10 Lessons from Being a Final Year Student

And so I'm really this close to crossing one more thing on my life to-do list: 

Graduate with a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering. 

My exams ended yesterday evening. I could have gone out of the hall earlier but I remained to bask in the moment of the my last (insyallah) paper in my undergraduate studies. It was surreal. 5 years in UTP and all the time I doubted if I could ever finish it. I joined the foundation programme in May 2010, a wide eyed young girl from Seremban with social anxieties and low self confidence. Alhamdulillah, I think it's safe to say I have matured a lot these past 5 years into a person I am very comfortable being. 

The past 5 years have been such an eye opener, as much as college experiences go. But it is true what they say, enjoy every moment of final year in college. There's nothing like it. Just like my previous reflection post for internship, I want to do the same for my final year experience. So, here goes! 

This is in no particular order by the way lol. 

1. It's never too late to get to know your batch mates 

Final year may be a hectic time, but I think if you make the time for it, you'd be surprise by how much you can get to know someone. I started hanging out more often with a group of friends I rarely go out with, and I was surprised by how well we got along. 

It's okay to go out your comfort zone sometimes, and discover something new. 

2. Time Management is the key to EVERYTHING

You will endless endless banter from seniors how final year is stressful and the pressure is too high to handle. My advice to deal with all of these is simple: plan your time well and always put aside some ME-TIME to avoid stressing out too much. 

3. Final Year is really based on your LUCK 

Despite #2, I found out final year really is a 'luck' kind of thing. Depending on who you have as your project supervisors and teammates, it really can make or break your final year experience. But always try to see the bright side of things, and always remember "This too shall pass..."

4. Being helpful takes you far

You'll face 8-months long (or any long term ones) project with your batch mates and I have seen it get the worse of them. Avoid fights, talk it out and always help each other. Cause everyone's going through a battle here.

5. Understanding people takes you even further

Knowing when and how to understand people helped me a lot in trying to create that tension-free atmosphere in my group and individual projects. It's tough but I think this is the most crucial part of interacting with people. Be empathetic or at least try to believe that everyone's doing the best to their capabilities. 

6. Never forget the people who made you who you are today

This includes your family and friends. They supported you and made you feel at home. And thank those that taught you a hard lesson about friendship (betrayal, distrust, hatred, etc). Because they made you a better person today. 

7. Call your parents everyday (or every other day)

Because never, ever forget folks at home. They pray for your success and are always waiting for your call to just update them about your life. Remember, the reason you made it this far is most probably because of your parents' prayers for you :) 

8. Reading books really help in de-stressing your life (for me anyway)

It's not a secret I love reading. I carry a book everywhere in case I find myself stranded having to wait for someone. If you don't read, find something that makes you relaxed at the end of the day! It could be sports, music, arts, design, DoTA, and anything really. 

9. Watching Big Bang Theory is a great way to bond with friends

Because it's not everyday you find a best friend in a Sheldon-lookalike. Sharing common interests really is a great way to seal a friendship. It's been an amazing journey to meet a lot of book readers and science geeks like myself. 

10. Always smile even when no one's watching...

Because at the end of the day, you're here and doing something with your life. Smiling just means you're grateful for at least one small thing. 

Thinking for the Future

Ahhh midnight thoughts have brought me here. I needed to write about how I've been thinking about my future for the past 6 months or so.

Graduating is some scary business. There are so many opportunities out there: 

• Get a job
• Take professional classes (safety, chemical, etc)
• Further studies
• Get married (yeah, not really, not yet more like. LOL)

Anyway, I've been seriously considering Option #3, furthering my studies. It's always been this hidden intention to continue my studies in the UK. And well, last semester I started gathering information on prospective institutions that would accept little ol' me and what opportunities lay ahead. 

