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A teenager who spent nine months in the back of a lorry and smuggled inside ships to escape his war-torn country has graduated from Nottingham Trent University.

For Ezedin Osman it has been a long and arduous journey - and one that he never thought in his wildest dreams would end with him graduating with an MSc in Pharmacology.

But now the 31-year-old, of Mansfield Road, is celebrating after landing a graduate scheme at pharmaceutical company Parexel based in the city centre.

He said: "I had that dream - to pursue my education. I am so happy that I got it here in Nottingham but I will never forget where I came from."

Ezedin was forced to flee his home country of Eritrea, North East Africa, when he was 17-years-old.

Ethiopia and Eritrea were at war over a border conflict, which saw tens of thousands of people killed. This month, the leaders of both countries have signed a declaration saying that the war is over.

Ezedin said he left his home "in secret" never informing his mum, dad, three brothers, and sisters that he was about to embark on a nine-month journey to the UK.

"When you turned 18 you had to join the military and I did not want to serve the regime for life," he said.

"I fled the country and I had to do that journey alone.

"It was a hard decision to make. You can't even tell your closest family members, you have to do it in secret or you or your family could face arrest. If you get caught you face endless prison time."

Ezedin travelled from Sudan to Turkey, then from Greece to Albania before landing in France where he took a lorry to England.

The journey lasted nine-months and some of the journey was 20 hours on foot.

"I had nothing to lose," he said.

While the Home Office was considering his application in Nottingham, Ezedin volunteered as an interpreter for the British Red Cross and for a variety of non-governmental organisations.

He was granted refugee status in the UK in 2015.

"I had always wanted to pursue my higher education and I remember going past Nottingham Trent University on my way to work every day and saying to myself 'One day I will study there.'

"I chose Pharmacology as my field, because I wanted to learn more about the area and apply this knowledge to help the society here and back home," he said.

Throughout his time at university, Ezedin juggled studying and working to help him pay for his university tuition fees.

He took on various jobs including working as an interpreter for local law firms, the Home Office and NHS. He also worked night shifts at Royal Mail and accompanied people who lacked language skills, to doctor’s appointments and to job centre appointments.

Ezedin also organised social events for Eritrean refugees in Nottingham and taught them English on a weekly basis.

Ezedin is currently planning at rebuilding relations and addressing fragmentation within Eritrean refugee communities in Nottingham.