China
2026.07.07 13:55 GMT+8

How boarding school changes one Tibetan girl's future

Updated 2026.07.07 13:55 GMT+8
CGTN

Pema Lhamo looks across the grasslands near her home before leaving for university, Sog County, Nagqu, Xizang Autonomous Region, August 20, 2025. /CGTN

Pema Lhamo herds yaks on the pasture near her home in Sog County, Nagqu, Xizang Autonomous Region, August 20, 2025. /CGTN

A relative presents Pema Lhamo with a white khata, a traditional Tibetan scarf symbolizing blessings, during a family celebration marking her admission to university, Sog County, Nagqu, Xizang Autonomous Region, August 20, 2025. /CGTN

Pema Lhamo (left) and her sister Lhazom welcome relatives at the family celebration honoring Lhamo's admission to the China University of Petroleum, Sog County, Nagqu, Xizang Autonomous Region, August 20, 2025. /CGTN

Pema Lhamo serves fruit to relatives during a family celebration held in honor of her admission to the China University of Petroleum, Sog County, Nagqu, Xizang Autonomous Region, August 20, 2025. /CGTN

Pema Lhamo (left), her sister Lhazom (right) and their mother pose for a photo on the grasslands near their home in Sog County, Nagqu, Xizang Autonomous Region, August 20, 2025. /CGTN

Pema Lhamo (second left), her sister Lhazom (second right) and their parents pose for a family photo outside their home in Sog County, Nagqu, Xizang Autonomous Region, August 20 2025. /CGTN

This is how boarding school changes a Tibetan girl's future.

Growing up in a remote herding village nearly 4,000 meters above sea level in Nagqu, China’s Xizang Autonomous Region, Pema Lhamo never imagined how far education could take her.

After leaving home for boarding school in middle school, she learned not only how to study independently, but also how to take care of herself.

Years later, she enrolled at a boarding high school in Lhasa, where students from remote high-altitude areas like Nagqu have access to better educational resources.

In 2025, she was admitted to the China University of Petroleum, one of the country's leading universities, becoming the first student from her village to achieve the same milestone.

Now, Pema Lhamo has opened a new chapter of her life, carrying with her the hopes of an entire family.

Copyright © 

RELATED STORIES