Tan Chon Sern
Bachelor of Science (Hons) Actuarial Science
Alumni March 2010

University life has brought me to realize that education really starts at the tertiary level. When I first step foot in UTAR 4 years ago as an enthusiastic foundation freshman, I was overwhelmed by the gap of the standard of education between university and school. Getting accustomed to the fully English-medium material and higher level of education costed me effort and time.

Time definitely flies and today, I'm in my 5th year as a student of UTAR. Having completed 1 year of Foundation in Science and 3 years of Bachelor of Science (Hons) Actuarial Science, I'm currently enrolled as a student in Masters of Mathematical Science (statistics). When I completed the last subject in my last degree finals, I knew it really wasn't my last as I already had in mind the intention of furthering my studies. Age, the time at my disposal and the attractive prospect of higher quality of life quickly made up my mind. The only potential setback was that I wasn't the brightest of students and I had to wait till the release of exam results to know that I met the entry requirement for masters' application.

Choosing UTAR for me was quite a straightforward decision as I know that the university's weaknesses are easily outweighed by its strengths such as the quality and spirit of the teaching staff, its reputation of producing students with high employment rate, the relevance of the masters' course (statistics) in the society and not the least, its social learning environment. For these reasons, I am very thankful to UTAR for the opportunity of prolonging my educational stint with the university.

From my experience, the journey of completing a degree is always in danger of becoming a lackadaisical routine for students where we slack through the process of doing assignments, memorizing for exams and finals as long as we pass every semester. The timeframe of 14 weeks for as many as 6 subjects per semester makes it more of a challenge in terms of balancing our time and effort, and I believe it's a challenge that moulds our attitude in working life. Do we do our job for the sake of doing it or do we make sure we are good and understand what we are doing?

To me, a constant driving force to work hard in my studies is knowing the importance of a successful career to a man and the value of a person as a member of the society. Thinking of the possibility of being a person without contribution to the society keeps me working hard. And I have to admit that one of the motivational signboards hanging all over UTAR walls says it best: "It's better to do and not promise than to promise and not do." With my efforts in my masters, actuarial society exams and R&D project as a research assistant, I wish I can pave the way for a successful career in the line of insurance or statistics for myself in the future.

I hope for the best in everyone's undertakings in achieving their dreams and goals. Thank you.