My name is Shaver Osmanova, and I’m from the village of Isperihovo, in the Bratsigovo municipality. Many people from our village have gone abroad in search of a better life. There, they work tirelessly, build large houses, and drive luxury cars — at the cost of hard labor far from home. Here in Bulgaria, only a few remain. The painful truth is that 90% of local children don’t attend school.
My parents have only primary education and work in agriculture. I have two older sisters who finished secondary school and already have families.
My love for Pharmacy began in fifth or sixth grade. I saw a woman in the village pharmacy seeking advice from the pharmacist because she couldn’t afford health insurance or a doctor. I saw how much good the pharmacist did for her, and I thought: I want to be that kind of lifesaver for people — for their pain.
Over time, my dream began to fade — we live far from a big city, my parents don’t have financial means, and preparing for exams on my own seemed impossible. When the health mediator told me about the preparatory course*, I applied immediately — this was my last hope.
The beginning was difficult. I started from scratch in Biology and Chemistry, with hundreds of questions swirling in my head. I got tired quickly, especially when the school year started and I had to balance school and the course.
The support of my family — especially my grandmother — and my teachers kept me going. Ms. Kotseva in Chemistry always said: “Girl, you can do it!” And the strict discipline of Mr. Tonchev taught us never to give up.
There were moments when I feared I wouldn’t succeed, but over time I gained confidence. My grandmother prayed for me every day. Prof. Tarnev encouraged us and made me believe that my dream was possible.
During the fifth round of admissions, I saw by chance on my profile that I had been accepted. At first, I couldn’t believe it, and then I cried tears of joy. The whole family celebrated, and my grandmother proudly told all the neighbors. In the neighborhood, everyone rejoiced that they would have a Pharmacy student — the first from our community.
Now my goal is clear — to dedicate myself to studying, graduate, and one day open a pharmacy in my hometown. I want to help people who cannot see a doctor — to be their lifesaver, just like the pharmacist from my childhood.
My fears are about being away from my family, the unknown challenges at university, and financial difficulties. But I know I have no right to give up. I want to be the first person in my family with a master’s degree and a role model for the young girls in our neighborhood — to show them that with hard work and perseverance, anything is possible.
A year later
My first year at university went well, even though there were small difficulties. Despite them, I stayed motivated the entire time, reminding myself that the higher I climb, the harder it gets — and this is nothing compared to what lies ahead. I will succeed! became my motto and mindset. This attitude helped me overcome challenges and successfully pass all my exams.
One of the main challenges during the first year was the different expectations of the professors. Each had a unique teaching style and approach, with distinct expectations for students. This required us to adapt to different learning methods for each instructor. The constant need to adjust was challenging in itself, but it also taught me flexibility and helped me develop different strategies for studying and preparing.
I am most proud of achieving good results on my exams and successfully moving on to the second year. Even more importantly, I proved to myself that I can do it — I believe in myself, and I succeed. This gives me even greater confidence that I am on the right path and capable of overcoming difficulties.
Shaver is a participant in preparatory courses in Biology, Chemistry, and Bulgarian Language & Literature, part of the project “Candidate-student courses for young people of Roma origin for admission to medical universities in Bulgaria”—funded by TSA and implemented by the Health Problems of Minorities Foundation (HPMF).
In the 2024/2025 academic year, all 6 participants in the course were admitted to study Medicine or Pharmacy – their top choice.
Over the past 20 years, more than 100 young Roma girls and boys have taken part in the Biology and Chemistry preparatory courses organized by Prof. Ivaylo Tarnev and his HPMF team. Over 60 of them have gone on to study Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy, and other health-related fields. Today, most are working as doctors in leading Bulgarian hospitals, in smaller municipal hospitals, and in emergency medical centers.
The project seeks to help overcome barriers to preparation and admission for Roma students aspiring to study Medicine, Dentistry, and Pharmacy. We provide highly motivated young people with free access to life-changing preparatory courses. Despite these efforts, many youth still face difficulties, as they come from working poor families and towns with limited opportunities.
Support young people like Francheska - the future doctors, pharmacists, and dentists of Bulgaria—you can make a donation to:
Bulgarian Postbank
IBAN: BG88BPBI79401064780501
BIC: BPBIBGSF
Reference: “Medical students”
The account belongs to the National Network of Health Mediators.