Lyna Mohamad
Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) yesterday awarded students at the University Medal and Book Prize Awards ceremony at the Chancellor Hall.
Chong Cuang Haw, one of the only six students who received the University Silver Medal award currently works as an operator at Hengyi Industries Sdn Bhd (Hengyi) in Pulau Muara Besar.
A graduate who majored in chemical and processed engineering, Chong told the Bulletin that he feels honoured to be one of the few receiving the prestigious award.
He expressed gratitude to his family highlighting the shared challenge to get to where he is now.
“Even since I was young, my parents have motivated me to focus on my studies as we are not well-off and we struggle to pay for education. Being a permanent resident, I am not entitled to a full scholarship. So I applied for a scholarship under Hengyi instead and undertook a programme that was a collaboration between the company and UBD.”
However, the scholarship did not grant him a free education; he still had to pay tuition fees.
Seeing his parents and two brothers struggle to come up with the finances for his education motivated him to work harder, and ultimately resulted in him receiving the prestigious University Silver Medal.
He noted that working at Hengyi has allowed him to gain an on-site experience to supplement the theoretical work at UBD, such as the industrial equipment used, the health, safety and environmental guidelines and a sense of responsibility.
Nurhusina Zaida, a recipient of Level 4500 Major in Bio-Medical Science said she was grateful for the recognition.
Nurhusina at first treated her time at UBD as merely the next step after secondary school.
However during the final two years of her programme, she began to take her studies more seriously. She became focussed, finding the motivation to do well for herself rather than just going with the flow.
“Being selected as one of the award recipients has made me even more motivated now to improve my studies at the Master’s level and hopefully further on in my doctorate.”
Currently, she is pursuing her Master’s degree with plans for a career in biology.
