Yanina Charchaflie, María Laura Gamst, and Georgina Bosio began their university studies more than 20 years ago. Together, thanks to the rEGRESAR Program, they were able to graduate.
The rEGRESAR program of the Universidad Nacional de Rosario It reached more than 200 graduates in less than three years. The initiative, designed to help students who interrupted their studies finally complete them, reached a new milestone: graduates number 199, 200, and 201 received their degrees simultaneously, starring in a story marked by friendship, perseverance, and the emotion of reuniting.
María Laura Gamst, Yanina Charchaflie, and Georgina Bosio entered the Faculty of Political Science and International Relations in 1998 to study Social Communication. “We were the first group to enter when the thesis requirement was being implemented, so nobody really knew what it would be like. It was a continuous learning process throughout our entire degree. We went through almost the entire program together,” Yanina recalled.
In 2008, for different reasons, each of them went their separate ways. Today they live in different cities: Georgina in Funes, María Laura in Rosario, and Yanina in Bolivia, where she moved for work. “Yanina and I only had our thesis left, while María Laura also had the Thesis Workshop course left, which we took almost by chance because it wasn't mandatory back then. We were so close to finishing, but that final exam kept getting postponed,” Georgina explained.
When the second call for applications to the rEGRESAR Program opened at the end of 2023, the three women felt that the time had come to settle that outstanding debt. “I didn’t know if I would be able to move forward this time, because returning to academia had been an obstacle before. But going back to Siberia to take the Thesis Workshop helped me a lot. It was like rediscovering university life, day by day, and I could see the passion that the professors put into what they do,” confessed María Laura.
Although they knew all three had signed up for the program, the surprise came when they met again at the first information session. It was as if fate had decided that the path they had started together should end the same way. “We found out there was a production thesis option that could be done in groups of three. We had no idea, because before, when we were in school, there was only the research thesis. That's when we decided we wanted to finish this stage together, so we waited until María Laura finished her last course to get started,” Yanina recalled.
It was almost like turning back time, as if that end of the nineties and the first part of the two thousand had never gone away and life was giving them a second chance to finish what they had started.
That final journey not only brought order to their thesis project but also allowed them to reconnect from their current lives, so different from those of two decades ago. “On a professional, family, and personal level, we're each in a different place. That changes everything. But we adapted, worked virtually with consistency, and managed to move forward together,” explained Yanina. Georgina added: “It was wonderful to work together again. We know each other very well, and although life took us in different directions, reuniting for this challenge was like turning back time.”
That feeling of starting over was also reflected in their final product. Under the guidance of teacher Mariela Balbazoni, they created a digital guide designed to support families in Rosario in the healthy use of technological devices in early childhood, specifically between the ages of 3 and 6. “Working remotely wasn't an obstacle. We had a very clear organization, and every meeting was truly productive,” María Laura noted.
When the big day arrived, the nerves returned, an inevitable ingredient. “It had been many years since we'd experienced something like this. I almost panicked, but it ended up being a calm experience because the jury was extremely respectful. They didn't make us feel uncomfortable at any point,” said Georgina. Yanina added, “I had to remind myself that it wasn't an exam but a presentation. That allowed me to speak confidently about a project we'd been building for over a year. I felt like I was back in my twenties.”
And so, surrounded by family and friends, they entered the Faculty of Political Science for the last time as students, almost 28 years after first setting foot in those halls, and left as graduates in social communication. And, as fate would have it, they were also the 200th graduates of the program. “We didn’t know anything until the exam was over. It was a joy because the program truly helped us so much to get our university degrees today. We still can’t believe it,” Yanina confessed.
For María Laura, that defense was much more than an academic formality. “I left university very young and came back a different person. And I left the thesis defense transformed once again. It was a moment of enormous enjoyment and profound emotional upheaval.”
The three friends left a message for those who also dream of returning and finishing what they left unfinished. “It was an enriching experience. The RETURN program is a system that really works and allows people like us to close a chapter of our lives,” said Georgina, to which María Laura added: “In my case, I wanted to show my children that important things have to be finished: you work on them, you fight your fears and insecurities. And in that process, we found immense support from the University.”
Go back to studying
The rEGRESAR Program pays special attention to those students who have left their academic journey and owe 30% of their degree and/or who are missing the final project or thesis to graduate.
Rector Franco Bartolacci visited the University City campus to congratulate the three new graduates. “Long live the UNR, which is capable of achieving such things! Long live our graduates for their effort and determination to return home and finish their studies. In part, when we talk about restoring legitimacy to public institutions, we mean working to stop building heartless and soulless ones. We want students to stop being just numbers in student files; we know that each and every one of them has a unique life story.”
She also emphasized the importance of this program for the University and the relevance of the work of everyone involved in this process. “I want to thank those who, through their example, send us all a message because we know that the decision to return is not easy, and that speaks to their confidence in this institution,” she highlighted, adding: “Wonderful things are happening at the University; the expansion of UNR’s academic offerings is unprecedented, and we are doing it in a truly adverse context.”
Furthermore, he reflected on what it means to launch this unprecedented initiative for the third consecutive year. “I believe this implies two things: demonstrating what an institution like ours should be, and which, unfortunately, we often fall short of, but also a true declaration of principles. Often, it is the bureaucratic structures themselves that conspire against and prevent the institution from achieving its objective; therefore, all these stories should serve as a message for our community and for all those who are still uncertain.”
The rEGRESAR Program already has three calls for applications and continues to position itself as a differentiating mechanism that allows hundreds of people to return to university life to achieve that long-awaited degree.
Distinction for those returning in 2025
The Academic and Learning Area of the Universidad Nacional de Rosario It recognized the last 130 graduates who completed their studies within the framework of the rEGRESAR Program, all corresponding to the year 2025. These are people who, for different reasons, had interrupted their university career and who, thanks to this institutional mechanism, were able to resume and complete their academic training.
It should be noted that although María Laura Gamst, Yanina Charchaflie and Georgina Bosio were the 199th, 200th and 201st graduates of the program, after them 15 more people received their degrees during the last week in different faculties of the UNR, increasing the number to 216.
At the same event, certificates of recognition were given to the tutors who accompanied the course and graduation processes, highlighting the key role they play in sustaining and strengthening these educational paths.
The ceremony took place Friday afternoon at the Faculty of Dentistry and was marked by a deeply emotional and celebratory atmosphere. Family, friends, faculty, and university authorities accompanied the new graduates, who received a symbolic award for having earned their university degrees, crowning a journey marked by effort, perseverance, and commitment.
During the meeting, the UNR authorities especially congratulated the graduates for taking on this challenge, reaffirming the importance of public policies that promote inclusion, the right to higher education and equal opportunities.
Journalist: Gonzalo J. García / Photography: Communications Department of the Faculty of Political Science.