How UTM’s valedictorian turned a bumpy start into a bold finish

When Salik Qureshi arrived from Nairobi, Kenya, to study at the University of Toronto Mississauga in 2021, he discovered he had a lot to learn.

“I had to ask, ‘What’s a GPA?,’” the economics and political science double major recalls, laughing. “I had no idea.”

In the years since, he went from feeling lost, to finding belonging and guiding others along the way. Now, the once-overwhelmed first-year is graduating as valedictorian of UTM’s Class of 2025.

If there’s one thing he’s learned, it’s that the more you give to a community, the more it gives back.

“I am so fortunate and honoured to be able to serve this campus, because through that I have met so many people who have inspired me to be my best self,” says Qureshi.

His journey, like that of many in his cohort, began under the shadow of the pandemic.

“We entered university not through lecture halls or orientation events, but through laptop screens,” he says. “Somehow, despite the distance and uncertainty, we found a connection.”

Still, lockdown took its toll. At 18, and far from his mother, aunts and siblings, his grades suffered as he struggled to adjust to a new country.

“I remember calling my family during the pandemic and saying, ‘I want to leave — it’s not what I expected,’” Qureshi says.

He drew strength from the advice of his father, who died in 2019: Always carry curiosity, to keep asking why; compassion, to remember we are all just doing our best; and courage, to try, to fail, to grow and to keep going.

So, instead of withdrawing, Qureshi leaned into connection. “Change can start with a single conversation, a single act of kindness or a single mind shifted."

By serendipity, he reunited with two high school friends at UTM who helped him settle into life on campus.

He credits his UTM professors with helping him turn his grades around in his early years and encouraging him to be “a voice for change.”

He became more involved in UTM’s community, taking on roles at the International Education Centre, Student Housing and Residence Life and the Centre for Student Engagement.

Qureshi also picked up lessons on the job.

Working part-time at Wendy’s and Simons to help pay the bills, Qureshi says customer service was a crash course in people skills he’s carried far beyond the counter.

A teaching assistant in economics, he landed internships with Royal Bank of Canada and NATO Association of Canada as part of his studies.

He’s collected a host of honours, including the International Scholar Award, U of T Student Leadership Award and UTM Student Recognition Award of Achievement.

For all of his successes over the past four years, Qureshi tells students who are just starting out to embrace the stumbles, because they shape the person you’ll become, and the people who will make it count.

“Those moments of struggle you thought you could not get over — just go through it and you’ll see there is an abundance of light at the end of the tunnel.”

As he wraps up his research with the Jackman Humanities Institute’s Scholars-in-Residence program, Qureshi is weighing whether to pursue further education or build on the professional experience he gained at UTM.

He hopes to pair his economics background with social and environmental responsibility to drive meaningful change both in Canada and in Kenya. “I want to bring a voice of strength and unity that is missing right now in the global political sphere.”

He's confident UTM’s Class of 2025 is not just ready to step into the future, but to lead it.

“Education is a profound privilege, and the world-class education we have received at UTM is no exception,” says Qureshi. “It calls on us to do more than simply absorb knowledge. It calls on us to apply it. To transform it into action.”

He hopes his valedictory address will not only inspire optimism as his classmates look to the future, but also reflect his gratitude for the experience he’s had at UTM.

“As an international student from Kenya, I never imagined that a place almost 12,000 kilometres away could feel just as warm and loving as the home I left behind,” says Qureshi.

“I think the ‘M’ in UTM stands for magic.”