It wasn't easy at first, deciding to take the first step in researching about Master's degrees in engineering. But I think what hooked me was the feeling I felt when I opened up the programme's webpage. Reading the modules and courses offered made my blood rush and I felt excited. Scared of course, but so so excited. Sure the fees kind of pulled me hard off Cloud 9, but nonetheless I made up my mind as I browsed through the entry requirements. And I found myself thinking:

"I'm actually eligible for all of these programmes, what's the harm in trying to go on this adventure?"

 And I started researching more and more, seeking blogs of students in the UK or having recently graduated from there. I met with my lecturers and they gave me valuable feedback and support on my potential. I've never thought myself to be smart enough for postgraduate studies, but I realised that if I don't try to even plan for this journey, I'll ALWAYS keep looking back and wonder what COULD HAVE happened if I did take those difficult first steps. 

I realised soon enough that it's not gonna be easy going on this journey alone when your other friends are preparing for working life. But I want to challenge myself. I no longer just want to go overseas to get the experience, I need that experience because there are opportunities there for me to improve my technical skills and understand the complex human beings around me. I intend to apply for good jobs in the future insyAllah, but in order for me to present myself well, I know attempting this quest will make me a better person and a better candidate in anyone's organization. 

So here's to this scary quest in challenging myself to go where I'll be all by myself and far away from m family *trembles*. Here's to many more adventures where I end up in places I've never thought little ol' me could go to. 

Hello 2015

I remember last writing a post in August 2014, just finishing an incredible internship experience and making a memorable stamp in my experience growing up. And here I'm sitting attempting to write another decent post 6 months later, two thirds done with my final year. I'm hoping I'll be able to graduate in May 2015, insyAllah and move on to bigger and larger dreams in gaining knowledge. 

I know what with the oil crisis the nation is facing, my peers and I are having doubts and uncertainties in our future. I for one believe that rezeki comes when time is the most suitable for it. It's been a hectic 6 months and I'm enjoying each step closer to closing this undergraduate chapter. I remember starting out college 5 years ago, wondering if I'll ever make it to the finishing line. And now I am merely less than 3 months away. 

I had the pleasure of joining a chemical engineering bootcamp a few weeks ago which aimed to prepare first year undergraduates in tackling the challenging engineering course. And I really had a good time interacting with juniors and sharing my experience. I never had a mentor growing up, and I had to do a lot of figuring out by myself. I've had many a senior who was more than willing to give me advice in passing, and I wanted to contribute more towards the youngsters. The bootcamp allowed me to see how we always have that hope mixed in with fear when starting something new.

And nearing the end, I have that same hope and fear feelings, of what's to come. 

I hope the future is challenging but endurable. 

I hope it is challenging and a humble experience.

I hope it is filled with beautiful and kind souls.

I hope I am smart enough to recognize such souls and not let them pass me by. 

I believe the choices we face after graduation is endless. Learning never shouldn't stop after a scroll has been obtained. Jobs shouldn't be applied just because. And money should never be the main priority in satisfying our desires. 

Here's to wishing the next 16 weeks will fly by and I have the strength to go through whatever God puts in my way. :) 

8 Major Life Lessons in 8 Months

8 months in HSSE, SRCPD has changed my life. It made me more matured and independent, and most of all: to believe in myself.

I think I could sum up my internship cum life experience in a short post. I hope to reflect here in the future and always be reminded of how blessed I've been :)

Lesson #1: Go Beyond Your Comfort Zone

Or else, you'll never venture beyond your normal cliques and meet even more amazing people. You'll never venture into unknown disciplines of work and realise it suits you. 

The world is full of genuinely nice people who care about you. They're not just filled with the ones who hurt us...they're filled with the ones who teach us how to eat lots of durian and still be able to play futsal like a champ afterwards.

Lesson #2: Learn How to Listen, then Talk...

And I mean, really observe and listen to what people are and are not saying. Most of the time, what makes me engage with people much easier, is to pay attention to their body language, facial expression and general aura towards a situation. 

Always spend time to understand where people are coming from, and how they might feel behind it all...

Lesson #3: Never Be Afraid to Laugh a Little....

Life's too short to be too stressed out about everything. Always work hard, make sure you play harder and indefinitely laugh the loudest....

