McBrown says she begged for jobs without a certificate

Ghanaian actress and host of Onua Show Time, Nana Ama McBrown is undoubtedly one of the most admired personalities on screen today, yet her path has been far from typical—and she’s open about it.

During an appearance on TV3’s New Day with Berla Mundi, McBrown shared how she had to beg for jobs despite lacking formal academic credentials.

“I told him, ‘Boss, hire me. I don’t have a certificate.’ And that’s the truth. Do I have a certificate?” she inquired, glancing at Berla.

“You possess an SS certificate, a WASSCE certificate,” Berla replied.

“I didn’t have an SS certificate,” McBrown clarified. “I only had a JHS. I never attended secondary school.”

She disclosed that she had begun her secondary education but had to drop out early due to unpaid tuition fees. “I stopped attending because I was in debt from the first term, second term, and almost into third term. I had to quit.”

The pressure from her family and society was overwhelming. “When I returned home, everyone would ask, ‘Hey, why aren’t you in school?’ So I enrolled myself in a school—College of Business Studies,” she added.

Interestingly, she confessed that she didn’t sign up for the academic side of things. “I was attending the school, Bella, fully aware that I wouldn’t need that certificate for anything,” McBrown confessed. “But people kept asking, and I felt ashamed.”

Through determination, talent, and perseverance, McBrown turned her lack of academic qualifications into a career filled with achievements, demonstrating that a piece of paper isn’t the sole route to finding one’s purpose.