Temasek Poly grad excels despite rare condition limiting her mobility

She wins award for academic achievements, perseverance

- Gabrielle Chan

Ms Raphaella Gautama was only 16 when she was diagnosed with a rare condition that restricted her mobility, confining her to a wheelchair and resulting in frequent hospital visits.

It was 2020, the year that Ms Gautama described as the lowest point in her life because she had to deal with her diagnosis, her father dying from a stroke and her O-level examinations.

The Temasek Polytechnic (TP) student, now 20, has a rare condition called fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva, which makes muscles and tissues turn into bone, causing stiffness and limiting her movements.

"That year, everything just happened at the same time, and there was no break in the middle," she told The Straits Times on May 2, describing the circumstances that she and her family had to go through.

Ms Gautama is one of 5,315 students in 36 full-time and 48 parttime courses graduating from TP in 2024.

Despite being in and out of the hospital, sometimes having to skip lectures or tutorials, she refused to let her situation define her. Instead, she learnt how to advocate for herself at home and in school, surrounded by her family, friends and lecturers who supported her.