Lesson #4: Embrace Conflicts

They're good! They make you more mature, they make you reflect on your imperfections, and they make you improve. You might think you're not much of a value, but in the end...it's those conflicts with people that make you believe in your own capabilities (and my ability to tame cats).

Lesson #5: Expose Yourself to All Kinds of Work

And I mean all kinds of work. Technical, legal procedures, administration, event management... there are so many knowledge out there for you to grab. Why degrade one from another? One might give you amazing soft skills while the other just makes you look more of a nerd. 

Balance between the two. 

Lesson #6: Treat Others Like How You'd Treat Your Family

 I think I'm lucky in this aspect in the sense that we treat everyone like family here in SRC. People in the 20's age group are my siblings, between 30's & 40's are like my older brothers, and above 50's are like my parents. It's a good base to give everyone the respect they deserve. And hey, some might treat you just like a trainee...but it really shouldn't bother you since you're the brat of the family.

Lesson #7: Have an Outside Life, with Anyone. 

Just like Lesson #3, never get too stressed about anything. Even when you're on a horizontal streak while playing bowling. Always remember, to have fun and enjoy life.

Lesson #8: Carrot Cakes with Cream Cheese Frosting are Always a Good Way to End an Internship

Seriously, what's not to like? It's a vegetable dessert that's sweet and sinful :D

It's been an amazing 8 months, and I think I got more than what I bargained for :)

Wrapping Up Week 21

Well, life certainly has kept me busy. We moved into a new, beautiful environment, I started my Student Industrial Project (SIP), on the last few weeks left of my internship.

I must say, the past few months have taught me so much about creating an impression on people. From being just a trainee, to someone not afraid of asking questions and even suggesting some ideas. It taught me valuable social skills, and for an introvert, that is pretty priceless. I've become more engaging with others, and I can hold longer conversations than I used to. And I am pretty happy about this improvement in myself.

I realise that your experience in your internship depends on how you treat it. A staff once told me to treat it with respect and like a real working experience. To always be open minded, and prepared to be thrown into the ocean for my limits to be tested. Can't say I enjoyed being tested more than the other trainees in my department, but when I assess the person I am now, and the person I was at the early of the year...I am grateful for the late nights, stress and fatigue experienced. Because I truly felt at place in Shell working alongside the others. 

Shell PD is such a good platform to learn, and with so much current issues going on, there's always so much at stake and everyone is being more aware of their decisions. This really helps you in thinking critically and predicting all the outcomes that could either jeopardize or help your position. You can't help but to want to be involved and contribute as much as possible.

I think what drives me to work hard is I wanted respect. And I knew that respect is hard to earn or win. You have to prove that you're not here temporarily (even if that is true) but that you're here to stay and give it your all. And as much as I aspire to be a 'giver', not a taker, I know that is solely up to the rest of the staff to judge me. I can only try my best to perform and volunteer whatever services is needed.

You definitely can't be picky when put in a situation. Like someone told me, Allah has given you the best opportunity to take from it positively. It's up to you to determine what would be the best way to learn from it. 

You can't just wait for people to give you something. You gotta ask for the opportunity and prove you can handle it all. But it does take time and it does take perseverance. What makes me motivated is to banish the expectations some might have towards typical girls like me. It's common to find people who wants to see you fall or hate your job, so they don't feel bad about theirs. And they hate it when they themselves feel demotivated about their work.

Well, tough luck. Cause I'm here to tell you that you won't bring me down so easily...

Looking forward to wrapping up my last 8 weeks here :)

Enjoying 3 Weeks of Freedom

While waiting for my SIT results, I have 3 weeks left to enjoy being a trainee without jotting down anything in my logbook. This practically equals Heaven for us trainees.

Been busy on my current QHSSE Project: Safety Induction Video. We're revising it in conjunction with the new arrival of SRCPD's Managing Director. We decided to reshoot most of the scenes since the last one was probably back in the early 2000's.

