SAADP alumna Dikeledi Matsimela recently spoke to a hall full of Grade 9 learners at the Future of Tomorrow Expo in her home town Mokopane, Limpopo. She didn’t just rattle off facts about actuarial science; she told a story – her own story. That way, she made the subject feel less like an abstract career path, but more like a door that any curious, hardworking learner might walk through.
“Actuarial science is not only about crunching numbers. It is also about weaving together mathematics, statistics, as well as problem-solving to shape real-world decisions – decisions that ripple out to affect businesses, families, sometimes even the whole communities.” She said. She did not present it as something out of reach. Instead, she grounded it in everyday impact – the kind of work actuaries do to expand financial inclusion, to improve healthcare systems, as well as prepare societies for uncertain risks.
At one point, she paused and reminded the learners, “Every concept you master today is a building block for tomorrow’s solutions.” That line seemed to land. You could almost see the learners doing the mental maths – reframing algebra or probability not as chores. They understood mathematical abilities as tools that might one day help solve problems they hadn’t even thought of yet.
What made her talk resonate was not just the subject matter, though. Dikeledi opened up about her own beginnings. She also explained that she once sat in a classroom just like them, where she was brimming with questions that were left unanswered. She admitted there were times during her studies when she nearly gave up. There we times when the challenges felt bigger than her. But she spoke just as openly about the support she found through SAADP. She spoke about the persistence that carried her through. That honesty may have done more to inspire than any polished success story could.
Teachers later commented on how excited their learners were after the session. Some spoke about mathematics with a kind of renewed energy. Some confessed they were thinking about careers they hadn’t previously considered. Maybe that’s the real takeaway – when a role model like Dikeledi stands up and says, “I was once where you are,” suddenly the path forward feels a little less intimidating.
For SAADP, this is exactly why alumni voices matter. Success alone isn’t what inspires – it is the blend of struggle, resilience. It is triumph. When alumni like Dikeledi Matsimela share both the hurdles and the breakthroughs, they make actuarial science not just visible, but also believable for the next generation.
