Hi! My name is Mahd!

Hi. My name is Mahd Ahmad Fayyaz, an international applicant for FSU and the gap year program. Also, I live in Islamabad; the capital of Pakistan. Somethings about myself: I am quite shy and not very talkative (which my fellow gap year friends did pick up in the very first webinar xD;)), an aviation enthusiast, and very profound of wildlife. I also like to spend my spare time with plants and gardening. One of the many reasons why I took the gap year is because of the monotonous life I had during the pandemic and lockdowns now and then and the mere thought of a hectic college life that awaited me with almost no time to rest in between convinced me to opt for this opportunity.

Some things that I have planned for my gap year experience include community service through The Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS) and a local NGO called Affinity. Not only this, I plan on having a better command of web development, graphic designing, 3d modeling, etc., and try my luck with freelancing on websites like Fiverr. Similarly, I wish to explore more about the major that I got into for which I might enroll in some online courses to get to know it better. I have planned quite a lot in case I am unable to do something because of successive covid-19 waves but let’s hope for the best:)

I plan on starting my gap year by getting my hands on some tutorials from YouTube or a website one of my family friends told me about: lynda.com. Going through these thoroughly, I will begin to make my way into graphic designing software and start with some basic projects and move on to more technical and advanced projects to enhance my portfolio for freelancing websites. This will help me get some real-life insight into the technical world and help me acquire more useful skills that might come in handy during my college time or later on in life. Similarly, enrolling in online courses will shed more light on how I can make the most out of the major I got into and what route I must follow to succeed.

My plan for the second half of the semester is not fully set in stone, but there is a good idea of what I plan on doing. Pretty much starting the new year, I plan on enrolling with PRCS and getting back to serving as a project supervisor for the volunteer base there. PRCS has one of the most unique and dynamic projects to involve the youth in community-based projects and inculcates in them a sense of giving back to the community, a major trait I picked up during my time as a regular volunteer a few years ago and I wish to incorporate this in the new volunteers; for I am a firm believer of not holding on to good things yourself but rather passing them on to many more people so we all can live and prosper in our desired communities. Similarly, I plan on helping some of my friends with their NGO known as Affinity. They engage in helping the community in whatever way possible, primarily focusing on the underprivileged people of the society and work for their betterment. It may seem like a trivial thing to engage in, but it is the small steps that take you to heights of success.

There are quite a few things that I would like to accomplish during my gap year, but some of those things may not happen due to the shifting patterns of the pandemic in my region. For this reason, I have planned for many things which I will have to change or maybe fit in to fall upon the precedent set by people in the past. All in all, it will hopefully be an exciting year for not only me but for everyone. But I know that I will be ready for whatever comes my way, whenever and however!