Congratulations to Dr. Brigette Fortuin for completing and receiving her PhD in Physics from the University of the Basque Country in Spain. She managed to achieve this academic milestone all at the age of 29 and with a Cum Laude pass. This means that she is one of the top students in her class.
Born in Springbok and raised in Atlantis, Brigette did not have it easy growing up. Her family struggled financially and often found themselves having to move from one home to another. By the time she was 18, the family had already moved 15 times. Despite it all, she was inspired by her mom’s determined attitude and her dad’s constant encouragement to do her best. A determined young Brigette never allowed her circumstances to get her down and she excelled both in school and at university.
She completed both her degree and honours at the University of the Western Cape, with a first class pass, the highest honour that a student can receive. Because she did so well, she was able to complete an exchange semester at the University of Leiden in the Netherlands. She then received a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellowship, which enabled her to complete her Masters at various universities across Europe. These include the Warsaw University of Technology in Poland, the University of Toulouse Paul Sabatier in France and finally, the University of Basque Country in Spain. For her Masters degree, she received an overall pass mark of 85% as well another scholarship to complete her PhD.
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