Lovestruck couples who survived college together, graduate hand in hand

The auditorium buzzed with excitement as graduates donned their caps and gowns, cameras flashing as proud families captured the moment. Among the sea of smiling faces were man and wife, Fan and Xin Yang, standing side by side, holding their baby in their arms. It wasn’t just a graduation ceremony — it was a celebration of their journey together.

“We never planned for this to happen,” Xin told Khaleej Times. “When I joined the University of Wollongong in Dubai for my MBA in January 2021, my husband Fan had already started his course a year earlier. So, we thought our graduations would be at completely different times.” But fate had other plans.

Fan recalled how it all began. “I joined the university in 2020 to study financial management and MBA. At the time, Xin was working as an accountant for an airline company, and flights had been suspended due to the pandemic. She was at home and I encouraged her to apply as well. I told her, ‘This is the perfect time to pursue your degree.’”

Xin enrolled in an MBA programme but the journey wasn’t easy. “I had to learn English from scratch,” she said. “My English was very poor at the beginning, and I struggled to understand the lectures. Fan pushed me to keep going. He would say, ‘Watch YouTube videos, practise, and don’t give up.’ He’s always been my biggest supporter.”

The couple’s dream of studying together became a reality. They spent countless hours in the library, pouring over their coursework.

Life threw them a curve ball in 2022 when Xin discovered she was pregnant. “At first, it was a shock,” Fan admitted. “We were both juggling work and studies, and now we had a baby on the way.” Xin took a one-term gap during her winter semester to focus on her pregnancy. Their baby was born in June 2023, adding another layer of joy — and responsibility — to their lives.