Jamilah Hepburn '21 Recruiting Profile

My name is Jamilah Hepburn, and I am 17 years old. I was born in Brooklyn, NY but with dual citizenship, I live in The Bahamas. I am currently a student at AESA Prep International School’s online school program, Class of 2021. I currently have a GPA of 3.90 and I have kept 3.30 and above overall throughout highschool. I swim competitively here in The Bahamas and train with Mako Aquatics every day of the week from 5 to 7 pm, two mornings of the week from 6 to 7 am, and on weekends from 7 to 9 am. I also do land training twice a week from 6 to 7 am. My best events are the 50, 100, and 200 breaststroke, although I do swim 50 and 100 free as well. I was first selected to be a part of the national team in 2016 and I have competed for the team for 4 consecutive years, 2020 would have made the 5th year if not for the outbreak of COVID-19. I am currently number one for the 50 and 100 breaststroke and number two in the 200 breaststroke in the country for the 15-17 age group. I have competed at various international competitions such as Carifta, CISC, CCCAN, and UANA as well as the Bahamas National Championships.

I started swimming when I was 8 years old, I had recently gotten surgery on my left leg and needed physical therapy to be able to walk properly again. After a long summer of rehab, I fell in love with it and told my mother that swimming was the sport that I wanted to do. Now, 9 years later I am still determined to achieve my goal of going to the Olympics and winning a medal.

I am a very driven person, and I find myself to be a very fast learner. In university, I want to study Aerospace Engineering and/or Astrophysics. From a very young age, I was always fascinated with the way things moved and how things like airplanes and rockets worked. In the 5th grade, wanting to learn more about movement, I did a science project focusing on the transfer of Kinetic energy into Mechanical energy and won the Science Fair. I know Engineering is a difficult field of study added to keeping up with my training, but I consider myself very responsible and ready for the challenge. I am very excited to be matched with a school that is right for me both athletically and academically.