Many people are faced with unfair barriers along their journey. Barriers like socioeconomic were often too rigid and became reasons for many to quit, sometimes before even starting. These barriers were definitely not the reason for one of SBM ITB alumni who has managed his way into many achievements and accomplishments, even during the Covid outbreak. In SBM ITB Talks Episode 58, we discussed how a person can overcome barriers and his ability to adapt to change. Our guest is Ilham Nugraha one of the 2020 SBM ITB alumni who currently became viral on Twitter. Kak Ilham is an LPDP awardee for the postgraduate program at Cornell University where he is also active as a graduate research assistant.
Overcoming socioeconomy and language barriers
Kak Ilham explores and strategizes his way to become a very accomplished student Kak Ilham talks about how his journey started during his participation in SBMPTN. To be able to enter SBM ITB through the SBMPTN pathway takes a lot of effort and preparation. Not everyone has access to the same preparation and education. That is when the importance of exploring and strategizing comes to use. The language barrier was also very significant for Kak Ilham. The limited access to learning English through formal institutions was not a reason for Kak Ilham who is self-taught through entertainment media and digital content
Striving amid the challenges of Covid-19
The pandemic was a difficult time for almost everyone. Kak Ilham spoke on how the pandemic impacts various plans he had previously prepared and how he faced drastic changes by utilizing technology and the requirements for registering and participating in various institutional activities carried out online.
Preparations for further studies that begin with “good intentions”
Always set the intention to be noble, the intention for the benefit of the people. A motivation should only be a writing submitted during the selection process. Kak Ilham explains the importance of understanding your “why” and how these reasons can be achieved by the further studies.