From a person who failed comes an earnest request to our youth going abroad to study
On 19th June 2025, His Majesty the King granted an audience to Bhutanese students preparing to leave for studies across the world on various scholarships. It was not merely a royal address. It was akin to a parent speaking to their children, sending them off with hope, love, and reminding them of their responsibilities. That responsibility is clear: to learn, to return, and to serve.
And to learn not just within the walls of a university, but through life itself, through observation, exposure, and deep introspection. We are not just sent abroad to earn degrees; we are entrusted to seek answers to Bhutan’s challenges, to understand how other nations solve their problems, to learn from their strengths, and most importantly, from their mistakes.
But the question that gnaws at my conscience is; do we really learn? Do we return and contribute in building our nation? And deeper still, did I?
I remember a friend who returned after his master’s program abroad. He came back full of new habits; more mindful, more hygienic. He wouldn’t even allow us to wear shoes in his apartment. But just two months later, I saw potatoes growing out of a forgotten sack in his kitchen. It made me wonder: how long does it take for us to slip back into old patterns, to forget what we learned?
This is not just his story. It is mine. Perhaps it is yours, too.
Many of us get caught in the pursuit of money. And yes, money is important. But what we forget is that we weren’t sent abroad just to secure our own futures. We were sent as ambassadors of Bhutan, entrusted to come back and build a better, stronger, wiser nation.
But too often, we take the path of least resistance. When given a chance to write a thesis or a research paper, we choose what we already know, especially topics related to Bhutan: Gross National Happiness, medicinal plants, cultural heritage and others. These are important, but they are our comfort zone. Do we truly grow when we only echo what we already understand?
Why not write about the economic rise of Singapore, or how Estonia became a digital powerhouse? Why not challenge ourselves with the unfamiliar; because only when we leave the known behind do we truly learn something worth bringing back.
Let me be honest; I may be called a hypocrite. I, too, studied abroad on a prestigious scholarship. I learned. I scored well. I received praise. But when I returned home, I did not implement even a fraction of what I had gained. Not because I didn’t want to. But because I didn’t prepare myself to bring it back, to translate it, to localize it, to live it.
That is the bitter truth.
His Majesty’s trust in our youth is not blind hope. It is built on love, belief, and vision. To fail that trust is to fail not only a King, but a father figure who sees in our youth the future of our nation.
We must do better. From a person who failed comes an earnest request to our youth going abroad to study and others; return not just with degrees, but with conviction. Not just with memories, but with knowledge. Not just with pride, but with purpose.
Because Bhutan deserves more than just well-traveled citizens.
It deserves transformed ones.
