Māori-Pacific graduate finds strength and purpose at University

“I grew up mostly Sāmoan,” says Taliaoa Aidan Samasoni-Tukuitonga, who has just returned from his home island after receiving his matai (chief) title, Taliaoa.

The title belongs to a tulafale, or orator, whose role carries responsibilities within his village in Sāmoa. For Aidan, it resonates with his own journey between his Sāmoan and Māori whakapapa (gafa) which he’s come to understand more deeply at University.

From Waikato-Tainui, Afega, Apolima, Paia, Utuali'i, Saleimoa (Samoa) and Alofi (Niue), Aidan graduated from Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland, on 24 September with a Bachelor of Laws, having already completed a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Theology in 2024.

His two degrees, however, tell a story of transformation, family loss and finding his own direction.

Aidan arrived at the University in 2018 at just 17, enrolling in a conjoint Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Arts.

His family instilled in him strong values of education. His grandparents were among the early Pacific migrants to Aotearoa, establishing one of the first Ekalesia Faʻapotopotoga Kerisiano Samoa (EFKS) churches in Māngere West (EFKS Magele I Sisifo).

He says his aiga carry a legacy of education, Christian faith and service. And, like many first-generation migrant families, his grandparents had hopes for what he might become.

“Every first-generation migrant grandparent wants either a doctor, an engineer or a lawyer.

“I've always loved being an advocate. Always loved the argumentative background of it,” he says.

“I can’t wait for them to hold the paper in their hands and finally say, we did it!”

But Aidan’s path through his conjoint degree changed as his family experienced a series of losses.

“At first, due to people passing away, the last thing I wanted was for my grandparents to not see me graduate, so I decided to pause my law degree and get my arts degree first.”

That same year, Aidan unexpectedly lost his mother, Mary Tualupetu Samasoni-Tukuitonga. She was 49.

His mother carried an educational legacy, graduating from Waipapa Taumata Rau with a Master in Professional Studies (Education) in 2015. She was a teacher, and Aidan says she’s influenced what he wants to do with his education.

“I want to be able to help people who want to be movers and shakers by building their skills and sending them out into the world where they can do whatever they want to do to change the world for them and their families.

“That was the type of person my Mum was.”  

Finding his language through Waipapa Raukura Rau

Aidan also found a deeper connection to his Māoritanga at University.

When he applied for the 2026 Waipapa Raukura Rau programme, The University’s graduate programme designed to give Māori graduates workplace experience, he was stepping into a space where he was still figuring out what his Māori identity meant to him.

“I was shocked to see that I had been successful. Despite my whakapapa, I didn’t feel Māori enough,” he says.

The programme gave Aidan an opportunity to develop his confidence in kaupapa Māori spaces and to learn how his own whakapapa could inform the way he contributed.

It eventually led to a graduate role with the University's most senior Māori leader, Pro Vice-Chancellor Māori Professor Te Kawehau Hoskins.

“One day the Pro Vice-Chancellor Māori Office asked if I wanted to work with them, an opportunity I didn’t realise would be on the table, let alone available to me.

“I thought, ‘what?’,” he says. “I thought I was robbing someone else more deserving of the opportunity.”

For Aidan, the role became an important part of learning how to navigate a Māori professional environment while still finding his own place within it.

“I had zero understanding of how I'd represent them culturally, but they were very patient with me, taught me a lot, answered every question I had. They gave me the space to learn and that is something I'll always be grateful for.”

The experience also broadened Aidan's view of where his education and whakapapa could take him.

He says Waipapa Raukura Rau opened his eyes to what was possible, and to not limit himself.

“The world is your oyster,” he says.

A different kind of advocate

“When I was at law school, my first goal was to be the Chief Justice. But then I realised I would be of better service as a professor,” Aidan says.

“When I was able to be a tutor for law school, I loved it. I loved being able to help people, even in a small way, reach their dreams.”

Aidan has now been accepted into the Master of Laws at Auckland Law School, continuing his academic journey while building towards the career he now sees for himself.

Despite the loss his family has experienced, Aidan credits his faith for keeping him grounded.

“Do I wish that my loved ones were still here? Of course. Do I still know that God is good? Despite everything that I could possibly understand – absolutely.”