It was such a good experience, being able to learn not only about the plant, but videoshoot it as well to give a glimpse of SRCPD to visitors. Usually they hire external professionals to do the job, but due to some financial issues SRCPD has been facing for the past few years, they decided to thrust the project to a few newbies. 

I love meeting people from Security, LOBP, PDI, Operations, Contractors, etc to make this video full of a variety of shots. I even got to take awkward selfies along the way: 

Yeah, just passing the time.

Safety trainees ;)

Even though this project has been consuming my life for the past couple of months, we're this close to finishing it by end of May, Insyallah. 

Top: work station at home

Bottom: work station at SRC.

No difference huh? LOL. But at least I've been busy. Though I haven't been reading as much as I wanted to, lately. The downside of being busy.

I believe when undergoing your internship, you do as much project as possible in order to expose yourself. This project might not be engineering-related, but I consider myself lucky to have been exposed to so many areas in the plant because of this video project. Everything has a hikmah behind it I believe. Allah always knows best :)

May the next remaining 2 weeks of my sweet free time be put to good use. 

Have a happy weekend!

Internship Life Phase 1

I recently presented my Student Industrial Internship (SIT) for UTP in front of my lecturer last Thursday. When it was over, I felt nothing but gratitude for the endless work experience and life lessons I've learnt in QHSSE, SRCPD. It isn't easy to land yourself in a department that trusts in your capabilities and are willing to guide you when you've screwed up or made mistakes. It's even harder to arrive in a place where love and respect are spread all around in the comfort of laughs and smiles.

Days before my presentation, I was nervous and insecure of the jobs I've been handling for the past 12 weeks. I was afraid that it wasn't as 'engineering-related' as the lecturer hoped it would be. But Alhamdulillah, he was quite pleased with what I contributed and pleased to find myself engaging with most of the staffs to gain experience.

Me during before the presentation. I swear I wasn't zoning out!

Now that Phase 1 is over, in 4 weeks time I'll move on to Student Industrial Project (SIP) where I'll actually have to do something related to my course. *Gulp*

Asides from that, we said goodbye to SRCPD's previous Managing Director Dato' Rozano Saad 2 weeks ago. A friendly, but firm fellow. I wish him all the best in his next achievement in life. God I wish I could be like him some day, Insyallah.

You know he's cool when he's willing to take selfies.

Other than that it's been one heck of an exciting week for me. Endless visits to plant to see safety practices and joining the OMLT Turun Padang in conjunction with the arrival of our new MD, Amir Bakar. He insisted we go to the plant and do a gotong royong to clean up the place.

We trainees had more fun than one might think one might have while picking up rubbish/wastes. 

I swear the days have been nothing but sun, clear skies and heat!

Here's to the next phase of internship and may it bring more memories, lessons and acts of kindness & forgiveness along the way ^^

With the rest of the safety trainees, Syafiq & Adib

Discovering Independence and Acceptance

I've always felt like it was fate that brought me to Shell Port Dickson. When I got that phone call, I just knew I had to take the offer despite having doubts about the office-based work (which seniors kept complaining was less adventurous than working hands-on in a plant, which later turns out to be a huge advantage for me).

Something was telling me, go for it. 

I've always been a big believer in Allah's rezeki for us and His plans. When I got SRCPD, I listened to my heart. And it beating peacefully was a good sign, I felt. It was different than when I different offers, my heart was racing and I was so scared, of something I don't think I will ever know. 

I was cautious the first day I came here. I doubted myself, I didn't know if I could live up to the previous trainee's performance, or even make the staffs remember me after I'm gone (which I don't think I will ever find out either). But one thing I did plan to do: try my best and prove that I am capable of whatever they throw my way. 

I've learnt something as I grew up into my 20's, the job is as exciting as you perceive it to be. If you think a job is mindless or a hassle, then that's what it will be. If you see the hikmah behind a job Allah has granted to you, then you believe that you're meant to learn at least something from it. 

