One Night at UTP

1. I came back yesterday from UTP's EDUCAMP interview programme, December edition.

2. I'll be honest. This 2-day EDUCAMP thing demands hard work.

3. The schedule is jam-packed along the way, seeing the morning of the first day entirely filled with talks from various Petronas Education Division and UTP personnel.

4. After 5 hours of talk, we were all given merely 45 mins to rest and eat, before English, Math and Science tests commence, which lasted around 3 hours.

5. For the English test, 50 multiple-choice questions were given. For the M&Sc test, 30 multiple-choice questions were given. All are of SPM standard.

6. After these tests, we got a few hours of valuable rest. Then, another motivational talk from a 27- year old UTP alumni who is currently generating a five figure salary from the oil&gas industry was arranged for us.

7. We went back to our rooms at nearly 11 that night. We relaxed, talked a bit about next day's interview, until we got bored and hungry. Fuzai decided to go out for food, and we followed.

8. UTP at midnight is such a peaceful place. Unfortunately, not one cafe` or canteen were open at this hour. We were too late. Giving up on the search for food, we took a stroll towards UTP's an-Nur mosque, which is lit up at night. You can't miss it. It's a very modern mosque, surrounded by a lake. We helped ourselves to a tour. We also played with the masjid's doors:) You need to press a button to open the doors, something like opening the doors of a LRT or monorail. Very cool.
We slept reasonably late that night.

9. Next day was the core business of the programme; the interview. Myself and Fuzai were placed in Group E of the 5-group interview that day. Group E started at 2p.m, and finished interview at 5.30p.m. The interview ran smoothly for me. Alhamdulillah. I was in a group of four, and we had to discuss our given topic in front of two UTP lecturers, in a business meeting kind of style. My colleagues were two 20-something-year olds from Johor & N9, and a 17-year old Chinese girl, also from Johor.

10.The end of our interview marked the end of our 2-day EDUCAMP experience.

11. Much effort and hard work was required for this EDUCAMP, but at the end it is a very rewarding and self-enriching experince. You gain more than what you lose. Yes, it's a very busy 2 days for me, but I thrived in the rush of it all. Honestly, you can learn a lot from EDUCAMP.

12. I went back with my father. He said, "Nampak letih ja. Tak tidok ka?"
"Tak tidok sangat," I replied. "Keras."


" Ha? Keras? Ada...nampak..."


" Dak, dak. Bukan. Bantal keras:)"

13. That ends my EDUCAMP experience. How was yours? Chancellor Hall Masjid an-Nur...