Lien Qiao Yi

I was not born with a silver spoon in my mouth, and thus, growing up in a family with high expectations, there’s always been a “somebody” that I’m expected to become. Sometimes it’s the all-rounder cousin that I have; other times it’s the extroverted friend of mine. Living in a life full of comparisons was not easy. Although it may be motivating at times, I was definitely not a fan of this. It was, you know, as if I was never going to be enough by just being myself.

I knew this wouldn’t end up positively in the long run as I was starting to lose myself a little more each day. But I carried on with it anyway, to maintain the calm and peace in the family. However, little did I know that this situation that I was in further piqued my interest in Psychology. I started to realise how fascinating it was to understand the behavior of others and how they would feel. And so, as someone who was very interested in Psychology, I found myself in a dilemma when it was time for me to decide on a degree to pursue. It was either to go for the degree that everyone around me expected me to pursue, a pure Biology-related Degree, or I could follow my heart instead, and go for a Psychology Degree. At that moment, I knew that it was time for me to stand my ground and so, I voiced out my desire to pursue a degree in Psychology and started searching online for scholarships that were available for the course. I proceeded to submit scholarship applications and went through numerous interviews, in hopes of obtaining a scholarship and increasing the likelihood of receiving an approval from my family to pursue a degree in Psychology. Thankfully, although my family was not fully supportive of my decision, they decided to give me a go after I successfully secured the Sin Chew Tertiary Education Fund scholarship. With that, here I am, pursuing a Psychology Degree in Sunway.

Today, I’ve met tons of amazing friends and lecturers here, and I’m definitely enjoying where I am and what I’m learning now. The food in the cafeteria, the awesome hangout places like Student LIFE and the clubs and societies in Sunway are definitely out of this world. Needless to say, my journey in Sunway University is truly a one-in-a-lifetime experience that I would never trade it away for. Is #MySunwayStory reminding you of yourself? Well, this is a sign for you to start prioritizing your own expectations before anything else and don’t let the expectations of others limit who you are. Trust me, you’ll definitely be happier when you’re becoming who you really want to be.

Lien Qiao Yi
BSc (Hons) Psychology
Sin Chew Tertiary Education Fund