04. July 2018

UWC alumnus publishes book about his life as a refugee

Alumnus John Michael Koffi (2015-17) attended UWC Robert Bosch College as a student of the second generation. A refugee since childhood, John Michael was on the move for a big part of his life: because his family belonged to an ethnic minority, they had to flee from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, first to Malawi, then to Swasiland. Eager to learn and interested in education from the get-go, John Michael attended school in the refugee camp and organized social and sports events for his fellow peers. Because of his engagement, he met teachers from the United World College in Swasiland, and applied to be accepted to UWC in Freiburg, which he attended on a full scholarship. During his time as a student of the College, he worked on a novel about his experiences as a refugee, which he recently published. In last week’s issue of the local newspaper Badische Zeitung, he spoke with a journalist about the book called “Refuge-e: The Journey Much Desired”, sharing also his initial motivation for writing this autobiography: “Entering Germany was not easy, either. Bureaucracy and complicated immigration laws make this quite hard for refugees”. By talking about his own experiences, John Michael was hoping to convey to readers how some refugees feel, which problems and obstacles many are faced with. For all Freiburg locals, the book is available at Rombach – and otherwise can be found with many online retailers. Visit John Michael’s Page for more information about his journey and future books to be published.

John Michael Koffi hat ein Buch über sein bisheriges Leben geschrieben (veröffentlicht am Di, 26. Juni 2018 auf badische-zeitung.de)

NEWS

08. July 2025
Congratulations on your IB results, Class of 2025!

A letter by our Rector Helen White after the International Baccalaureate released the 2025 IB results Dear 10th Generation, On Sunday, you received your final IB grades. For most of you, your overall result aligned closely with your triangle of …

Read more
07. July 2025
Come to our Jazz Picnic on Monday, July 14th!

The Jazz Picnic will take place on Monday, July 14th – we will move it to the Auditorium in case of rain. Fine outdoor tunes: The annual jazz picnic presented by the concert series ‘Kultur in der kartause’ is coming …

Read more

DATES

Key dates for the current school year 2024/2025

Here you can download the most important key data and dates for the school year 2024/2025.

Calendar 2024 2025 Final

Key dates for the upcoming school year 2025/2026

Here you can download the most important key data and dates for the school year 2025/2026.

RBC Key Dates 2025 2026 Final