Ada Apa Dengan Universiti

Life in university can be very interesting if you pick the right activity and do things that you like most.

My short observation tells a lot on how life as a university student can be very mundane if you lock yourself in your room and do constant revisions.

Life in university goes beyond books and assignments. It is about constantly challenging your thinking on various issues. This is the right time to view issues from different perspectives as our early education might limit the liberty of our opinions.

I always enjoy my tutorial session especially during constitutional law subject as there is no right and wrong answer for every question. This is the time when my friends will exchange opinions in the most engaging manner. Every idea is supported with evidence and articulated creatively.

The underlying problem of our education system is it is riddled with the old ways of solving problem. The system itself does not inspire students to dream big and think big; only to be bound with what they learnt from books and classes.

Let’s go back to the issue. If you want your university life to be the time of your life, then do something beneficial (and fun).

P/S: ha ha this post is also a gentle reminder for me to do something too

My First Time

My years as a student were mostly spent as a school debater. Most of the people who come across me would identify me as a debater first, student second.

It crossed my mind sometimes whether I should continue to debate again. At the risk of sounding a bit pompous, everyone was expecting me to debate again as I set my foot in university. I hesitated for a while not to make any important decisions as I also needed a break from everything. Hence, every decision must be made with a thorough consideration.

I have this fear that if I were to repeat anything that I had done in the past, it might lead me to stay in my own comfort zone. The moment that I did not make it to the UK, I know that for every single thing that I’m going to do next, it must be something new and different. Moving on to new frontier often offers you new experience and more importantly, you know where you stand.

In that respect, my recent participation in a moot court competition in University Malaya gave the most valuable lessons of all. It was so refreshing to see myself back in the same business again albeit it was in a different setting and the competition itself demands more hard work and expectations from the participants.

I had problems in the beginning to make myself comfortable with the team. I was taught since day one that chemistry among team members plays huge role in determining the success of any teams. That was my first time having non-Malays team members fighting alongside me in a competition (see, it doesn’t take a hollow slogan to unite us the Malaysians). That was my first time went against participants who spoke better English than me. That was my first time being judged by law lecturers and practicing lawyers who constantly asked tough questions in every single minute of my oral submission.

We did not make it, but it was such a great deal to me as my encounter with this “new thing” reinforces my belief to keep doing new things although I may not be that good early on. At the end of the day, it is the journey that matters and not the destination. I learnt many important lessons, the same way I did during my debating years.

And remember, practice makes perfect (and our FIRST TIME is always ADDICTIVE ha ha)