Another New Chapter

I haven't had the chance to jot down something since I left UIAM 0n last 27th June, while taking a short break before I start a new life as a student again in USM, Engineering Campus, which I consider as another new chapter of my life.

I registered at USM on 30th June 2008, but the semester had only started on last Monday. There were originally 15 students accepted for this mixed-m0de of M.Sc in Chemical Engineering, but only 7 turned up on the registration day. Five of them are ex-students of USM, while only me from UIAM and another one from UiTM. For the moment, I am still in the mode of 'menyesuaikan diri dalam persekitaran yang baru' (familiarizing myself in a new environment). The 7 of us are the pioneer batch for this mixed-mode program at the School of Chemical Engineering here, and we’re supposed to finish everything by June next year.

Since last Monday, I've been traveling all the way from Taiping to Nibong Tebal, which took me about an hour, and cost me around RM20 per day for the petrol. At last, Alhamdulillah, I managed to rent a house in Parit Buntar. Nibong Tebal and Parit Buntar are 2 different places in 2 different states (Penang & Perak), but it takes me less than 10 minutes to reach USM.

Overall, everything looks ok here, but of course there're huge gaps & differences between USM and UIAM...the environment, the students, cafeteria, and so forth. So far, I'm happy with the lecturers, who are very friendly and helpful. The courses required for us are also critical in providing us with a clear direction towards our research goals. May Allah make it easy for us, amin..

Wassalam.