— Queen’s College standout Adelia Seckle sets sights on becoming a neurosurgeon

THE results of Guyanese students who recently completed the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations have once again left many astonished, impressed, concerned and overjoyed at the achievements of individual students.
Each result varied, and each student had a reason for writing as few or as many subjects as they did. Adelia Seckle, one of the nation’s outstanding CSEC performers from Queen’s College, exemplifies this.
Speaking exclusively with the Sunday Chronicle, Seckle, who was captain of the Queen’s College Steel Orchestra and is part of the Parkside Steel Orchestra, revealed that she wrote a staggering 21 subjects, securing 13 Grade Ones, seven Grade Twos and one Grade Three.
Her goal? To become a neurosurgeon.
In addition to being a passionate music lover, Seckle is an avid fitness enthusiast who prioritises her academics.
She shared that her dream has always been to become a doctor, specifically a neurosurgeon.
“I didn’t want to limit myself to just one path, because, like, you know, times are evolving, and becoming a doctor is about more than just biology. There’s a lot of technological advancements that require you to be up to date; and, even though my goal is to work in medicine, I wanted to study business so I could, like, eventually manage clinics and understand the administrative parts of healthcare,” Seckle said.
Along with science and business subjects, the young woman said she chose to take on subjects in the humanities as well, believing that a deeper connection to her roots will help her develop a sense of identity and ultimately help her become a more “well-rounded doctor.”
The teen stated that with CSEC over, her next step is to pursue the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE), which she will complete over two years. Following CAPE, she plans to move to the United States to begin her tertiary education. After that, her goal is to return to Guyana, where she intends to undertake some pro bono work before doing anything else.
Taking a step back to reflect on her preparation for the examinations, Seckle admitted that it was easy to get lost in the subjects.
“When you actually sit down and think about the fact that: I’m writing 21 subjects, I can’t write 21 subjects and fail them, you try to push yourself, but it’s very easy to get lost in academics. That’s why I’m really grateful that I had my extracurriculars, I had my steelpan,” she said.
Seckle revealed that one thing she knew about writing a staggering 21 subjects at CSEC was that burnout was the biggest risk she could face. According to the future neurosurgeon, she participated in a number of non-academic activities and took as many study breaks as needed, all in an effort to prevent this.
“So, I just took a lot of breaks—I could not have even written the subjects if I didn’t have my extracurriculars and my study breaks. Because a lot of my colleagues wrote similar amounts of subjects, but they did not have the extracurriculars that I have. So, a lot of them, burnt out, didn’t attend their exams. It’s a lot to take on,” she said.
Alongside this, Seckle said she had a good support system. She thanked God and her parents, who continuously encouraged her and supported her choice to write the number of subjects she did, as well as her friends and teachers.
Continuing, Adelia said that no student simply decides to write 21 subjects. Explaining the process, she said once a student chooses to write more than 15 subjects, their teachers have to sign them up for that.
“And they will not sign you off, knowing that you don’t have the capabilities to excel at these 21 subjects,” she added.
Seckle went further to say that there are a lot of discussions about Guyanese students writing 21 subjects or more, with many questioning whether all of those subjects are necessary. She expressed that for her, and presumably many others, these subjects are anything but unnecessary.
“When you look at it, in the Caribbean, we are very small compared to the rest of the world. When they see 21 subjects as excessive, when I go and I apply to Oxford or Cambridge [University], they’ll look at my 21 subjects and they’ll say, okay, she’s a high achiever, she passed her 21 subjects, she was noticed as one of the most outstanding in the Caribbean. So, it’s not to please anybody in the Caribbean,” she said.
“You cannot compare my 21 subjects to back in the days when people were writing five and eight, because CSEC, to be honest, CSEC is not the same as it was 10 years ago—everybody has their choice, everybody knows what they can and can’t handle.”
Seckle encouraged students preparing for CSEC next year to stop procrastinating and avoid last-minute preparation. She advised them to remain consistent with their work, make time for their hobbies, friends and family, and begin their School-Based Assessments (SBAs) early.