Francine Ikirezi has been named NSW Vocational Student of the Year after completing her Diploma in Business Administration.
The former refugee and Australian citizen said it had always been her plan to further her studies.
"I decided this is my goal so I have to work on my goal to achieve it."
It's been a long journey for Francine.
A survivor of the war in Rwanda, she arrived in Australia with her husband and her sister in 2010 after spending years in refugee camps in Africa.
Her sister Divine Hirwa said she shared her pride.
"She worked so hard, she is the most important person in my life, she raised me."
The girls lost their mother when Ms Hirwa was two.
Settling in rural NSW and working in aged care, Ms Ikirezi travelled more than two hours each way from the regional city of Goulburn to Sydney to complete her course at a TAFE campus.
She said her long-term goal is to open an aged care facility in Africa.
Her teacher in Business Administration Anne Cranston from TAFE said her enthusiasm was shared by the higher than average number of refugee and migrant students who study at the institute.
"Some of the stories I have heard from my students … yet they choose to come here and better their lives. It's like amazing."
It’s opportunities for learning that Ms Ikirezi wants other refugees to see, she said, and eventually give something back to the country that has given them so much.
"When you have a job you're employed, it means you are paying tax.
“When you are paying tax, you’re supporting government, which means you are helping other people who are in trouble."
