My Potential To Become A Chemical Engineer

When I was 15 years old, I was chosen to participate in the Environmental Leadership Program organised by Universiti Malaysia Terengganu held in Kuala Nerus, Terengganu. I am very intrigued to learn and explore marine life, especially sea turtles. Sadly, throughout the years the number of sea turtles in most places has nosedived and some populations are on the edge of extinction. In 2015, it is estimated more than 15 trillion pieces of plastic trash in the ocean and the despairing fact is the sea turtles and other marine life mistakenly consider plastics and other waste as food and ingest it which eventually lead to death. I decided to be a chemical engineer so that I will be able to create products through chemical processes and technology to improve others lives and maintain the sustainability of nature.

Ever since I was introduced to chemistry when I was 16 years old, I have been drawn by how it touches every aspect of our existence from the understanding of the interactions of atoms, molecules, and ions leading to the formation of the chemical bonds which hold particles together. I stumbled upon a book named Polymer Science and Engineering contributed by the National Research Council which opened my mind to explore details regarding polymers. Polymers have brought mankind to a new level of advancement especially in communication, biotechnology and definitely our everyday life but the danger is that synthetic polymer can cause harm to the environment.

I aspire to create a safe polymer technology which can be fully used to increase the rate of the decaying of the synthetic polymer by modification of the monomers of the polymer with specific enzymes and micro bacteria that can catalyse the decaying process. In 2016, I participated in the Kangaroo Mathematics Competition and succeeded in getting a bronze medal. Mathematics is the language of the universe and it is a satisfaction for me to be able to solve challenging mathematical problems although they may take hours or even days to solve. Taking A-Level Mathematics teaches me to solve problems by thinking outside the box. I joined the Malaysia Chemistry Carnival during my high school and my team invented a low cost and light electric generator by using the concept of electrochemistry that we have learnt. Aside from having theoretical knowledge in physics, I also make sure that my creativity and spirit of innovation are up to the mark. I took the initiative to join the Mighty Minds competition, an innovation quest where I created a transporting device using wooden sticks and straws as the main component and applying the concept of pulley and thrust.

I develop my leadership skills when I was the president for Journalist Club and the Red Crescent Society. As president, I organised numerous trips to volunteer a helping hand to the senior citizens and raised funds to help orphans. Being a leader has taught me to be organised, enhance my soft skills and embrace challenges. Last December, I joined a one-week course at an Outward Bound School. OBS taught me a lot of things such as survival skills, physical and mental strength, discipline and most importantly to help to push me beyond my comfort zone. Other than that, I learnt French during my high school years. I have a basic linguistic competency as I have taken two Diplôme d'études en langue française examinations and passed with flying colours. Being able to learn a foreign language, it has helped to build my self-confidence and increases my networking skills.

Ultimately, chemical engineering is the future of the world as the human race needs to constantly innovate and invent new technology to accommodate the variable possibilities of what will happen to our future. I firmly believe with the aid of the world-class education that your university has to offer, it can actualise the potential that I have and my wish to be part of the evolution can become a reality and able to live in a greener and safer Earth.