I've been here for 5 weeks and a half, and I realise slowly I am discovering 2 things in Shell PD:

1. Independent working 

You're on your own. But that doesn't mean you can't ask around for tips and hints to help you. People here are more than willing to point the way, but they won't go with you. That strength to go into uncharted areas (like Operations & Finance Department) must be discovered deep within, extracted, and manifested into courage. 

2. Gaining acceptance

I honestly feel so overwhelmed and flattered by this. I came here as a trainee, no more no less. I know people will ask me to do mindless (again it's all about how you perceive it) jobs and I'm just here to learn and gain knowledge. I didn't expect to be respected, given projects with complete full trust , nor even feel like a part of the family.

But that's exactly what I got. 

And I am truly humbled and grateful by the experience. People keep believing in me to complete a task, no one smirks if I find difficulty finishing it and almost everyone here is friendly. 

No one tells me being a workaholic is bad, no one tells me I shouldn't do my work early and ahead of schedule and no one tells me to stop being such a nerd. 

I realize that all these years in college organizing my work, group-based lab reports, assignments, & projects and dutifully attending lectures & tutorials were 'training' prior to entering the working world. And work requires a lot of perseverance, effort and independence. 

College wasn't where I gained sleepless nights of experience partying or celebrating (though a couple of nights a year, I allow myself to celebrate close friends' birthdays). Heck, college wasn't even where I found that many friends, but just enough to find true ones. Instead college was where I got the discipline to prepare for work life. There, I learnt independence. Those endless years alone studying and the traumatic lack of social interaction were God's plans for something bigger in store. And not in any way I've ever expected. It rewarded me with a work life that appreciates my talents and capabilities, and most of all: accept me for who I truly am.

And I'll keep on working hard to continue adding value to whatever work I'm entrusted on, no matter how small. Reaching the top is no small feat. But each small step counts. 

Allah truly has laid out His plans so beautifully for us. But I know this is only the beginning to an amazing chapter. I know I shouldn't expect the same thing after I graduated. And I know that there will be more challenges to overcome in the future. 

And with that, I leave you with a beautiful prayer I read online:

"Oh God, I do not ask for you to ease my burden, but I ask you to grant me strength to face and overcome any burden come my way...."

LRCC at night, when I did my Operations Shift last week. 

An Introvert's Life in Port Dickson

Ah, it's the weekends again. Another 5 days of work has passed and boy has it been eventful. Life in PD has certainly been amazing. Loads of work, but the feeling of satisfaction of getting them done is great. I'm slowly interacting with people, and even making funny conversations! More than I've ever accomplished in UTP. I'm really grateful PD has been kind to be so far :) 

1. PD is food heaven. I swear there are so many food stalls here!

Here's my recent favourite nasi lemak corner (literally, it's perched under this huge tree) behind Jabatan Kastam PD. It helps when your department just loves to explore food. They bring you to the greatest places.

Such a small hut! But the sambal sotong is divine. I forgot to take a picture of the longtong I was eating. I was too hungry, my apologies.

2. Food aside, my SV sent me here for a safety training in OSHA 94 & FMA 67. If you're a UTPian this would be your 'beloved' Health, Safety & Environment subjects back in second year. OSHA stands for Occupational & Safety & Health Act and FMA is Factory & Machines Act. The whole training was aimed to teach us the requirements for any refineries to comply with safety regulations set by the government. 

Each training no doubt costs hundreds of Ringgit per person, so I'm very grateful to have been sent here free of charge.

Especially when the view is facing the ocean:

They even had swing sets! It was so peaceful and idyllic just swinging around waiting for the other dudes (I was the only girl there) to arrive.

Back to work. It was a pretty insightful session. Sure it was only about policies and rules, but it beats learning in lecture halls. Plus the 3 free meals were delicious.

 I also got to know the staffs from Shift A Team, and I will be joining them next week when I enter Operations for a week. They're really nice (everyone in PD is).

3. After work, i found a pretty interesting way to capture OOTDs:

4. And a fellow trainee and I have been obsessed with puns lately. They're so punny! 

 Happy Weekend everybody!