Young Bermudian men should take advantage of the opportunities offered to them on the Island - rather than choosing to sit on a wall.

This is according to two star insurance students, 20-year-old Yannis Williams and 21-year-old Rajesh Pachai, who have just graduated from their courses in Canada and the United States.

"There is so much opportunity in Bermuda," said Yannis, who has been studying insurance at St. John's University in New York and is about to take up a job as an assistant underwriter at XL Capital. "It is such a shame that people make the other choice."

When asked what that other choice was, he said not making something of themselves and choosing to sit on the wall

Rajesh, who went to Canada to study actuarial science and will be joining ACE Ltd. at the end of the summer, said that is was a shame that more people did not decide to do better.

"As Bermudians we have such huge advantages," he said. "People make a lot of money at insurance companies, and people still choose to not take advantage. All you have to do is apply yourself and try. I really got a good deal from Bermuda and others can too."

Both Yannis and Rajesh received scholarships from Bermuda Foundation for Insurance Studies, which helped take them abroad to study. And they are both strong advocates of others following in their footsteps - and studying to improve themselves. And they both say it does not have to cost a fortune.

Yannis did his first two years at Bermuda College, which he said cost him $2,750 a year. At this time he lived at home and had to depend on his family to help him get through.

"It was hard going, but it was worth it," he said. He decided to go abroad to study insurance - and picked St. John's University with its renowned college of insurance.

He applied and got a two-year grant from BFIS for $15,000 a year towards his college fees of $35,000 a year, plus applied for other grants that helped him out and his family again came up to the plate to help.

Now after graduating from school, he is raring to go to get into the workforce - and earn some money. "I cannot say enough how worth it it all is," said Yannis, who is a graduate of Berkeley Institute. "The opportunities are there - you just have to seize them."

Rajesh said that BFIS gave not only him and Yannis all the support they ever needed, but also tried to help people who were not even scholarship recipients.

"They have this huge database of information, and if you ask, you can have access to it. I have found that they have given me great support, not just financially, but moral support as well," added Rajesh.

Rajesh said he went to study actuarial science in Canada, where tuition was cheaper - $5,000 a year. But he added that there was nowhere in Canada that one could study insurance. He said that not only did BFIS help with a $15,000 scholarship, but also helped get him internships and find the right people for them as mentors.

"BFIS really helped me," he said. "We now know everybody in the insurance industry - the people who will one day be the chief executive officers and in the top posts. And we have had the chance to meet them and learn from them. This is not just some scholarship that is dolled out and you are on your own. They would do anything for all of us," said Rajesh.

Yannis added: "When we were away, we met so many people trying very hard to get into insurance companies.

"The competition out there is very fierce. That is why we realise how lucky we, and all young Bermudians are to have this kind of opportunity here on our doorstep."