Ashviny Murugan, daughter of a lorry driver, receives Royal Education Award (Pingat Jaya Cemerlang)

KUANTAN, 17 March 2022 - The daughter of a lorry driver was proud when she received the Royal Education Award (Pingat Jaya Cemerlang) at the 15th Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP) Convocation Ceremony.

Ashviny Murugan, 25, graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering Technology (Pharmaceutical) with Honours degree from the Faculty of Chemical and Process Engineering Technology (FTKKP), receiving the award presented by the Pro-Chancellor, Tan Sri Dato’ Sri (Dr.) Abi Musa Asa’ari Mohamed Nor during the first session of the ceremony held at Dewan Jubli Perak Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah, Kuantan.

Ashviny is the daughter of Murugan Vasu, 46, who works as a lorry driver at KSG Enterprise Sdn. Bhd. and Maruthamah, 45 who works as an R&D general worker at Sime Darby Plantation Sdn. Bhd.

Born into a simple family, the eldest of five siblings was raised by her grandparents due to the busy work of her parents to earn a living.

For her, even though her parents were busy making a living, they were the backbone of her success.

She said the difficulties faced since childhood were the driving factors to succeed.

“I’ve seen my parents keep working without taking any time off despite being unwell.

“Since then, I have decided to help them to ease the burden of life in the future.

“Learn to change for the better and continue to succeed to eventually bring a smile on their faces,” she advised.

Ashviny successfully completed his secondary schooling at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Jeram, Kuala Selangor with an excellent result of 8A in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination.

She then continued her study at the certificate level at the Melaka Matriculation College in Module 1 (Biology and Physics) and successfully obtained a CGPA of 4.00.

Aspiring to become an engineer, Ashviny was determined to choose to continue her study at UMP.

Ashviny’s excellence was evident when she won the dean’s award for six consecutive semesters and successfully completed her bachelor’s degree with a first-class status with a CGPA of 3.70.

Not only excelled academically, Ashviny was also active in various co-curricular activities.

Although it was difficult at first to juggle her time between academic and co-curricular activities, she quickly adapted and wisely filled her free time by participating in various community service activities such as corporate social responsibility (CSR) programmes.

In the bustle of completing her final year project with a relatively high credit balance, she still had the opportunity to participate in international CSR activities held in Thailand.

Her active involvement in association activities and participation in various research competitions helped hone her leadership talent and further highlight her potential and self-confidence.

This is evidenced by her selection as the treasurer of the ‘Malam Koi Anti-Corruption’ programme organised by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), Exco of Science and Technology, Student Union of the Faculty of Engineering Technology (PROTECH), head of the registration team for Freedom Run 2.0 organised by MACC, facilitator of the In-Smartive Motivation Camp of Sekolah Kebangsaan Serandu and a member of the UMP 2.0 Indoor Archery Championship committee.

She has also faced various problems and challenges while studying at the university.

“However, I never gave up on my study and continued to motivate myself to graduate with flying colours.

“Nothing is impossible in this life. We can make everything impossible possible if we try,” she said.

She has many bittersweet memories during her study at UMP.

The biggest success that impacted her was when she won a silver medal in the 10th Creation Innovation Technology and Research Exposition (CITREx 2020) competition for her research work and won the runner-up in the Do It Yourself competition organised by the International Festival of Innovation on Green Technology (i-FINOG).

The life principle ‘what you think is who you will become’ had been a daily chant throughout her study at UMP which has provided invaluable life experience.

Active participation in various co-curricular activities has indirectly trained and shaped her into a stronger, disciplined and mature person to face the real working environment.

The industrial training experienced in the last semester of study also added value when Novugen Pharma (M) Sdn. Bhd. offered her a job opportunity as an Engineer (Pharmaceutical Compliance) at the Engineering Department after completing six months of industrial training at the company.

As the world faced the COVID-19 pandemic, she also felt the effects.

Although it was difficult at first to adapt to the new norm, it was not an excuse for success.

Spending the remaining semester online demanded that she be smart to manage her time, multitask, and improve her communication skills and cooperative attitude towards each others.

Intending to continue her study at the Doctor of Philosophy level, this young lady hoped that all the experience and knowledge gained at UMP could be applied to help the younger generation.

She also hoped that her success story could inspire the youngsters to continue to strive for excellence.

By: Nadira Hana Ab Hamid, Faculty Of Manufacturing and Mechatronics Engineering Technology (FTKPM)

Translation by: Dr. Rozaimi Abu Samah, Engineering College/Faculty of  Chemical and Process Engineering Technology