Teenager overcomes odds to secure university place

A brave and talented teenager who was recently recognised by a careers-themed initiative backed by Derby City Council has secured a place at Cambridge University.

Seventeen-year-old Tejal Paliya almost died after contracting a bacterial infection in March last year, which left her fighting for her life.

The gutsy Littleover Community School pupil – who achieved four A*s after sitting the exams in a ward side room at the Royal Derby Hospital – has now been offered a place at the prestigious Emmanuel College, Cambridge to study Chemical Engineering.

Tejal has also received an unconditional offer from the Imperial College to study the same subject and harbours dreams of following in the footsteps of her father, who is an engineer.

She said: “Ever since I can remember, I’ve wanted to be an engineer. Science has always been my favourite subject,” said Tejal, who moved to Derby from her native India after her father’s job saw the family relocate to the UK.

“When we lived in India, I attended a private school and had aspirations of studying at Cambridge. It’s the best university in the world.

“It is famous throughout India, for producing so many Nobel Prize winners. I feel very fortunate to be given the opportunity to study there.”

Tejal is still not quite back to full fitness; after spending 12 days in intensive care and 39 days in recovery, she had difficulty in moving her hands and feet and had to learn to walk again.

Staff at the Royal Derby Hospital gave her a guard of honour when, after 51 days in hospital, she was finally discharged.

She is still using aids to help her walk and, while she considers her next move, Tejal is dedicating her spare time to inspiring others, volunteering for the Enterprise for Education (E4E) scheme.

Set up in 2014 by the city council in a bid to link employers with secondary schools and students in the city, E4E – a public private sector organisation – offer mock interviews, CV workshops and mentoring.

Tejal became one of the youngest-ever volunteers when she took part in mock interviews with students at Derby Moor Community School.

She said: “E4E help the young people of Derby to prepare for the world of work and I benefitted hugely from the scheme as a pupil at The Bemrose School, where I studied my GCSEs, and also Littleover Community School.

“I was lucky enough to win an E4E award for resilience in December and I see this as my way of giving something back.”

E4E manager Arshad Iqbal said: “Tejal is a superstar, and we are absolutely delighted to have her join our team of volunteers.

“She was a natural during her first session at Derby Moor and has already agreed to take part in more mock interviews at schools across the city.

“Her story is one of incredible resilience and that is why she was recognised by E4E at our annual awards ceremony.

“We’re looking forward to having her at more of our events.”