They say education is the key to success. From early childhood education to adult education, increasing your knowledge can be the key to success no matter your age or background.
For Ghanaian engineer and innovator, Professor Joseph Yaw Yeboah, obtaining one degree was not enough, so he went on to obtain three more degrees in four years from the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States.
Professor Yeboah, a native of Yonso in the Ashanti region, was one of 1,259 graduates who received degrees at MIT’s 109th graduation ceremony in June 1975.
During his four years at MIT, Yeboah had the impressive feat of earning four degrees: bachelor’s degrees in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Business Administration, and a Master’s in Chemical Engineering Practice.
At the time Yeboah achieved this feat, there was no record of anyone having attained multiple academic degrees.
According to blackhistory.mit.edu, “it goes without saying that his accomplishments are unprecedented.”
When asked about his future during an interview with MIT in 1975, Yeboah gave a surprising answer: As if four degrees weren’t enough for Yeboah, he had just begun studying for his doctorate the day after his graduation ceremony.
“I started working on my PhD the day after my graduation,” he told blackhistory.mit.edu.
Yeboah is one of eight children born to illiterate parents. Despite coming from a poor background, he says a series of fortunate events influenced his upbringing. The first was a time when Ghana introduced a merit-based system of free primary and secondary education.
“My parents were illiterate and poor but I still managed to go to school and did well enough to get into secondary school and win a scholarship to Government Secondary Technical School in Takoradi.
“This is a secondary school where you also learn technical subjects like woodwork, metalwork and drawing. I was also fortunate enough to do well in my O-Level GCE exams and get accepted into a two-year sixth form programme.
“After completing the first year of a two-year program that usually leads to college, I applied to a few universities in the US and was lucky enough to get a scholarship from MIT to enroll in their freshman class. The interesting thing is, to apply for the SAT, I went to the library and looked up a bunch of US professors. I just wrote them letters and begged them to pay for my SAT application. I was very lucky,” he said.
Yeboah said that after she sent the letter, Caltech professor Harry Gray helped her pay the SAT application fee.
“Professor Harry Gray from Caltech did just that. He paid my exam fees. Luckily, I received the details from Ghana that the fees had been paid and all I had to do was turn up and take the exam. It was a really, really, really kind thing,” he recalled.
Yeboah, who took the exams in Ghana, scored 800 points in the SAT academic and mathematics tests.
He said: “Obviously, English is not my first language so I think I scored around 400-500 in language. But maths, physics and chemistry were all around 800.”
“It simply means that I got perfect scores in SAT Mathematics and Achievements (now SAT II) in Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry. I studied hard. The education system in Ghana was very good. We had a very good system. For A-levels, I took Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics. Of those three subjects, I was very good. I focused on those subjects.
“Choosing a field was very difficult for me. I really liked physics, chemistry and mathematics so I didn’t know what to do or what specialization to pursue. I heard that chemical engineering is a combination of physics, chemistry and mathematics. In fact, that’s why I chose chemical engineering,” Yeboah said.
After earning his PhD in chemical engineering from MIT in 1979, Yeboah said he received job offers from several companies, including General Electric, Upjohn, and Stauffer Chemical.
He chose to work in one of four divisions responsible for process development for General Electric’s polymer and silicone products.
“During my five years at GE, the group received several patents for inventions,” he revealed.
Professor Joseph Yaw Yeboah, who has had a distinguished career across the engineering industry, has four children with his wife.
“I have four adult children and they grew up without any undue pressure from home about my career. They didn’t know much about my achievements when they were growing up because we never talked about them at home. I also had my diplomas and awards hanging in my office.”
“I strongly encouraged them to go to a top research university for their graduate education and it seems our approach worked. They have all grown up and are on their own unique paths. Two are doctors, one is a lawyer and one is an engineer. My wife and I are very proud of them and what they have achieved so far,” he concluded.
[Image Credit: MIT]
[Image Credit: MIT]
Additional files from blackhistory.mit.edu
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