The date 22nd October 2016 was a day to be remembered. I had my Master’s Degree Convocation Day at the UPM Great Hall! It was a bittersweet memory for me, I can vouch that. It felt as if yesterday that I wrote my blog entry on the Master’s Degree briefing at The Zaa’ba Hall on 13th February 2014 (REFER to https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2014/02/13/master-of-mass-communication-episode-3-the-choice-master-of-corporate-communication-mccomm-universiti-putra-malaysia-a-k-a-upm/) and now I have already graduated and is pursuing my 1st semester of Ph.D in Human Communication (Insya ALLAH!). Surreal, feeling!
A shot by Dr. Akmar! Thanks Dr.! Wow, I looked so ROUND from the hindsight! I must control my eating routine! Haha! But oh, well! Malaysia has so many delicious and sumptuous food!
A shot by Kakak from the VIP seating. Vague but precious. Thanks Kakak!
The two years throughout Master’s Degree was not easy. I don’t know if people said that “Master’s Degree is easy” or “easier than Degree”; but for me those were untrue. Doing it part time, driving back and forth to UPM from Serendah & Batang Kali was really tiring as the journey tantamount to 70 km per journey. Nevertheless, I am proud of myself for being bold to follow my heart and to do what I want to do. I have been aspiring to study Communication my whole life and now I did what I always aspired to. When Ayah wanted me to do Science Stream at Form 4, it was a point of “7 years of aimless pursuit”.
Haha! Master Haus! Najmi, Ereen, Kak Bed, I, Bad, and Hilya. LMAO!
(,”).
Miss you guys! Farah Nijida, Lynn, Hilya, Bad, Kas, Kelwin, Najmi, Aan, Kak Bed, Sha and Ereen!
Gonna miss you guys! Thanks so much. A great memory during our 2 years of Master’s Degree. Mat Ley, Najmi, Ajie, Ereen, Hilya, Bad, Kak Bed and Chen Chen.
I always knew that I was inclined towards Humanities (I am good in History and languages) but I was stuck with Chemistry, Physics and Biology and the dreadful Add Maths! I wasn’t a total loser as I did score A2 for Biology, B4 for Chemistry, B3 for Physics and C5 for Add Maths (gasp!) but I know if I was in Arts Stream, I would have nail all As including the Science. But, oh well. Dragged into Penang Matriculation and then into Biological Science (Microbiology) in USM. And FINALLY, Master in Corporate Communication! For in-depth narration, REFER to my past entry at https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2014/09/14/why-do-i-choose-masters-of-corporate-communications-a-microbiology-degree-holder-a-banker-a-teacher-the-barenaked-confessions/.
Najmi, Hilya, Kak Bed, Ereen and Bad from Master Haus! Thanks guys for believing in my strength and helped me in this world of Communication. Learn loads from you guys. Will not forget our IMC (Integrated Marketing Communication) endeavours and PR (Public Relation) event.
I am glad that I actually took initiative to blog about my Master’s Degree endeavors in my blog under the CATEGORY of https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/category/master-of-mass-comm/ . Sometimes, a few people messaged me to inquire about the Master Of Corporate Communication programme in UPM and I am glad that I could help them. I also bumped into a few strangers and received anonymous callers who were interested to know about the programme and the mini research I conducted on Cadbury’s Halal Image (not that my research was academically good; it was more on the technical part on taking subjects, etc). I blogged almost everything during my Master’s Degree programme (2014-2016) :-
- The subjects I took every semesters;
- The presentations I did every semesters;
- The group projects and events I participated;
- My CGPS for every semester and CGPA overall;
- My Mini Research Paper “Malaysian Moslems’ Perceptions Towards Cadbury’s Image Repair & Its Halal Image (Process & Presentations);
- The death of beloved sister figure coursemate, the late Kak Yati (Noraiyati Omar);
- and many more issues related to mass and human communication from my amateur point of view.
Haha, Bird’s view?
Having friends outside from the school and education cocoons also help me to “breathe again”. After 4 years stuck in the same atmosphere, I need fresh air and new angles to scrutinize. Initially, I did feel the prejudice or apprehensiveness (or maybe it was just a hunch; but usually my guts are sharp!) of my coursemates towards me. An effeminate childlike primary school teacher doing Corporate Communication, no? But I soon proved my worth and I myself learned to acclimatize with them.
On the way into the Great Hall. What a Harry Potter moment for Bad, I and Najmi! Haha!
Above all, my Master’s Degree Convocation was all about meeting back my friends! It was nice to have get-together. We have gone through the ups and downs together. To my Master Haus coursemates, you guys are the best. When no one befriended me, you guys appeared! I always remember that! I told my parents that it would not be practical for them to come as then they would have to go back to Kedah for Rifqi’s schooling. So, Kakak and Abang Zam came. And well I didn’t bask for anyone’s attendance except for this one particular person who has been my rock. But an eleventh hour setback was that there was a duty called to Perak. I was being an emotional childlike and refused to prolong the conversation although I could tell the nervousness in the voice trying to tailor words to convey that news to me. And on the next day, I did receive a congratulatory message from Perak. I guess I should shun my emotional part and be grateful that at least I have someone who is so dear to me. Look at my married friends! They are OK and understand that their spouses couldn’t be on that day due to professional tasks! So, SHAHRILL please THINK! Haha!
Priyadarshini and I. Our 2nd runner up Miss India Malaysia and a philantrophist! I like her visions and doing good to the world. She has been to Nepal, Sri Lanka and many more to do volunteering! Amazing!
I, Priya and Rozisham – who happened to be my sister’s colleague!
Anyway, as I am jotting this at UPM Graduate Wing after my KOM 6117 class (my Ph.D class), I am feeling quite worn-off. This class is good but it makes me feel so dwarved that I realized that I need to READ MORE to enrich myself with all the epistemological, ontological and axiological parts of theories. I need to make habit that reading Communication Books are my “favourite past times” so that I can easily quote scholars to deny any defiance thrown to me and my research. Doing Ph.D while working; that is what I am doing. If I can pull this off, surely it is another credit and feather on my hat because most people do this full time. Insya ALLAH. Always have faith in myself.
I thought it was sentimental for Kakak to put this collage. Initially it was to remind how that our faces are ballooning just within 3 months! Apparently, travelling will shrink you. Well, running chasing the trains with 3 extra baggage, no? Hahaha! During Kakak’s convocation at Leeds and mine at UPM.
Abang Zam, Kakak and Raess Nafiz! (,”)
“Tiada yang mustahil di dunia. Segalanya mampu ditawan. Sejauh manakah kemahuan? Demi ke sana?” – My Master’s Degree anthem “Lebih Indah” by Siti Nurhaliza. Well, for my Ph.D; “Wings” by Delta Goodrem is the anthem!
I had memorable journey of Master in Corporate Communication in UPM. And now I am embarking my Ph.D in Human Communication in UPM as well. Ya ALLAH, I hope I can persevere this. Amin!
The convocation video shared from Kelwin’s Facebook page. Check me out at 2:08. Haha!