Can't say I read all of this (wow you really went to town with your story didn't you...), but well done man, seems like you put a lot of effort in the end and I'm glad to see it pay off! Working hard and working smart (e.g. approaching students instead of busy lecturers like you say in your post) are probably the 2 most important qualities you need to be successful in life.
How did you manage to keep yourself motivated for such an extended period of time? I struggle with this a lot. I mean, when push to comes to shove, I get in the zone and work extremely hard, but it's pretty difficult to work consistently hard, no? I don't mean in terms of attending lecturers/classes, I think that's easy, every school children does this. I mean working independently.