Village." And that’s when Azam and his wife realised they shared a friend. "This friend said Ayesha had gone to the same institute also," continued the Pakistani expat.
The old curiosity returned and the adult couple met again in college. At first only notes and information sharing, "but we got to know each other and got married over the next several years. She had my family up in arms at first but now 13 years later, she is the best daughter-in-law and sister-in-law in the house," the father of three said.
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