At age 15, Malala Yousafzai was shot in the head by the Taliban for her advocacy work as a young blogger fighting for women’s rights in Pakistan. Five years later, the youngest-ever winner of the Nobel Peace Prize will attend the prestigious Oxford University in England, where she will study philosophy, politics and economics (or PPE) — a concentration The Guardian dubs “the Oxford degree that runs Britain.” Yousafzai revealed the good news on Twitter Thursday morning. “So excited to go to Oxford,” she wrote. “Well done to all A-level students – the hardest year. Best wishes for life ahead!”
So excited to go to Oxford!! Well done to all A-level students – the hardest year. Best wishes for life ahead! pic.twitter.com/miIwK6fNSf
— Malala Yousafzai (@Malala) August 17, 2017
The New York Times and countless other news outlets quickly picked up the news as it spread across the Atlantic Ocean. As wonderful as Yousafzai’s Oxford acceptance is, however, it wasn’t entirely unexpected. As the Times notes, the United Nations’ youngest Messenger of Peace recipient reportedly “received a conditional offer from Oxford’s Lady Margaret Hall, contingent on her exam results.” Judging by the young woman’s excitement, it seems she will definitely be accepting the Oxford college’s invitation — an especially notable treat, since Pakistan’s first female prime minister, Benazir Bhutto studied there in the 1970s.
Aside from her international renown, Yousafzai has also become a prominent public figure in the United States. Between Davis Guggenheim’s 2015 documentary He Named Me Malala, Yousafzai’s many television appearances here, and her recent condemnation of President Donald Trump’s Muslim ban, it’s no wonder she’s so well known.
(Via New York Times)