A Long and Bumpy Road to His Dreams

Nur Ramadhan Jumali has been drawn to the world of IT since he was 5 years old, when his father bought him a personal computer to play with. Even at that young age, he grasped that computers & IT would be both hugely popular and revolutionary. And now at age 21, he is convinced that technology can change the world. He hopes to use his IT skills for the greater good and is well on his way, already volunteering in the IT team of the Malay Youth Literary Association and previously in NYP’s Silver IT Fest to help the elderly learn IT skills.

 

His dream in Secondary school was to get into NYP’s Diploma in Information Technology course via the Polytechnic Foundation Programme after his Sec 4NA year. Although he would eventually get into the course, it would be via a very different path. In Sec 3 Ramadhan was performing well in his studies until his sister, who suffered from cerebral palsy, passed away suddenly. Her death had a profound effect on Ramadhan. He missed many classes while tending to his sister in hospital, and upon returning to school he was unable to concentrate on his studies, and felt like giving up. And then came one of the lowest points of his life, when he received his Sec 4 results only to find that he had missed his PFP dream by one point. The cutoff was 11 points and he had scored 12.

 

Nevertheless he soldiered on, joining ITE College West armed with new plan, to work even harder and enter NYP through the Direct Entry to Poly Programme. With hard work (very hard work - he maintained a 4.0 GPA for the 2 years at ITE! ) he completed his course at ITE and was granted Direct Entry into 2nd year at NYP. His plan had succeeded, even if it took a little longer.

 

At NYP Ramadhan dove in headfirst, thriving in the world of IT. It was a steep learning curve, culminating in his Final Year Project where he created a virtual reality (VR) game. Combining skills in game design, animation and 3D modelling, he also needed to ensure the game integrated properly with VR headsets. He credits his success to his FYP supervisor Ms Leow Zhen Zhen and his classmates, for their constant support.

 

Looking back on his long path to NYP, Ramadhan’s advice is to never give up, no matter what life throws at you. Keep trying, and work as hard as you can. “I believe that everyone should think positively all the time. If we do not get what we want, it’s not the end of the world. There are other doors that open up for us to enter, it’s just a question of whether or not we will step in and accept the challenge”. Wise words indeed!

 

Because We Can