This week, thousands of students across Nepal are sitting for the School Leaving Certificate, an exam sometimes called the Iron Gate because without an SLC pass, further education is out of the question. Some of our UMN-supported scholarship students will be writing their papers, and we want to wish them all the best.

For students in remote areas, the SLC means a long journey on foot and by road to the nearest exam centre. These students from Mudhegaun VDC in Doti district have packed up their belongings and are off to Dhadeldhura for the test. They were farewelled from their hostel with rhododendron flowers and copious amounts of red powder smeared on their foreheads for luck.