My Postgraduate Journey

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيمِ

Hi pipol!

It's 2020 and I have finally completed my postgraduate study. Alhamdulillah. Anyway, I don't have much things to do except the translation and editing stuff. So, here I am - rambling about my postgraduate journey. I wanted to rant on Instagram or Twitter but I figured out that if I want to write long boring paragraphs, I better do it here. Plus, I haven't write anything for so long other than my thesis which was a torture. It's a miracle God kept me sane and happy during my thesis writing. Thank you, Allah.

Long story short, I enrolled into Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia on 4th September 2017 for Master of Arts (English Language Studies), like four months or so after I completed my degree. People asked me why I choose to do Master's Degree. Reason number one, I felt like I have let my parents down with my SPM result back in 2013. So, I wanted to you know, like achieve something extra for them. Reason number two, haha I am not going to tell you. Because you might call me crazy. But, none of the reasons include things like 'Oh because I want to be a lecturer' or 'I hope I can get paid more' or 'I think I can get better job with a Master's Degree'. 

My lovely school - School of Language Studies and Linguistics

My study mode was coursework and I remember vividly how happy I was when I got to know that there is no thesis for coursework. But boyyyyy, I was betrayed. I went to the briefing for postgraduate students on 5th September 2017 and the coordinator was like 'Walaupun kita mod kerja kursus, kita tetap ada thesis ya. Sebab ya lah, kita kan research university. So, memang wajib buat thesis.' Ha ha tipah tertipu. I wanted to quit at that moment but come on lah, I already paid so much for the fees, I doubt they would give me refund. Ini bukan Giant boleh mintak refund.

So I watlek watpis even though I was nervous. Very nervous. I know myself very well and I know how weak I am at academic writing and that weakness alone, was a hurdle to almost everything. But Allah is indeed The Most Merciful. I was blessed with helpful and caring classmates. People often say that postgraduate journey is a lonely path, but I beg to differ. It was arduous but not lonely in any way. The assignments were very interesting although at times, I felt like I was the stupidest person on earth because I literally know nothing. My classes were fun and I would say I learnt a lot.

So, my course includes 6 compulsory subjects and 3 electives subjects and a 12 credits Master Thesis. The fee was around 2k per semester which was the cheapest among most universities. Eheh that's why I chose UKM. Cheap fee heheh. I remember doing all sort of jobs (halal only) to earn money. It was hard back then. Anyway, I think the most interesting classes were Approaches to Discourse and Sociolingustics. You could analyse people from their language use and understand the underlying meanings. And oh, the amazing theories proposed by brilliant linguists. I LOVE THE TWO CLASSES THE MOST! 

Anyway, what did I learn form my postgraduate journey? Two important things:

1. I know nothing

It was humbling. I went to classes, listened to the lectures and I realised I know nothing. When I read journal articles from excellent researchers in the field, I felt like I don't understand English. Made me realise that no matter how good you are, there are always people better than you. And that, should be the reason why I should always stay humble. Berjalan tunduk ke bumi, hati terpasak di kaki, jangan mendongak meninggi diri. Whatever knowledge I have gained, they are all biiznillah, dengan izin Allah. If He wants to take away what I know, He could do it in one split second. So, really, I should never be proud of having a Master's Degree but rather, happy and grateful.

2. Work hard, pray hard

I paid my postgraduate fees on my own. So, I have to work. October 2017, I was accepted as a subtitler. I translated Bahasa Melayu subs into English until around May 2018. Then, around October 2018, I got a job as translator and editor for digital novels. Still working for the same company until now. It was so hard to work while studying. I have massive respect for people who are working and studying at the same time because now I know, I cannot do it. My sleeping schedule was a mess, just like my life. But, I realise when you give it your all, you just have to pray to Him. He will ease what was hard, and lighten what was heavy. I learn to rely on Allah a lot more than before. And indeed, when I gave my all and prayed to him after that, I got what I asked for. It's a combination of effort + time + prayers.

Anyway, I would like you to introduce you to my Susie Pie (my thesis. The Malay name is Susah Payah because memang susah nak mampus nak siapkan benda alah ni. Well, maybe it was because I was stupid but whatevs.)

Ah you baby, so pretty. And cost me so much money too. But issokay. You are worth it.

One in front of the school.

See my nameeeee?! 

Ayyyy, I think I should stop rambling. I hope when I grow old and all wrinkled, I would look back at this maroon baby and remember I did something amazing once in my life hahah. Also, now I should start looking for a new job and earn more money. Time to start hustling hard. I pray that everyone who is reading this would be blessed with endless rezeki and may all your matters be ease by the Almighty.
Thank you for reading!