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Climbing the Grammar ladder - Sidhant Sharma '10
Tuesday, 1 June 2021
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There is something for everyone at Auckland Grammar School. Whether it be on the sports field, on stage or in the classroom, the School and its masters can teach you lifelong lessons and discipline in order to achieve your best, something that Sidhant Sharma '10 is grateful for. "Auckland Grammar gave me the discipline in life which I was missing. When I started, I did not take anything seriously. I used to put in my minimal effort because I thought I wasn't smart enough to achieve something great. What the School taught me is to give in my 100%, day in and day out." When Sidhant arrived at Grammar in Form 3, he started off in 3M. While other students would be disappointed about being in a lower-streamed class, Sidhant was anything but. "I did not work hard when I started at Grammar, so there was no reason for me to be disappointed. What I did see was many of my peers in classes above me working hard, so I thought to myself, why don't I also try as hard as them?" In his own words, Sidhant "unlocked his full potential" and started applying himself academically, so much so that by the time he reached Form 6, he had jumped an incredible 10 classes to end up in 6C. "As time progressed I got better and better at working hard. Grammar truly made me learn to work hard on my goals and give my best effort to everything." Sidhant left Grammar at the end of Form 6 and moved to Ontario, Canada to finish his secondary schooling. After graduating, Sidhant went to the University of Waterloo to study Computer Engineering, where he graduated with a Dean's List Honours Distinction (meaning he was one of the top 10 students in his class in the university). In 2019, he moved to the United States for an internship position at Facebook, arguably one of the biggest social media networks in the world. Founded in 2004, it is considered one of the 'Big Five' infotech companies in the United States, alongside Google, Apple, Microsoft and Amazon. Sidhant is now employed full-time at their Californian headquarters as a Software Engineer, where he develops privacy features for Facebook and Instagram. Due to current COVID-19 restrictions, Sidhant - like many of his colleagues - is having to work remotely from home, so face-to-face interactions are limited. Sidhant is proud to call himself an Auckland Grammar Old Boy. "I think there is a great amount of pride in knowing that you went to a high school that gave you so many opportunities. You can excel academically, in sports, in music, on the stage, wherever you like!" His advice to other students is simple - what does your best look like? "It is great to be in a higher class, but life does not end if you are not in an A class. The question you should be asking yourself is are you giving your best? If the answer is yes, there is nothing else you should be worried about. If you keep working hard, you will achieve the goals you want in life." |