Muhamad Sarizal bin Suhaimi

Growing up, I was just like any other kid. All I had to do everyday was to go to school and think about what I wanted to play with my friends in the evening. However, my mother passed away when I was 16, and it literally turned my whole world upside down. Life felt dull without the loving presence of a mother as it not only affected us as a family emotionally but also financially. Being a 17-year-old boy, I felt rather powerless. All I knew was I had to study hard and strive for excellence in school in order to help my family get out of this rut, and so I did! I was rigorous in my studies and thankfully I was able to excel in my SPM examinations. This landed me an entrance scholarship into Sunway College, and thus began #MySunwayStory. I passed MUFY with flying colours, and moved on to Sunway University to pursue my dreams. But just as I was getting comfortable, my father had a stroke, and just like that, the dark clouds came rolling back in. This time around, our financial woes were exacerbated to the point where I was worried that I wasn’t going to be able to afford my education fees. I was on the verge of ending my studies when I confided in one of my friends whom I met in Sunway. Being a Sunway Scholar herself, she introduced me to the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation Scholarship. After sharing my hardships and my excellent track record, I was awarded the scholarship.
 
Since then, I was able to focus on my life as a student in Sunway University. I had the good fortune of getting the full student experience as the scholarship also sponsored my accommodation in the campus. The lecture halls and classrooms were always conducive for studying and in between classes, there was the library to catch up with schoolwork, studies or even just relax. After classes, I would either hit the gym which had all the necessary equipment or head to Sunway Pyramid. Needless to say, I was able to focus on my student life with little to no disruptions and had a pleasant experience overall. But I think the thing that I liked or enjoyed most from my time in Sunway was the connections that I was able to make, friends, lecturers and mentors. I had the privilege to meet and work with a lot of people, not only as a student going through assignments, examinations and study nights, but also as a committee member in the Sunway University Business School Student Council (SUBSSC). In fact, one of my fondest memories of university times was having to go through the rigours of arranging a large scale charity event on behalf of the university. It was tough, but I was able to get through it with the help of my friends and committee members in making the event a success. In short, a university of quality certainly attracts people of quality, and Sunway is no exception to that.
 
Fast forward to today, I’m thankful to have been given the opportunity to experience life as a student in Sunway University. Sunway has never fallen short of my expectations and without the scholarship they offered me, I wouldn’t be where I am today. Sunway allowed me to pursue my passion and I can always look back on my achievement in graduating from a university of great stature, filled with fond memories with people that I cherish. As for what I have to say for my fellow juniors, the opportunity is right there in front of you. It is up to you to take a chance and grab it, may it be in joining an organisation, trying out for a sports team or even just saying “hi” to a group of people you’d like to get to know. You never know where it might take you. And to those of you facing hardships, if there’s one thing that I’ve learnt from 24 years of living, it is to cherish the good times and weather through the tough ones because just as the good times are temporary, so are the bad.
 
Muhamad Sarizal bin Suhaimi
Jeffrey Cheah Foundation Community Scholarship
BSc (Hons) in Accounting and Finance